Elementary Education:
Under the 'Education for All' program driven by UNESCO, most countries have committed to achieving universal enrollment in primary education by 2015. In many countries it is compulsory for children to receive primary education. Globally, around 70% of primary-age children are enrolled in primary education, and this proportion is rising.

Primary Education-also known as Elementary education- consists of six or seven years of schooling starting at the age of 5 or 6. Schools which provide primary education are referred to as primary schools. Primary schools in these countries are further divided into 'infant schools' and 'junior schools'.

In the US the first stage of compulsory education is generally known as 'Elementary education'. It takes place in elementary schools-also called grammer schools- which incorporate the first six or eight grades and sometimes have a kindergarten. In some schools, teachers utilize a "looping system" to teach students for two conscutive years.

Over the past few decades, schools in the USA have been testing various arrangements which break from the one-teacher, one-class mould. Instead of sharing the same classroom and teachers, students would now have two-teacher, two-class mould where to learn about different subjects they will visit the concerned teacher in their specific rooms. Another alternate is to have the children have one set of classroom teachers in the first half of the year, and a different set of classroom teachers in the second half of the year.

Secondary education:
Following primary school, Secondary education is generally considered as the final stage of compulsory education. It is characterized by transition from the typically compulsory, comprehensive primary education to the optional, selective tertiary 'Post-secondary' education. Schools offering secondary education are called 'Middle schools' that span grades 6 through 8. Junior high schools span grades 7 through 9. Both are between primary education/elementary education and high school.

The purpose of secondary education can be to give common knowledge, to prepare for either higher education or vocational education, or to train directly to a profession. In high school, students obtain much more control of their education, and may choose even their core classes.

However, the exact boundary between primary and secondary education varies from country to country and even within them, but is generally around the fifth to the tenth year of education. Secondary education occurs mainly during the teenage years.

Depending on the system, schools for this period are called secondary schools or high schools. In the United States, Canada and Australia primary and secondary education together are sometimes referred to as K-12 education.

As part of education in the United States, secondary education usually covers grades 5, 6, or 7 through twelve.US was the world's front-runner in secondary education in the 19th and 20th centuries. The reason being this is the economic demand of labor with secondary education skills rose due to the rise of big business, advances in science and technology and large-scale retailing that led to the increase of returns of education. In the following years, the economic return to a year of education was high as the demand for office clerks and skilled blue-collar workers increased as well.