... the student is tested to determine entrance to a junior secondary school 12 to 15 years or to a senior secondary school 12 to 18 years. The senior schools lead to the professional schools and the universities. Scotland has eight universities, the oldest being St. Andres, founded in 1410. Edinburgh is knon for its school of medicine. The University of Glasgo emphasizes science and engineering.Life in the HighlandsOn the northest coast and on the islands there are tenant farmers called crofters. The crofts small farms are usually on or near the coast. Houses are built of stone gathered from the hillsides. They are roofed ith corrugated iron or a thatch of reeds and heather. Peat cut from the moors furnishes fuel for cooking and heating.On these crofts barely enough food can be produced for the farm families. They therefore dislike aste and have earned reputations for being extremely frugal. They are good farmers, but rugged ground, poor soil, and excessive rain restrict crops to oats, potatoes, and barley. They add to the family food supply by fishing in lakes and streams if inland or in the sea if near the coast. They raise sheep on the hills and pasture a fe cattle in the glens. In other parts of the Highlands, large sheep or beef cattle farms predominate.In August the tourist season begins in the Highlands. People from the Lolands and from England flock there to fish for salmon and trout or to hunt deer and grouse. The crofters then ork in hotels or serve as guides, boatmen, or gillies hunters attendants.The Highlands are sparsely populated. For centuries many of the young people have been leaving the crofts to find ork in the industrial Lolands or to emigrate to other countries. The government is trying to check this trend. Its reforestation program, for example, gives part-time ork to crofters at the same time that it improves timber resources.Hydroelectric plants on the sift streams furnish light and poer for homes and factories. Some of the poer is transmitted to the industrial Lolands. An atomic-research station is at Dounreay on the north coast. It supplies poer for a large aluminum plant. In southern Scotland electricity is generated in a nuclear plant located at Hunterston. Major industries in the Highlands are the eaving of oolens and the distilling of Scotch hisky, hich is made from barley.Gatherings of the ClansIn early days the rugged land led to the separation of the Highlanders into small groups called clans. Each clan as ruled by a chief. All the people of a clan had the same surname, hich often began ith Mac such as MacDonald, MacKinnon, MacLean, or MacLeod. The clansmen ore kilts short, pleated skirts hich are suitable for climbing the rough hills, and blankets for cloaks. Each clan had its on colorful pattern called a tartan for eaving cloth. These tartans are no commonly called plaids, and they are marketed throughout the orld. Today the kilt is not a crofters dress but a national costume, proudly orn for special occasions.The gatherings of the clans dra many visitors, especially to Inverness, hich is called the capital of the Highlands. At these gatherings athletes earing kilts compete in such ancient Highland sports as throing the hammer and tossing the caber, a long, heavy pole. Bagpipers and Highland dancers add color and interest to the gatherings.CultureIt has been argued that Scottish culture is merely a regional variation of the dominant British culture, but the Scottish culture has elements of independence. Edinburghs international festival of music and drama has been a major event since 1947, though Scotlands on contribution to the festival has been modest. The Scottish National Orchestra and the countrys opera and ballet companies, hich are supported by the Scottish Arts Council, have been idely acclaimed. The Glasgo School of Art is orld-famous. The architect and designer Charles Rennie Mackintosh 1868-1928 studied ther ... Download