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The American
Education System
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Public Schools
Allstates in the USA provide universal,
free elementary and secondary
schooling for 12 years, from
kindergarten to 12th grade.
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Pre-school
Starts at age 4
Some kids attend daycare prior to
attending pre-school.
At what age did you start attending
school?
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Elementary Schools
• Children usually enter kindergarten (the first year of
elementary school) at age 5.
• Elementary school generally includes grades 1
through 5.
• Students finish elementary school when they are 10
or 11.
• In elementary school, the focus is primarily on
reading and math. Social studies, science,
technology, music, art, and physical education are
also part of the elementary school curriculum.
• Hours vary, but students attend school for 7 hours a
day. (for example, from 7:30 am to 2:30 pm or from
9:00 am to 4:00 pm)
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Middle School
• Middle School includes 6th, 7th, and 8th grade. Middle
School students have 6 periods a day, including required
and elective subjects. School starts at around 8 am and
ends around 3 pm.
• Required subjects for middle schoolers include language
arts, math, science, social studies, and physical education.
• Elective subjects for middle schoolers (and high schoolers)
include foreign languages (Spanish is by far the most
popular), art, shop (woods and metals), home economics,
drama, and music.
• Some regions of the USA have junior high schools, which
include 7th, 8th, and 9th grades. Otherwise they are very
similar to middle schools.
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High School
• Students aged 14 to 18 attend high school, which goes from 9th to 12th grade.
The students are classified as follows:
– 9th graders = freshmen
– 10th graders = sophomores
– 11th graders = juniors
– 12th graders = seniors
• Students take all the required subjects, along with their choice of electives.
• American high schools are characterized by a great deal of extra-curricular
activities, from sports to student government to clubs.
• Prom is a big dance held in the spring.
• Hours may vary, but usually high school is made up of 7 periods, from 7:30
a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
• http://www.albuquerquebulldogs.com/
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Unique courses in US schools
Drama – theatre class, students put on plays
ROTC– military training and discipline, students
wear uniforms
Woodshop – carpentry, making things with wood
Home Economics – cooking, sewing, keeping a
home
Art – painting, drawing, sculpture, pottery
StudentGovernment – students elect their own
representatives who deal with important issues
and plan activities (prom, etc.)
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What’s it like to go to high school in
the USA?
There are lots of cliques – groups of friends
based on common interests. People are
constantly categorized, and some of these
labels are pejorative. Here are some of those
categories:
Jock / Sporty
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Prep
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Emo/Goth
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Geek/Nerd
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High School Musical song – “Stick
with the Status Quo”
Inthis song, Sharpay complains about people defying
their assigned cliques – the ‘status quo,’ or the way
things currently are. Despite her complaints, this
message of the song is that students can defy the
categories of high school and be well-rounded young
people.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FBVUlgG8Lm8
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High School Life
Many extra-curricular activities, including (but
not limited to) the following:
Sports: football, soccer, baseball, volleyball,
wrestling, track, swimming. Usually there
are 3 teams – C-team, Junior Varsity, and
Varsity.
Performance: Drama, Speech, Chorus,
Choir, Swing Choir
Religious Clubs: Mostly Christian groups
Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Alliances
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Community Colleges
• Once students graduate from high school, they can
attend a community college or an university.
• Community colleges are post-secondary schools where
students can do one or more of the following:
– Complete the first two years of university courses (general
education or core subjects)
– Get vocational training and earn Associate’s Degrees in
fields such as Culinary Arts, Early Childhood Education, and
Manufacturing or Construction.
– http://cnm.edu/
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University Life in the US
Students complete about 2 years of
general education credits across all
subjects.
Students declare a major
(specialization) and possibly a minor
(second field of concentration) and
focus on this subject until they
graduate (usually in 4 or 5 years).
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California State University Long
Beach
http://www.csulb.edu/
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The University of Texas at
Austin
http://www.utexas.edu/
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University of New Mexico
www.unm.edu/
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Questions?
