The Education System in the United States

Vocabulary -Pre-school -Kindergarten Elementary School -Middle School (Junior High School) -High School -College -Graduate school -Teacher -Student -Principal -Superintendent -Administrator -Custodian -subject -to enroll -to apply -to educate -enrollment -major -minor -tuition -scholarship -institution -university -public school -private school -charter school

School in the United States Pre-School (Ages 4 or 5) Kindergarten (Ages 5 or 6) Elementary School – 5 Years (Ages 6 to 11) Middle School – 3 Years (Ages 11 to 13/14) High School – 4 Years (Ages 14 to 18) College – 4 Years (Typically, ages 18 to 22) Graduate School (Typically, ages 22 +) Masters’ Doctorate Law School Medical School

Pre-School and Kindergarten In the United States, children are required to attend a year of school before the 1 st grade of Elementary school. This school is called kindergarten (a word taken from the German). Kindergarten usually consists of a half-day of school, whether in the morning (roughly 9 AM till 12 noon) or in the afternoon (12 noon to 3 PM), 5 days a week. Pre-school is not required, but parents often choose to enroll their children for 2 years of school even before kindergarten.

Elementary School Elementary school (grades 1 – 5) is the first time students are required to attend a full day of school, typically from 8 AM until 2:30 or 3 PM Most elementary schools have multiple sections of each grade level, with roughly students in each classroom Public schools tend to have more students than private schools; private schools may have as few as 12 – 15 students in a class at a time Parents choose to pay to send their children to private school so that they can get more individual attention

Elementary School Typically, in grades 1 – 3, the same teacher will teach the students all of the material, e.g. Math, Language, Reading, Social Studies, Science, Handwriting In grades 4 & 5, there may be a separate teacher for Math, Science and Reading Students are given recess 1-2 times a day, as well as a period for lunch, and at least a couple times a week a gym (physical education) class In addition to teachers, staff of an elementary school includes a principal and vice principal, secretaries, and custodians

Middle School Grades 6 – 8; in some regions of the United States, the term Junior High School is used instead Middle school teachers typically teach a single subject (in some cases two if the subject matter is related, or if the teacher has expertise in the subject) Mathematics (Pre-algebra, algebra, geometry), Science (biology, chemistry, geology), English (grammar, writing, literature), language* (Spanish, French, German and/or Latin), History (World and United States), Computer science, religion (in private/religious school), health class (nutrition, drugs and alcohol education, sexual education)

Middle School Some students are selected to be placed in accelerated classes, in which subject matter is covered more rigorously and more rapidly Placement based on ability and work ethic Private schools tend to offer greater accelerated opportunities for gifted students than do public schools

High School Similar format and subject material as middle school, but material taught in greater detail Even more opportunity for accelerated classes for gifted students (Honors, Advanced Placement – AP) High schools are geared towards college preparation SAT (Scholastic Assessment Test) or ACT (similar test) required by the vast majority of American colleges and universities Test language, reading comprehension, writing reasoning, and mathematics skills High school mathematics (geometry, trigonometry, calculus) and language classes aim to prepare students for the SATs

High School Name of years (in high school as well as college): 1 st year – Freshman 2 nd year – Sophomore 3 rd year – Junior 4 th year – Senior

High School – extracurricular activities High school sports are very popular in the United States with two main levels of competition : Varsity and Junior Varsity Popular sports: Football (boys only), basketball, soccer, baseball, lacrosse, field hockey (girls), ice hockey, track and field, volleyball High school theater is also popular among high school students; preparation for a play or a musical often takes a few months Other extracurricular opportunities: school band, chorus, student government, various social clubs

Teachers’ pay Teachers’ salary is a major point of contention in the United States; many states legislatures are cutting their pay due to the fact that they do not work summers Range: $35,000 – 60,000 Depending on state, school, whether public or private, and tenure /experience/degrees obtained Public school teachers make more than private schools (state funding) School administrators typically make more; more pay for school district superintendents, etc.

American College and University System Public or private, American colleges and universities vary greatly in size, quality, location, system, etc. Colleges can have enrollments of anywhere from a couple hundred students to 45,000 – 50,000 (largest universities: Ohio State University, University of Texas at Austin, Penn State University) Tuition is less expensive for students who attend a public school within their home state Tuition range: $10,000/year - $50,000/ year Students may receive scholarships, for their academic performance, sports, theater, etc. Students must select a major or area of concentration to study, typically by their sophomore or second year in college

Colleges and Universities Popular majors : Business/Economics Biology Chemistry Pre-Med (specifically for students planning on going to medical school) Accounting History English Language (e.g. Spanish, French, German, Chinese, Italian, etc.) Psychology

American Colleges and Universities Typically, students have graduated within 4 years, but it is not uncommon for students to graduate (to obtain their B.A. or B.S.) in 4 and a half or 5 years. B.A. / B.S. : Bachelor of the Arts/ Sciences Classes are either 3 or 4 credits each, and students need 124 – 130 credits depending on the institution, the major, etc. For certain graduate schools, students need even more undergraduate credits in order to gain admission Graduate school is becoming more and more popular in the United States as students aim to differentiate themselves before entering the workforce.

Graduate School A lot of times, American people will work for a year or more after graduating from their undergraduate institutions (college or university) and go back for a Masters’ and/or Doctorate degree Popular Graduate degrees sought: Business (M.B.A., Law Degrees, various areas of concentration – engineering, History, Education, etc., Medical school) First level of graduate school: M.A. /M.S. (Master of the arts/sciences) Second level of graduate school: Ph.D. (Doctor of Philosophy) Separate - Law degree (J.D. – Jurist Doctorate), Medical degree (M.D. – Medical Doctor)

More on Postgraduate Education Typically, one can expect a better salary in a chosen field the higher level of degree attained. In order to teach and/or research a subject at the College or University level, one must attain a Ph.D. (in almost all cases) In order to teach at the high school level (and below), a lot of times one only needs a B.A. or B.S., however some schools/systems require an M.A. or M.S. Otherwise, teachers can expect better pay and a better chance at receiving tenure with a higher degree attained.

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