Katie Subra, English Language Fellow

"We have an obligation and a responsibility to be investing in our students and our schools. We must make sure that people who have the grades, the desire and the will, but not the money, can still get the best education possible." Barack Obama In this year, the average annual price for undergraduate tuition, fees, room, and board was $16,789 at public 4-year institutions, $37,906 at private nonprofit 4-year institutions, and $23,364 at private for-profit 4-year institutions. All Statistics taken from:

The percentage of high school dropouts among 16- through 24-year-olds declined from 12.1 percent in 1990 to 7.1 percent in (That is still more than 3 million students.) In 2011, about 71 percent of young adults with a bachelor's degree or higher in the labor force had year-round, full-time jobs, compared with 65 percent of those with an associate's degree, 59 percent each of those with some college education and of high school completers, and 48 percent of those without a high school diploma or its equivalent. In 2012, a smaller percentage of young adults with a bachelor's degree or higher were unemployed than were their peers with lower levels of education.

Graduate School/Continuing Education Colleges/Universities, Technical Schools, Certification Programs K-12: Elementary, Middle, Jr./Sr. High Schools- Age 5-18 (Compulsory from 7- 17) Public School=free & most common. Other School Choices Vary (Immersion, Charter, Homeschooling, Montessori, Private) Colleges: 4 Year B.A. Programs Univeristy: 4 Year B.A. + Full Graduate Programs Masters Degree Programs (Required to teach College level) 2-3 Years M.D., Ph.D Programs, Post-Doc, Other Research, & Publications Required for Tenure Technical Schools offer 2 Year Associates Degrees & Certificates (Medical, Mechanical, Technological) On-the-Job Training or Certification may be ongoing. Teachers require CEC & Licensure.

Language Arts/English World Languages (sometimes) Math Physical Education Art Science (Earth Science, Biology, Chemistry, Physics) History & Social Studies Music AP Courses Electives – Art, Music, Phy.Ed, Industrial Arts, …

Moderate class sizes (20-30 students) Some support for Special Education Support for the Arts varies by district Individual States set standards for assessment and core subjects Teacher quality and amount of tax dollars spent/pupil varies by district. (The higher the property tax, the higher the public school funding… usually) Zoning causes competition and limitations for attendance of some schools Depending on the size of the district, K-12 could be in 1-4 buildings. (Elementary, Middle School, Jr. High School, Sr. High School) State/National Standards: Common Core, No Child Left Behind

Most high school students begin applying to 4 year schools in their Junior or Senior year (11 th /12 th grade) Competitive colleges require high test scores (SAT, ACT, AP College Courses) as well as volunteer experience and extra-curricular activities. Financial Aid and scholarships are available, but applications processes are difficult and sometimes limited. The percentage of students enrolling in college in the fall immediately following high school completion was 68.2 percent in Females enrolled at a higher rate (72.2 percent) than males. Students often wait to choose their major until after completing general credits in a 4-year University. While it is possible to complete a B.A. Degree in 4 years, many students take 5 years to do so, depending upon funding situations.

Larger Universities may be broken down into colleges: Liberal Arts & Humanities Medicine & Health Education & Human Development Business and Management Economics and Marketing Science and Engineering Nursing Biological Sciences Law School or other Graduate programs *Certificates, Professional License, A.A., B.A./B.S., M.A./M.B.A./M.S./M.L.S…, Ed.D/Ph.D/M.D, Post-doc

Belarusian Education US Education

Montessori Charter Schools Private Schools Immersion Schools Home-School & Distance Education Self-motivated and individualized education plans; small class sizes; mixed levels Publicly funded; privately operated Montessori & Charter are examples, but some private schools cost or are religiously affiliated Teach content courses through a foreign language (Chinese, Spanish,…) Parents/Guardians must follow state standards and complete standardized tests; Some courses are offered online

college-educated/

What major problem does he address with the US Educational system? What subjects are necessary for a proper education? How can we really assure that 'No Child is Left Behind' when schools in the US are serving a diverse population of 50 million students? Who should be in charge of making the rules? What are some of the problems of standardized tests? What does a good standardized test do? (Washback)