American School System

Education is not mentioned in the Constitution, nor is there any federal department of education, so the matter is left to individual States. Education is free and compulsory in all States, however, from the age of 6 till 16 or 18. So, most American children go to State schools. In the USA these are called public schools. There are also some private schools, which are usually supported by religious organizations.

At 6 years of age children begin the first year of elementary school, which is called “Grade I” or “First Grade” (the second year is “Grade 2”, etc.). At elementary school the emphasis is placed on the basic skills — speaking, reading, writing and arithmetic, though the general principle throughout the American school system is that children should be helped and encouraged to develop their own particular interests.

Children move on to high school in the seventh grade, where they continue until the twelfth grade. There are two basic types of high school: one with a more academic curriculum, preparing students for admission to college, and the other offering primarily vocational education (training in a skill or trade). The local school board decides which courses are compulsory. There is great freedom of choice, however, and an important figure in high schools is the guidance counselor, who advises the students on what courses to take on the basis of their career choices.

There are no national exams, although some schools and States have their own exams. Generally examination is given by continuous assessment, which means that teachers assess children throughout the year on how well they do in tests, classroom discussions and written and oral work.

In order to receive the high school diploma necessary in most States to get into college, students must accumulate a minimum number of credits, which are awarded for the successful completion of each one- or half-year course. Students hoping to be admitted to the more famous universities require far more than the minimum number of credits and must also have good grades (the mark given on the basis of a course work and a written examination). Some colleges and universities require the students to take the SAT (Scholastic Aptitude Test).

Extra-curricular activity (such as playing for one of the school’s sports teams) is also very important in the American school system and is taken into consideration by colleges and employers.

Higher Education

There are about 3,000 colleges and universities, both private and public, in the United States. Students have to pay to go to both private and State universities. Private universities are generally smaller but very expensive, which means that the tuition fees are extremely high. State colleges and universities are not that expensive, the tuition fees are usually lower, and if the students are State residents, they pay much less.

Every young person who enters a higher educational institution can get financial assistance. If a student is offered a loan, he should repay it (with interest) after he has left the college. Needy students are awarded grants which they do not have to repay.

Scholarships are given when a student is doing exceptionally well at school.

American universities and colleges are usually built as a separate complex, called “campus”, with teaching blocks, libraries, dormitories, and many other facilities grouped together on one site, often on the outskirts of the city. Some universities are comprised many campuses. The University of California, for example, has 9 campuses, the biggest being Berkeley (founded in 1868), San Francisco (1873), Los Angeles (1919), Santa Barbara (1944), Santa Cruz (1965).

All the universities are independent, offering their own choice of studies, selling their own admission standards and deciding which students meet those standards. The greater the prestige of the university, the higher the credits and grades required.

The terms “college” and “university” are often used interchangeably, as “college” is used to refer to all undergraduate education; and the four-year undergraduate program, leading to a bachelor’s degree, can be followed at either college or university. Universities tend to be larger than colleges and also have graduate schools where students can receive post-graduate education. Advanced or graduate university degrees include law and medicine.

Most college and university undergraduate courses last for four years. During the first two years students usually follow general courses in the arts or sciences and then choose a major — the subject or area of studies in which they concentrate. The other subjects are called minors. Credits (with grades) are awarded for the successful completion of each course. These credits are often transferable, so students who have not done well in high school can choose a junior college (or community college), which offers a two-year “transfer” program, preparing students for degree-granting institutions. Community colleges also offer two-year courses of a vocational nature, leading to technical and semi-professional occupations, such as journalism.

There are no final examinations at colleges and universities, and students receive a degree if they have collected enough credits in a particular subject. The traditional degree which crowns the undergraduate course is that of a Bachelor of Arts (B. A.) or a Bachelor of Science (B. S.). The lower level of graduate school is for obtaining the Master’s Degree (M. A. or M. S.), and the upper level is for the degree of Ph.D.

The most famous American higher educational institutions that were already in operation during the early period came into being through the religious zeal and philanthropy of their founders.

Higher education began in the United States long time ago, when the Puritan leaders of the settlement called the Massachusetts Bay Colony founded in 1636 Harvard College (Massachusetts). Established by John Harvard, English clergyman, this college was to turn into the most famous of the American Universities.

The College of William and Mary (Virginia, 1693) was the second institution of higher education founded in the Colonies. In 1701 Connecticut Puritans established Yale College (Connecticut).

All these Colonial colleges which were gradually turned into Universities with classical education established a balance between a Humanities and Science. Their aim was to train men for service in church and civil state.

By the 1770s several more colleges had been opened: University of Pennsylvania (Pennsylvania, 1740), Princeton University (New Jersey, 1746), Washington and Lee University (Virginia, 1749), Columbia University (New York, 1754), Brown University (Rhode Island, 1764), Rutgers College (New Jersey, 1766), Dartmouth College (New Hampshire, 1769).

Though the colleges in the first half of the first half of the 19th century were numerous and widely scattered over the settled area, their enrollments were comparatively small. Since 1870s the colleges have developed enormously. Their resources have multiplied, the number of their students has increased by leaps and bounds, the program of studies has broadened and deepened, the standards have been raised, and the efficiency of the instruction has greatly increased. Rigidly prescribed courses of study have given way to elective courses.

In the course of time, when research centers and experiment stations were attached to the Universities, these institutions turned into the strongholds of science and higher education. They developed a unique, typically American structure unlike any other existing University system in the world.

Date: 2015-12-11; view: 936