Transcript Slide 1
Education
in the United States
Robert S. Williams
The American University in Cairo
http://www.aucegypt.edu/faculty/rwillia
ms
Talk Structure
Educational Profile of US citizens
Education in the US is compulsory and local
K – 12
Colleges and Universities
Trade and special schools
Who Pays for Education
Public vs. Private
Education for special groups
(minority language students, underprivileged people, people with
disabilities, gifted students)
Educational Profile of US citizens
Educational Attainment 2004
Less than HS
HS or Higher
Bachelors Degrees +
14.8
85.2%
27.5
There are 56.1 million children (pre K – 12) in schools in 2006
• 48.5 million (88%) are in public schools
• 6.5 million (12%) in private schools
• 1.1 million (2%) are homeschooled
68% of all 2005 HS graduates were enrolled in college in Fall 2005
• 70% of women
• 65% of men
91% went full time.
• 44.3% worked while studying
Asian-Americans more likely to enroll in college than whites, blacks, or
Hispanics.
Education in the US
is Compulsory
Schooling is compulsory for all children in the United States,
but the age range for which school attendance is required
varies from state to state
Most states require children to begin school at 5 or 6, either
in kindergarten or first grade
Most states now require children to remain in school until
they are 18, though some states require school attendance
until 16.
Education in the US
is Local
Schools in the US are run by community school boards and
financed by local taxes.
School board members are elected by the community.
However, the state and federal governments also give money
to local schools.
In order to receive this money, local schools must meet
certain state and federal educational standards.
A new law, No Child Left Behind, requires that children be
tested by standardized federal tests and that individual
schools show improvement in student achievement.
K - 12
• Elementary school, grade school, grammar school, and public
school are all interchangeable names for schools that begin with
kindergarten or first grade and end either with fifth or sixth
grade.
• Students do not choose a course structure and remain in a single
classroom throughout the school day, with the exceptions of
physical education , music, and art classes.
• Education is relatively not standardized. Students learns basic
arithmetic, English proficiency, and fundamentals of other
subjects.
Middle School
• Middle school, junior high school, and intermediate school are
all interchangeable names for schools that begin in 6th or 7th
grade and end in 8th or 9th grade. Students in middle school
are in the age range from 12 – 15.
• Middle school students take classes from several teachers each
day, moving from classroom to classroom.
• The classes are usually a strict set of science, math, English,
and social science courses, interspersed with a reading and/or
technology class.
High School
• High school runs from grades 9 through 12.
• In high school, students obtain much more control of their
education and often may even choose their core classes
• There is no ‘school leaving exam’ for US high schools, but
students wishing to attend universities must take a standardized
entrance test (SAT or ACT).
• High school students do not usually specialize in a particular
subject.
High School Curriculum
• Science (biology, chemistry, and physics)
• Mathematics (usually three years minimum, including algebra,
geometry, algebra II, and/or precalculus/trigonometry)
• English (four years)
• Social Science (various history, government, and economics
courses, always including American history)
• Physical education (at least one year)
• Many states require a "Health" course in which students learn
anatomy, nutrition, and first aid; the basic concepts of sexuality
and birth control; and why to avoid substances like illegal
drugs, cigarettes, and alcohol.
High School Curriculum
Electives
• Visual arts (drawing, sculpture, painting, photography, film)
• Performing Arts (drama, band, orchestra, dance)
• Shop (woodworking, metalworking, automobile repair,
robotics)
• Computers (word processing, programming, graphic design)
• Athletics (football, baseball, basketball, track and field,
swimming, gymnastics, water polo, soccer)
• Publishing (journalism, yearbook, literary magazine)
• Foreign languages (French, German, and Spanish are common;
Arabic, Chinese, Latin, Greek and Japanese are less common)
Colleges and Universities
The terms university and college are often used to refer to postsecondary education institutions.
The US has both private and public universities and colleges.
The most prestigious of these, such as Harvard and Stanford, are
private.
There are two basic types of post-secondary schools: Four-year
and two-year.
Two-year schools are called community colleges, which offer
Associate of Arts or Science degrees.
People who complete community college often enroll in four-year
universities, where they need only take the last two years to earn
a degree
Trade and Special Schools
Police and fire academies are local or state institutions
Trade schools teach:
–
–
–
–
hair styling
aircraft mechanics
Computer skills
Medical technical skills
Home Schooling
Most states allow parents to educate their children at home.
This is known as home schooling.
People choose this educational option for a variety of reasons,
the most common of which are:
– concerns about the school environment (e.g., safety,
drugs, or negative peer pressure)
– a desire to provide religious or moral instruction
– and dissatisfaction with academic instruction
Homeschooled children mostly come from white, two-parent
families.
Education for Special Groups
• minority language students
• underprivileged people
• people with disabilities
• gifted students
Sources
US Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2006). College Enrollment and Work Activity
of 2005 High School Graduates,. Accessed on May 2, 2006 from
http://www.bls.gov/news.release/hsgec.nr0.htm
US Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics.
(2005). The Condition of Education 2005 (NCES 2005-094)
US Department of Education. (ND). Fast Facts. Accessed on May 2, 2006
from http://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts
Wikipedia, (ND). Education in the United States. Accessed on May 2, 2006
from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Education_in_the_United_States