The
United States system is harder to understand because
there is no federally-dictated scope-and-sequence. Each
of the fifty states has its own regulations, which include
(1) the mandatory entrance/exit ages for public education,
(2) the scope-and-sequence of whatever subjects that
state deems essential/required, (3) the types of assessment
testing required and at what grades, and (4) probably
other things of which I don't know because I teach outside
of "the system." . . . and who knows what
they do in Puerto Rico, our semi-colonial territory!
Within each state, the individual school districts select
textbooks from the master lists approved by the state,
set school hours and months of operation, and set truancy
laws, among other things.
Private schools (fee-based) have more latitude both
in subjects range and in textbooks. I think that they,
generally, rely on the state "scopes" as normative.
Of course the religious-affiliation schools legally
may include sectarian teachings as a subject.
Home-schooling is legal in all of the fifty states,
although each state has its own individual laws concerning
what must be taught, and by what kind of teachers (i.e.
qualifications). Some states are fairly laid-back; others
regulate homeschooling into a near-impossibility.
NOW we arrive at the assorted lobbying groups and associations.
The National Educators Association (NEA) is a powerful
lobby that constantly tries to assert control over education
in the United States. They make war on homeschooling
whenever possible, arguing from the premise that only
a person who has endured a sufficient number of university
courses in pedagogy is intelligent enough to teach a
child. (Sigh. . .) The American Federation of Teachers
(AFT) is a similar organ. Their members number fewer
than those in the NEA; hence they are relatively quiet
in their distant "second place." I don't know
where they are "coming from", but assume they
are automatic supporters of public education. Then there
are the assorted associations, each of which publish
their influential sets of standards. The National Council
of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) is an example.
I'm not at all opposed to public education. Sadly, however,
public education has dropped to dangerous qualitative
lows in academic teaching and achievement among most
school districts. Districts squabble about bi-lingual
education, standardized testing, automatic promotions
(termed "social promotions"), wealthier districts
having to give money to impoverished districts, long
hours with low pay, etc., etc. John Q. Public Citizen
does not know how much fear legitimately to harbor about
the widespread violence, bullying, and chaotic student
behaviour in the schools. My husband and I were thinking
about sending our eldest son to the public high school
near our house next fall so that he could compete more
widely in soccer. (He's quite good!) Then a 15 year
old youth, armed with a handgun, held hostage his geography
class with its pregnant-with-twins teacher. So much
for pursuing that avenue!
K-12 is the simplest term to explain. Kindergarten is
followed by 1st grade, 2nd grade, and up through 12th
grade.
Kindergarten was "invented" in the 1960s,
the Sputnik era, when the U.S. experienced an urge to
beef up public education. The term kindergarten comes
straight from the German. Originally it was a half-day
program for 5 year olds, with art, crafts, singing,
and physical exercise. It also was optional enrollment.
Even now, kindergarten is optional in most (all?) states.
By now, though, kindergarten often is heavily academic,
and lasts a full day. Working parents have lobbied for
4-year old "kindergarten" in the publics,
which would free up these parents from the expense of
daycare one year earlier.
To generalize, Grade 1 students are 6 years old, Grade
2 are 7 years old, and so forth through Grade 12, where
the students are 17 or 18. In earlier years, schools
were divided into Elementary (grades K-6), Junior High
(grades 7-9), and High School (grades 10-12). There
has been an increasing trend to divide schools into
Elementary (grades K-5), Middle School (grades 6-8)
and High School (grades 9-12). This second system makes
more sense because, even under the older system, all
marks received during grades 9-12 are entered into the
Permanent Record Card which, along with entrance exams,
weighs heavily in the college/university's decision
to grant admission.
Each school district has its own criteria for "tracks"
within the grade levels. There is "Special Education",
a catch-all for students with learning disabilities
and/or mental/emotional problems. Most of the larger
schools have regular and advanced tracks for each grade.
Admittance to the advanced tracks hinges upon academic
ability and the willingness to study harder with more
difficult material. A subset of the advanced track is
the "Advanced Placement" course. These AP
courses are available in the larger high schools. A
student who completes an AP course sits for a special
examination (standardized) in that subject. A high score
on the exam results in "placing out of" a
college freshman-level course in that subject. The non-college-bound
have an option of attending a "vocational/technical
high school". Classes there prepare the student
for a job in the blue-collar job sector. In large cities,
one often finds "magnet schools". These specialized
public schools offer the basic education plus focused
coursework in performing/visual arts, sciences/mathematics,
or some other area of special interest. Most of these
schools are of high calibre.
Antonia Colias (Mrs.)
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