Education in the US

AMERICAN EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM

Doctoral Degree
(3-6 years) Ph.D. Graduate
School
Post-
Secondary
Master's Degree
School (2-3 years)

College/University (4 years)
Community College (2 mo. - 2 years) Undergraduate Degree B.A., B.S.

17 12
16 11
15
High School (4 years) 10
Secondary
14 9
School
13 8
12 Middle School (Junior High) (3 years) 7
11 6
10 5
9 4
8 Elementary School (5 years) 3
7 Primary 2
6 School 1
5
4 Preschool/Kindergarten
3
AGE GRADE
Decentralization
Federal Level
• 10th amendment, education is not a federal
responsibility but a state and local matter.
• At the federal level:
• The Department of Education headed
by an Education Secretary
• Little authority except for:
– creating special programs for minority students
and for the disabled;
– - granting loans to students.
Decentralization
State Level
• A State Board of Education
headed by a Commissioner. Its
members are either appointed by
State Governor or elected. Its role
consists in:
– Setting common policy and
minimum standards for public
schools within the state;
– certifying teachers;
– opening new schools.
Decentralization
Local Level
• Local subdivisions: school boards
• Responsible for:
– Choosing the curriculum;
– Hiring teachers
– Managing the budget.
 Background information
• Most schools are public (only 10% attend
private schools).
• Schooling is compulsory and lasts 12 years.
• Afternoons spent on extracurricular activities.
• Students are graded with letters :
• A excellent,
• B good,
• C average,
• D poor,
• E very poor,
• F Failure.
 Desegregation
• School segregation officially terminated in 1954.

• Since 1971, busing policy aimed at integration

of minorities.
School resegregation
 Resegregation
• Since the 1980’s
significant resegregation
of schools
• Busing policy abandoned
• Particularly bad situation
for black students and
Hispanics (75% attend
segregated schools).
Bilingual Education
• 1968, introduction of bilingual programs for
minorities mainly Spanish-speaking population
• Reluctance of many Hispanics to learn English.

•In some schools

classes are
taught in English,
but children may
ask questions and
answer in Spanish.
 Bilingual education cont.
• However, bilingual
education perceived as a
threat to the country’s
cohesiveness.
• The English language has
no official status in the US
Constitution.
 Education Crisis

• Basic skills such as reading & writing

not fully mastered when students
leave high school.
• High school students have poor
academic records.
• Many Americans are undereducated
Functional illiteracy rate (knows how to read but
unable to master simple tasks such as filling out a
job application) is believed to reach 20%.
OECD 2013
 Number of School Days

Relaxed System
• American children spend 180 days
in school (220 in France and 240 in
Japan).
• They have 20-hour weeks with most
afternoons free for extracurricular
activities.
• No National Curriculum : subjects
such as history, geography or foreign
languages are optional.
 Social Promotion
• Children move up the grade ladder regardless of
their real abilities (the idea was not to destroy
children’s self-esteem)

• Those who perform

poorly are not
encouraged
to improve.
 Budget
• Federal share of
education spending
dropped.
• Budget depends on
where one lives :
funds come from
property taxes.
Detroit, Chicago. Jan 11th, 2016
 Alabama
Denver

• Schools
located in poor
neighborhoods
have less
funding than in
wealthier
areas.
• They face high dropout rate
• Violence problems (schools
equipped with metal
detectors).
Denver
Alabama Denver
 Teachers
• Level of qualification often not up to standard.
• Demand is low: teaching profession does not
attract many candidates
• Salaries are low
• Schools sometimes take
whoever applies.
 American Universities
• Higher education in America has a worldwide
reputation for excellence.
• Over 3,500 higher education institutions in the
US, half of which are private.
• Eight old universities called Ivy League:
– They include Harvard, Princeton, and Yale
 Organization
• Short studies (2y) in junior or
community colleges
• Long studies (4 y) leading to
Bachelor’s degree
• 1st year students are called
freshmen and become sophomores,
juniors and finally seniors (4th year).
• After graduation can move on to
graduate studies. (Master’s degree
then the PhD).
• There is no national diploma; the
value of a degree depends on the
prestige of the university
Selective and expensive
• Enrollment is both selective and expensive.
• Advanced learning is perceived as a privilege not
as a right.
• Applicants must submit high school grades, make
a written application and be interviewed.
• Since education standards and requirements
differ from state to state, most colleges require
students to take standardized tests, namely ACT,
SAT, TOEFEL
 Tuition Fees
• Public universities are in part financed by their
states (45%).
• Private universities are totally independent
financially. They rely on student tuition and on
donations from businesses and from alumni
• In both public and private universities
students must pay fees.
 Private vs Public
• Fees are lower in public universities but yet high
• Financing solutions:
• Parents must save years to send their children to college.
• Loans from banks and the federal government.
• Federal «work-study programs” students work between
10 and 20 hours a week.
Extracurricular Activities
 Emphasis on Athletics.

• Universities have baseball, football or

basketball teams.
– Students might be admitted or granted a
scholarship based on their athletic performance.
– Benefits students from minority backgrounds.
 Still Separate and Unequal*
• America Spends a Lot of Money Per Student
– The U.S. ranks fifth in spending per student
• Socio-Economic Class Plays a Larger Role in the
U.S. Than in Other Countries
• A Different Starting Line
– Educational expectations are lower for black
children
• Separate and Unequal
– More than 2 million black students attend schools
where 90 % of students are from minority students

* USNews.com Jan. 28, 2015

Thank you for your attention !