The US educational system is much decentralized and schools vary greatly from state to state. There are three levels of education: federal, state and local.
Every resident pays a school tax to the school district he/she lives in, no matter he/she has school children or not. School education in the United States is free and parents are free to choose a school for their children. But if parents send their child to a school of another school district they have to pay the sum equivalent to the school tax directly to the school the child goes to.
There is no home education in the United States. Each invalid is supposed to attend school. School provides all the necessary conditions for them to study.
The school system structure in the United States looks like this. Children start going to school at the age of five. First they go to eight-year elementary school and then to high school or if they go to five- or six-year elementary school, they then attend three- or four-year middle school, and then high school. Teenagers study at high school four years and graduate from it at the age of eighteen. Members of each grade in high school have special names:
- a ninth grader is called a Freshman,
- a tenth grader - a Sophomore,
- an eleventh grader - a Junior,
- a twelfth grader - a Senior.
In order to graduate, students must accumulate a certain amount of credits during their four years at school.. In addition to that, students must successfully complete specific subjects required by the state or local educational authorities, such as US history, English, mathematics and physical education. This may vary from state to state.
A school year starts at the beginning of September or at the end of August and ends in late June or early July, just before the Independence Day, and is divided into three terms/trimesters or four quarters. School children have winter and spring breaks for two or three weeks and summer vacation for six up to eight weeks.
There is a great variety of Saturday, Sunday, vocational and other schools. The most popular one is summer school. It is for students who want to get a deeper knowledge in a particular subject, or to skip a year, or just fail their examinations. It lasts six weeks and parents have to pay for it.
Students go to school five days a week. They get to and from school by a school bus. A typical school day in America starts at 7.30 AM.. Every day students usually have seven periods which last 50-55, sometimes 45 minutes. In some schools there are four periods lasting 90 minutes. There are 2-5 minute passing between periods and a break of 30 minutes for lunch.
U.S. colleges and universities offer a vide variety of programs ranging from highly academic courses to very practical ones. Students can be educated not only for academic professions, but also for technical professions, such as mechanics, nursing, medical technology, computer technology and book-keeping.
In universities young people study four years to get bachelor's degree. If one wants to get master's degree he/she must study two years more and do a research work. If one has master's degree, studies more, does a research work and passes an oral, comprehensive examination he/she gets doctor's degree (PhD).
5. What should teachers do about cheating?
Now act on the part of the teacher. Choose and tick the proper situation as for you.
Fail the students on the test. Flunk!!!!!
A stiff penalty and a good talk.
Embarrass the person.
Find out why and help.
Understand the cheater’s reason. Then act.
Don’t be funny about it.
Have a private talk to find out why he is cheating and e[plain why it is wrong.
Don’t keep the standards above the pupil’s capacity so that he can make good marks without cheating.
If a pupil wants to cheat, let him- he is only hurting himself.
Never talk about it in front of the class- always in private.
