The American Education System Student : Jennyfer Ñingle Jimenez Code : Group: E Course : Cultura y civilización de los países de habla inglesa. Theme : The American Education System January 2011.

CONTENTS: The American Education System: 1.General information. 2.Size. 3.Organization. 4.Local Control. 5.Diversity. 6.Bibliography.

The American Education reflects: The history Culture Values of the changing country itself. The American educational system can be characterized by: its large size Organizational structure Marked descentralization And increasing diversity.

a. SIZE: The schools in the United States are: - Public - Private - Kindergarten - Elementary and Secondary - State universities - Private Colleges

PRESCHOOL CHILDREN: Ages three and four. Definition: Preschool education or Infant education is the provision of education for children before the commencement of statutory and obligatory education, usually between the ages of zero or three and five, depending on the jurisdiction. Children attend Head Start Programs designed to provide: - Learning, - social development - and nutrition programs to ensure that these preschoolers will be ready for school at age five or six.

1. PUBLIC SCHOOLS: Definition: It is a school funded with tax revenue and administered by a government or governmental agency. The Educational System comprises almost 96, 000 public elementary and secondary schools in the U.S. A.

2. PRIVATE SCHOOLS: Definition: Private schools, also known as independent schools. They are not administered by local, state or national governments; thus, they retain the right to select their students and are funded in whole or in part by charging their students tuition, rather than relying on public funding. Private schools can be religious organizations.

3. A STATE UNIVERSITY: Definition: A state university system in the United States is a group of public universities supported by an individual U.S. state or a similar entity. These systems constitute the majority of public-funded universities in the country. Each state supports at least one such system.  A state university system normally means a single legal entity and administration, but may consist of several institutions, each with its own identity as a university. Some states—such as California and Texas—support more than one such system.  State universities get subsidies from their states. The amount of the subsidy varies from university to university and state to state, but the effect is to lower tuition costs below that of private universities. As more and more Americans attend college, and private tuition rates increase well beyond the rate of inflation, admission to state universities is becoming more and more competitive.

4. PRIVATE COLLEGE: Definition: Professional associations and academic institutions  Organizations and their associated networks carry out research or provide education and training on the scientific, technical, legal, social cultural and economic aspects. Includes: professional organizations, private universities, schools and research centers, private training centers.

b. ORGANIZATION: School attendance is compulsory for students through age 16 in most states. Kindergarten (age five) – Secondary School (age 18) grade KINDERGARTEN: Children generally begin elementary school with kindergarten at age five. - ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS: They include kindergarten through grades five or six, and some schools through grade eight. - SECONDARY SCHOOLS: also known as high schools in the United States, they generally include grades nine through 12.

During the past 30 years, junior high schools have been replaced with middle schools configured the grades six through eight. The large contemporary high school offers a menu of academic and elective courses for students ages 14 to 18. High School students can choose: - Host of clubs - Athletics Activities - Work-study arrangements - Other extracurricular activities. Based on grades and tests, students can take advanced academic courses or more general or vocational classwork.

Kindergarten Elementary School High School Graduate Education ORGANIZATION

c. LOCAL CONTROL: - The most remarkable characteristic of American Education is its descentralization. - Schools in the United States have been a state and local responsibility. - Public education constitutes the single largest expenditure for almost every U.S. city and country, which receive the bulk of their funding from local property taxes. - State boards of education, along with a state superintendent or commissioner, oversee local education districts, set students and teachers standards, approve the classroom curriculum and often review textbook selections. - Most states provide substantial aid to schools to supplement local tax revenues. - One consequence of local control and financing of public schools has been disparities between affluent and poor school districts. - The federal government provides research and support to ensure equal access and excellence in education, along with funding student loan programs and assistance to lower – income students.

LOCAL CONTROL IN EDUCATION

d. DIVERSITY: - American schools are more ethnically diverse than ever. - In the early 20th century, children of immigrant families flooded public school systems in the Northeast and Midwest. - Today new immigrants continue to change the ethnic composition of student populations, although the largest numbers come from Latin America and Asia. - African americans constitute about 17 percent of the K-12 student population. - Hispanics are becoming the largest single minority group in public schools. - The teaching of English as a second language remains one of education’s most important responsibilities.

DIVERSITY

Bibliography 1. Cultura y civilización de los países de habla inglesa César Klauer H. – San Marcos University. 2. Internet resources.

The end. Thank you !