Education in the United States
Education in the United States is provided mainly by the government, with control and funding coming from three levels:
federal,
state, and
local. At the primary and secondary school levels, curricula, funding, teaching, and other policies are set through locally elected
school boards with jurisdiction over
school districts. School districts can be (but are not always) coextensive with
counties or
municipalities. Educational standards and
standardized testing decisions are usually made by the
states through acts of the
state legislature and
governor, and decisions of the state
departments of education.
Children are required to attend school until the age of 16-18 depending on the state. Many more states now require children to attend school until the age of 18. Students may attend
public,
private, or
home schools. In most public and private schools, education is divided into three levels:
elementary school,
middle school, and
high school. Grade levels in each vary from area to area.
The
United States has an educated population.
Literacy is estimated at 99.9 percent by the United Nations, ranking it number 1 in the world, sharing the top spot with over 20 other nations [
1]. 76.6 million students were enrolled in nursery through undergraduate study. Of these, 72 percent aged 12 to 17 were judged academically "on track" for their age (enrolled in school at or above grade level). Of those enrolled in compulsory education, 5.2 million (10.4 percent) were attending private schools. Among the country's adult population, over 85 percent have completed high school and 27 percent have received a
bachelor's degree or higher. The average salary for college graduates is $45,400, exceeding the national average by more than $10,000, according to a
2002 study by the U.S. Census Bureau.
[Education. United States Census (2000). URL accessed on June 17, 2005.]However, the country has a low literacy rate as compared to other developed countries, with a reading
literacy rate at 86-98% of the population over age 15,
[A First Look at the Literacy of America's Adults in the 21st Century, U.S. Department of Education, 2003. Accessed May 13, 2006. 2% of the population do not have minimal literacy and 14% have Below Basic prose literacy.] while ranking below average in science and mathematics understanding.
[Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), OECD, reading literacy, science literacy and mathematics literacy all rank near the bottom of OECD-countries.] The poor performance has pushed public and private efforts such as the
No Child Left Behind Act. In addition, the ratio of college-educated adults entering the workforce to general population (33%) is slightly below the mean of other developed countries (35%)
[Education at Glance 2005 by OECD: Current tertiary graduation rates.] and rate of participation of the labor force in
continuing education is high.
[Education at Glance 2005 by OECD: Participation in continuing education and training]The U.S. uses
ordinal numbers for naming grades, unlike Canada, Australia, and the United Kingdom where
cardinal numbers are preferred. Thus, when asked what grade they are in, typical American children are more likely to say "fourth grade" rather than "Grade 4." The following are the typical ages and grade groupings in public and private schools.
[Structure of U.S. Education. U.S. Network for Education Information: U.S. Department of Education. URL accessed on February 19, 2005.] Many different variations exist across the country.
Standard educational pattern
There are no mandatory public
preschool or
crèche programs in the
United States. The federal government funds the
Head Start preschool program for poor children, but most families are on their own with regard to finding a preschool or child care.
In the large cities, there are sometimes upper-class preschools catering to the children of the wealthy. Because some upper-class families see these schools as the first step toward the
Ivy League, there are even counselors who specialize in assisting parents and their toddlers through the preschool admissions process.
[Educational Consultants. About.com (2005). URL accessed on August 12, 2005.]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 children begin primary education with
kindergarten at the age of 5 or 6, depending upon eligibility requirements in their district, and complete their secondary education at the age of 18 when their senior year of high school ends. Typically, mandatory education starts with first grade and many times in kindergarten. Some states allow students to leave school at age 16, before finishing high school; other states require students to stay in school until age 18.
[State Compulsory School Attendance Laws. Information Please Almanac. URL accessed on July 3, 2005.] Most parents send their children to either a public or private institution. According to government data, one-tenth of students are enrolled in private schools. Approximately 85% of students enter the public schools,
[Education. United States Census (2000). URL accessed on June 17, 2005.] largely because they are "free" (tax burdens by
school districts vary from area to area). Most students attend school for around eight hours per day, and usually anywhere from 175 to 185 days per year. Most schools have a
summer break period for about two and half months from June through August. This break is much longer than the one students in many
other nations receive. Originally, "summer vacation", as it is colloquially called, allowed students to participate in the
harvest period during the summer. However, this is now relatively unnecessary and remains largely by tradition; it also has immense popular support.
Parents may also choose to educate their own children
at home; 1.7% of children are educated in this manner.
[Education. United States Census (2000). URL accessed on June 17, 2005.] Proponents of home education invoke parental responsibility and the classical liberal arguments for personal freedom from government intrusion. Few proponents advocate that homeschooling should be the dominant educational policy. Most homeschooling advocates are wary of the established educational institutions for various reasons. Some are religious conservatives who see nonreligious education as contrary to their moral or religious systems. Others feel that they can more effectively tailor a curriculum to suit an individual student's academic strengths and weaknesses, especially those with
learning disabilities. Still others feel that the negative social pressures of schools (such as bullying, drugs, crime, and other school-related problems) are detrimental to a child's proper development. Parents often form groups to help each other in the homeschooling process, and may even assign classes to different parents, similar to public and private schools.
Opposition to homeschooling comes from varied sources, including teachers' organizations and school districts. The
National Education Association, the largest
labor union in the United States, has been particularly vocal in the past.
[Aronold, Dave. Home Schools Run By Well-Meaning Amateurs. National Education Association. URL accessed on February 19, 2005.] Opponents' stated concerns fall into several broad categories, including fears of poor academic quality, loss of income for the schools, and religious or social extremism, or lack of socialization with others.
Elementary school (Kindergarten through Grade 5/6)
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. Elementary school provides a common daily routine for all students except the most disadvantaged (those with
learning disabilities,
mental illnesses, or those students who do not speak
English). Sometimes
gifted or advanced students receive separate education as well. Students do not choose a course structure and often remain in one or two classrooms throughout the school day, with the exceptions of
physical education ("P.E." or "gym"),
music, and/or
art classes.
Education is relatively not standardized at this level. Teachers, most of whom are women, receive a book to give to the students for each subject and brief overviews of what they are expected to teach.
[Fast Facts. National Center for Education Statistics. URL accessed on July 3, 2005.] In general, a student learns basic
arithmetic and sometimes rudimentary algebra in
mathematics, English proficiency (such as basic
grammar,
spelling, and
vocabulary), and fundamentals of other subjects.
Social studies and
sciences are often underdeveloped, largely because most elementary teachers have a degree in English or education. Social studies may include basic events and concepts in
American and
world history and, in some places, state or
local history; science varies widely.
Middle school (Grades 5, 6, or 7 through 8)
|
It is common in the United States for old High School campuses to be turned into middle schools, as is the case with Leonia 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, though they sometimes include 9th grade as well. The term "junior high school" and the arrangement beginning with 7th grade are becoming less common. Intermediate schooling in some locations is known as something that precedes the middle school and follows the elementary schooling.
At this time students begin to enroll in class schedules where they take classes from several teachers in a given day, unlike in elementary school where most classes are taught by the same teacher. The classes are usually a strict set of
science,
math,
English, and
social science courses, interspersed with a
reading and/or
technology class. Every year from kindergarten through ninth grade usually includes a mandatory
physical education (P.E.) class. Student-chosen courses, known as
electives, are generally limited to only one or two classes.
High school (Grades 9 through 12)
High school runs from grades 9 through 12. Some
school districts deviate from this formula. The most widely seen difference is to include 9th grade in middle school, though it is a relatively old practice which is disappearing. Also, many districts will use an older high school as a separate campus for 9th grade, allowing these students to adjust to a high school environment. In high school, students obtain much more control of their education and often may even choose their core classes.
Basic curricular structure
Most students in the United States, unlike their counterparts in other developed nations, do not begin to specialize into a narrow field of study until their second year of college. However, some schools encourage students to take electives in the areas they are considering for a career. Generally, at the high school level, they take a broad variety of classes without special emphasis. The curriculum varies widely in quality and rigidity; for example, some states consider 70 (on a 100-point scale) to be a passing grade, while others consider it to be as low as 60 or as high as 75.
The following are the typical
minimum course sequences that one must take in order to obtain a high school diploma; they are not indicative of the necessary minimum courses or course rigor required for attending college in the United States:
* 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.
Electives
High schools offer a wide variety of elective courses, although the availability of such courses depends upon each particular school's financial situation.
Common types of electives include:
*
Visual arts (
drawing,
sculpture,
painting,
photography,
film)
*
Performing Arts (
drama,
band,
chorus,
orchestra,
dance)
*
Technology education ("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/
student newspaper,
yearbook,
literary magazine)
*
Foreign languages (
French,
German, and
Spanish are common;
Chinese,
Latin,
Greek and
Japanese are less common)
[Enrollment in foreign language courses. National Center for Education Statistics. URL accessed on January 16, 2006.]Additional options for gifted students
Not all schools require the same rigor of
course work. Most high and middle schools offer
"honors" or
"gifted" classes for motivated and gifted students, where the quality of education is usually higher and more demanding. There are also specialized
magnet schools with competitive entrance requirements.
[Klauke, Amy. Magnet schools. ERIC Clearinghouse on Educational Management. URL accessed on February 21, 2005.]If funds are available, a high school may provide
Advanced Placement or
International Baccalaureate courses, which are special forms of honors classes. AP or IB courses are usually taken during the third or fourth years of high school, either as a replacement for a typical third-year course (e.g., taking AP U.S. History as a replacement for standard U.S. History), a refresher of an earlier course (e.g., taking AP Biology in the fourth year even though one already took Biology in the first year), or simply as a way to study something interesting during one's senior year (e.g., AP Economics).
Most postsecondary institutions take AP or IB exam results into consideration in the admissions process. Because AP and IB courses are supposed to be the equivalent of the first year of college courses, postsecondary institutions may grant unit credit which enables students to graduate early. Other institutions use examinations for placement purposes only: students are exempted from introductory course work but may not receive credit towards a concentration, degree, or core requirement. Institutions vary in the selection of examinations they accept and the scores they require to grant credit or placement, with more elite institutions tending to accept fewer examinations and requiring higher scoring. Both public schools and private schools in wealthy neighborhoods are able to provide many more AP and IB course options than impoverished inner-city high schools, and this difference is seen as a major cause of the differing outcomes for their graduates.
Also, in states with well-developed
community college systems, there are often mechanisms by which gifted students may seek permission from their school district to attend community college courses full time during the summer, and during weekends and evenings during the school year. The units earned this way can often be transferred to one's university, and can facilitate early graduation.
Early college entrance programs are a step further, with students enrolling as freshmen at a younger-than-traditional age.
Extracurricular activities
Many students, mostly in
middle and
high schools, participate in extracurricular activities. These activities can extend to large amounts of time outside the normal school day; homeschooled students, however, are not normally allowed to participate. Student participation in
sports programs,
drill teams,
bands, and spirit groups can amount to hours of practices and performances. Most
states have organizations which develop rules for competition between groups. These organizations are usually forced to implement time limits on hours practiced as a prerequisite for participation.
Sports programs and their related games, especially
football and/or
basketball, are major events for American students and for larger schools can be a major source of funds for
school districts. Schools may sell "spirit" shirts to wear to games; school stadiums and gymnasiums are often filled to capacity, even for nonsporting competitions.
High school athletic competitions often generate intense interest in the community, though a greater prevalence is seen in rural areas. Elite high school athletes command significant media attention and fierce competition between
university athletic programs for their skills. Many state high school championship tournaments in these two sports are attended by tens of thousands each year.
In addition to sports, many nonathletic extracurricular activities are usually present in American schools, both public and private. Activities include student government, school newspapers, and various academic groups such as writing clubs, debate teams, quiz teams, club sports (not provided with the same funds or privileges as other sports programs), peer groups, and various other activities. Although individually such programs might not be available in all schools, taken as a whole, these programs are available to the vast majority of students.
Standardized testing
Under the
No Child Left Behind Act, all American states must
test students in public schools statewide to ensure that they are achieving the desired level of minimum education,
[Executive Summary of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. U.S. Department of Education. URL accessed on February 16, 2006.] such as on the
Regents Examinations in
New York or the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA); students being educated at home or in private schools are not included. The Act also requires that students and schools show "adequate yearly progress." This means they must show some improvement each year.
During high school, students, usually in their junior (or third) year (grade 11), may take one or more standardized
tests depending on their postsecondary education preferences and their local graduation requirements (some students choose not to take the tests at all). In theory, these tests evaluate the level of knowledge and learning aptitude they have attained. The
SAT and
ACT are the most common standardized tests that students take when applying to
college.
[Many colleges ignore new SAT writing test. Kansas City Star. URL accessed on February 16, 2005.] A student may take the SAT, ACT, or both depending upon the college the student plans to apply to for admission. However, not all students move on to postsecondary education, and may not need to take the tests.
Education of students with special needs
In the United States, education of the learning disabled, blind, deaf, and emotionally disturbed is structured to adhere as closely as possible to the same experience received by normal students. Blind and deaf students usually have separate classes in which they spend most of their day, but may sit in on normal classes with guides or interpreters. The learning disabled often attend for the same amount of time as other students; however, they also usually spend most of their day in separate classrooms, commonly known as
special education or
special ed ; here they often receive extra instruction or perform easier work. The goal of these programs, however, is to try and bring everyone up to the same standard and provide equal opportunity to those students who are challenged. Some students are identified early on as having
dyslexia or being significantly slower learners than other students. The federal government supports the standards developed in the
Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004.
[IDEA 2004 Resources. U.S. Department of Education. URL accessed on February 16, 2006.] The law mandates that schools must accommodate students with disabilities as defined by the act, and specifies methods for funding the sometimes large costs of providing them with the necessary facilities. Larger districts are often able to provide more adequate and quality care for those with special needs.
Public and Private schools
Unlike most other industrialized countries, the United States does not have a centralized educationalsystem on the national scale.
[Federal Role in Education. United States Department of Education. URL accessed on February 16, 2006.] Thus,
K-12 students in most areas have a choice betweenfree taxpayer-funded
public schools and
private schools.
Public school systems are supported by a combination of local, state, and federal government funding. Because a large portion of school revenues come from local property taxes, public schools vary widely in the resources they have available per student. Class size also varies significantly from one district to another. Generally, school in more affluent areas are more highly regarded. Curriculum decisions in public schools are made largely at the local and state levels; the federal government has limited influence. In most districts schools are run by a locally elected school board. The school board appoints an official called the superintendent of schools to manage the schools in the district. The largest public school system in the United States is in
New York City, where more than one million students are taught in 1,200 separate public schools. Because of its immense size - there are more students in the system than residents in eight US states - the New York City public school system is nationally influential in determining standards and materials like text books.
All public school systems are required to provide an education free of charge to everyone of school age in their districts. Not every individual public school, however, is open to all interested students. Large cities such as New York often have "
magnet schools" whichcater to gifted students or to students with special interests, such as science or performing arts.
[Klauke, Amy. Magnet schools. ERIC Clearinghouse on Educational Management. URL accessed on February 21, 005.] Admission to some of these schools is highly competitive.
Private schools in the United States include parochial schools affiliated with religious denominations, nonprofit independent schools, and for-profit private schools. Private schools charge varying rates depending on geographic location, the school's expenses, and the availability of funding from sources other than tuition. For example, some churches partially subsidize private schools for their members. Some people have argued that when their child attends a private school, they should be able to take the funds which the public school no longer needs and apply that money towards private school tuition in the form of
vouchers; this is the basis of the
school choice movement.
Private schools have various purposes: Some cater to general education students; others are for gifted students, for students with learning disabilities or other special needs, or for students with specific religious affiliations. Unlike public school systems, private schools have no legal obligation to accept any interested student. Admission to some private schools is highly selective. Private schools also have the ability to permanently expel persistently unruly students, a disciplinary option not always legally available to public school systems.
The
United States Department of Education released a statement recently detailing the average cost per pupil in public and private schools and found that the average public school cost was approximately
USD$7,200 per student while the average private school cost per pupil was just USD$3,500. The Department of Education also stated that less than 25% of private schools are considered "elite", costing more than $10,000 a year. In contrast, private schools in
East Asia average around USD$1,400 per year.
See also:
Universities in the United StatesPost-secondary education in the United States is known as
college or
university and commonly consists of four years of study at an institution of higher learning. Like high school, the four undergraduate grades are commonly called freshman, sophomore, junior, and senior years (alternately called first year, second year, etc.). Students traditionally apply to receive admission into college, with varying difficulties of entrance. Schools differ in their competitiveness and reputation; generally, the most prestigious schools are private, rather than public. Admissions criteria involve
test scores (the
SAT and
ACT) and class ranking or
GPA, as well as extracurricular activities performed prior to the application date.
[Many colleges ignore new SAT writing test. Kansas City Star. URL accessed on February 16, 2005.] Also, many colleges consider the rigor of previous courses taken along with the grades earned. Certain test scores, class rank, or other numerical factors hardly ever have absolute, required levels, but often have a threshold below which admission is unlikely.
Once admitted, students engage in
undergraduate study, which consists of satisfying university and class requirements to achieve a
bachelor's degree in a field of concentration known as a
major. (Some students enroll in
double majors or "minor" in another field of study.) The most common method consists of four years of study leading to a
Bachelor of Arts (BA), a
Bachelor of Science (BS), or sometimes (but rarely) another bachelor's degree such as
Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA,)
Bachelor of Engineering (BEng,) or
Bachelor of Philosophy (BPhil.) Five-Year Professional Architecture programs offer the
Bachelor of Architecture Degree (BArch).
Unlike in the British model, degrees in law and medicine are not offered at the undergraduate level and are completed as graduate study after earning a bachelor's degree. Neither field specifies or prefers any undergraduate major, though medicine has a set a prerequisite courses that must be taken before enrollment.
Some students choose to attend a community college for two years prior to further study at another college or university. In most states, community colleges are operated either by a division of the state university or by local special districts subject to guidance from a state agency. Community colleges may award Associate of Arts (AA) or Associate of Science (AS) degree after two years. Those seeking to continue their education may transfer to a four-year college or university (after applying through a similar admissions process as those applying directly to the four-year institution, see
articulation). Some community colleges have automatic enrollment agreements with a local four-year college, where the community college provides the first two years of study and the university provides the remaining years of study, sometimes all on one campus. The community college awards the associate's degree, and the university awards the bachelor's and master's degrees.
Graduate study, conducted after obtaining an initial degree and sometimes after several years of professional work, leads to a more advanced degree such as a
master's degree, which could be a
Master of Arts (MA),
Master of Science (MS),
Master of Business Administration (MBA), or other less common master's degrees such as
Master of Education (MEd), and
Master of Fine Arts (MFA). After additional years of study and sometimes in conjunction with the completion of a master's degree, students may earn a Doctor of Philosophy (
Ph.D.) or other doctoral degree, such as
Doctor of Arts,
Doctor of Education,
Doctor of Theology,
Doctor of Medicine,
Doctor of Pharmacy,
Doctor of Physical Therapy, or
Doctor of Jurisprudence. Some programs, such as medicine, have formal apprenticeship procedures post-graduation like residency and internship which must be completed after graduation and before one is considered to be fully trained. Other professional programs like law and business have no formal apprenticeship requirements after graduation (although law school graduates must take the
bar exam in order to legally practice law in nearly all states).
Entrance into graduate programs usually depends upon a student's undergraduate academic performance or professional experience as well as their score on a standardized entrance exam like the
GRE (graduate schools in general), the
LSAT (law), the
GMAT (business), or the
MCAT (medicine). Many graduate and law schools do not require experience after earning a bachelor's degree to enter their programs; however, business school candidates are usually required to gain a few years of professional work experience before applying. Only 8.9 percent of students ever receive postgraduate degrees, and most, after obtaining their bachelor's degree, proceed directly into the workforce.
[Educational attainment of persons 18 years old and over. National Center for Education Statistics. URL accessed on January 6, 2005.]Cost
The vast majority of students (up to 70 percent) lack the financial resources to pay tuition up front and must rely on
student loans and
scholarships from their university, the federal government, or a private lender. All but a few charity institutions charge all students tuition, although scholarships (both merit-based and need-based) are widely available. Generally, private universities charge much higher tuition than their public counterparts, which rely on state funds to make up the difference. Because each state supports its own university system with state taxes, most public universities charge much higher rates for out-of-state students. Private universities are generally considered to be of higher quality than public universities, although there are many exceptions.
Annual undergraduate tuition varies widely from state to state, and many additional fees apply. A typical year's tuition at a public university (for residents of the state) is about $5,000. Tuition for public school students from outside the state is generally comparable to private school prices, although students can generally get state residency after their first year. Private schools are typically much higher, although prices vary widely from "no-frills" private schools to highly specialized technical institutes. Depending upon the type of school and program, annual graduate program tuition can vary from $15,000 to as high as $40,000. Note that these prices do not include living expenses (rent, room/board, etc.) or additional fees that schools add on such as "activities fees" or
health insurance. These fees, especially room and board, can range from $6,000 to $12,000 per academic year (assuming a single student without children).
[Tuition Levels Rise but Many Students Pay Significantly Less than Published Rates. The College Board (2003). URL accessed on June 20, 2005.]College costs are rising at the same time that state appropriations for aid are shrinking. This has led to debate over funding at both the state and local levels. From
2002 to
2004 alone, tuition rates at public schools increased by just over 14 percent, largely due to dwindling state funding. A more moderate increase of 6 percent occurred over the same period for private schools.
[Tuition Levels Rise but Many Students Pay Significantly Less than Published Rates. The College Board (2003). URL accessed on June 20, 2005.]The status ladder
American college and university faculty, staff, alumni, students, and applicants monitor
rankings produced by magazines such as
U.S. News and World Report,
Academic Ranking of World Universities, test preparation services such as
The Princeton Review or another university itself such as
the Top American Research Universities by University of Florida TheCenter [Criticism unlikely to tarnish image. dailypennsylvanian.com. URL accessed on February 16, 2006.] These rankings are based on factors like
brand recognition, selectivity in admissions, generosity of alumni donors, and volume of faculty research.
In terms of brand recognition, the United States' most well-known university is
Harvard. Seemingly, Harvard alumni often gain prominence in American business, education, and society; for this reason, it has become entrenched in popular mind as America's 'top' school. Various Hollywood
movies depict Harvard as the ultimate example of the academic "
ivory tower," (e.g.,
Legally Blonde,
Soul Man,
The Paper Chase, etc.)
In the popular mind, approximately twenty-five institutions compose the "top tier" of American higher learning. Most would cite the eight universities that compose the
Ivy League and a small number of elite, private research universities (e.g.,
Caltech, the
University of Chicago,
Duke,
Johns Hopkins,
MIT,
Northwestern,
Stanford, etc.) [
2] [
3] A small percentage of students who apply to these schools gain admission.
[Ivy League College Admissions Facts and Statistics. AdmissionsConsultants. URL accessed on February 18, 2005.] Many Americans would also cite the "
Little Ivies," a handful of elite
liberal arts college known for their high-quality instruction. These include
Amherst,
Williams,
Wesleyan,
Swarthmore, etc. Others would cite all-female institutions such as
Wellesley and
Smith, former members of the "
Seven Sisters."
This "ladder" is not absolute, however. Top public universities (sometimes referred to as "
Public Ivies"), such as the
University of California, Berkeley, the
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and the
University of Virginia actually perform better than various private universities in many measurements of graduate education and research quality
[the Top American Research Universities by University of Florida TheCenter]. Among engineering schools, Ivy League universities are outranked by multiple public and other private universities.
[http://www.usnews.com/usnews/edu/grad/rankings/eng/brief/engrank_brief.php] Each state in the United States maintains its own
public university system, which is always nonprofit. The
State University of New York and the
California State University are the largest public higher education systems in the United States; SUNY is the largest system that includes community colleges, while CSU is the largest without. Most areas also have
private institutions which may be for-profit or nonprofit. Unlike many other nations, there are no public universities at the national level outside of the
military service academies. A few states (like
California and
Minnesota) have two (2) separate state university systems. The faculty of the more prestigious system are expected to conduct advanced cutting-edge research in addition to teaching (e.g.,
University of California and
University of Minnesota), while the less prestigious is focused on quality of teaching and producing the next generation of teachers (e.g.,
California State University and
MnSCU). The second-tier university systems are often the descendants of 19th-century
normal schools. Note that
Texas has five (5) seperate state university systems, the
University of Texas System, the
Texas Tech University System, the
Texas A&M University System, the
University of Houston System, and the
Texas State University System.
Prospective students applying to attend one of the five
military academies require, with limited exceptions, nomination by a member of
Congress. Like acceptance to "top tier" universities, competition for these limited nominations is intense and must be accompanied by superior scholastic achievement and evidence of 'leadership potential'.
Aside from these aformentioned schools, academic reputations vary widely among the 'middle-tier' of American schools, (and even among academic departments within each of these schools.) Most public and private institutions fall into this 'middle' range. Some institutions feature honors colleges or other rigorous programs that challenge academically exceptional students, who might otherwise attend a 'top-tier' college.
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CUNY_Honors_College#The_Honors_College] [Schreyer Honors College] [http://www.valpo.edu/christc/] [http://www.baylor.edu/honors_college/splash.php] Aware of the status attached to the perception of the college that they attend, students often apply to a range of schools. Some apply to a relatively prestigious school with a low acceptance rate, gambling on the chance of acceptance, and also apply to a "
safety school",
[More than a 'safety school'. The Daily Targum. URL accessed on February 16, 2005.] to which they will certainly gain admission.
Low status institutions include
community colleges. These are primarily two-year public institutions, which individual states usually require to accept all local residents who seek admission, and offer
associate's degrees or vocational certificate programs. Many community colleges have relationships with four-year state universities and colleges, (or even private universities, e.g.
Suffolk University,) that enable their students to transfer relatively smoothly to these universities.
Regardless of perceived prestige, many institutions feature (at least one) distinguished academic department, and most Americans attend one of the 2,400 four-year colleges and universities, or over 1,700 two-year colleges not included among the twenty-five or so 'top-tier' institutions.
[http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0908742.html] For this reason (among others,) America's higher education status ladder remains highly controversial, and certainly not beyond reproach. For example, prestigious
Reed College famously refuses to participate in institutional rankings, insisting that one cannot quantify the qualitative. Similarly,
Bard College president Leon Botstein said of
U.S. News' annual rankings; "it is the most successful journalistic scam I have seen in my entire adult lifetime -- corrupt, intellectually bankrupt and revolting."
Major educational issues in the
United States center on curriculum, funding, and control. Of critical importance, because of its enormous implications on education and funding, is the
No Child Left Behind Act.
[Executive Summary of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. U.S. Department of Education. URL accessed on February 16, 2006.]Curriculum issues
Curriculum in the United States varies widely from district to district. Not only do schools offer an incredible range of topics and quality, but private schools may include religious classes as mandatory for attendance (this also begets the problem of government funding vouchers; see below). This has produced camps of argument over the standardization of curriculum and to what degree. Some feel that schools should be nationalized and the curriculum changed to a national standard. These same groups often are advocates of standardized testing, which is mandated by the
No Child Left Behind Act. Aside from who controls the curriculum, groups argue over the teaching of the
English language,
evolution, and
sex education.
A large issue facing the curriculum today is the use of the English language in teaching. English is spoken by over 95% of the nation, and there is a strong national tradition of upholding English as the
de facto official language. Some 9.7 million children aged 5 to 17 primarily speak a language other than English at home. Of those, about 1.3 million children speak English "not well" or "not at all."
[Summary Tables on Language Use and English Ability: 2000. United States Census (2000). URL accessed on February 6, 2006.] While a few, mostly
Hispanic, groups want bilingual education, the majority of school districts are attempting to use English as a Second Language (ESL) courses to teach Spanish-speaking students English. In addition, many feel there are threats to the "integrity" of the language itself. For example, a growing number of
African Americans are speaking a dialect called
African American Vernacular English (it is known colloquially as Ebonics (a portmanteau of "ebony" and "phonics"). While it is not taught in any American schools, there has been debate over its place in education.
In
1999 the School Board of the
state of
Kansas caused controversy when it decided to eliminate testing of
evolution in its state assessment tests.
[Kansas school board's evolution ruling angers science community. CNN.com (1999). URL accessed on August 12, 2005.] This caused outrage among
scientists and average citizens alike, but was widely supported in Kansas. However, intense media coverage and the national spotlight convinced the board to eventually overturn the decision.
As of 2005 such controversies have not abated. Not surprisingly, most scientific observers stress the importance of
evolution in the curriculum and dislike the idea of
intelligent design or
creationist ideas being included.
Fundamentalist religious and "family values" groups, on the other hand, stress the need to teach creationism in the public schools. While a majority of Americans approve of teaching
evolution, a majority also support at least the mention of
intelligent design and/or
creationism in the curriculum of science courses.
[Poll: Creationism Trumps Evolution. CBS News Polls (2004). URL accessed on June 20, 2005.]Today,
sex education ("sex ed") in the United States is relatively underdeveloped. Because of the huge controversy over the issue, many schools attempt to avoid the study as much as possible in
health classes. Contrary to popular depiction by the media, there are few specifically sex education classes in existence. Also, because
President Bush has called for
abstinence-only sex education and has the power to withhold funding,
[Abstinence Only Sex Education Program in Schools. About.com. URL accessed on February 15, 2006.] many schools are backing away from teaching or instructing students in the use of
birth control or
contraceptives.
However, according to a
2004 survey, a majority of the 1001 parent groups polled wants complete sex education in the schools. The American people are heavily divided over the issue. Many agreed with the statement "Sex education in school makes it easier for me to talk to my child about sexual issues", while a similarly large proportion disagreed with the statement that their children were being exposed to "subjects I don't think my child should be discussing." Also, only ten percent believed that their children's sexual education class forced them to discuss sexual issues "too early." On the other hand, 49 percent of the respondents (the largest group) were only "somewhat confident" that the values taught in their children's sex ed classes were similar to those taught at home, and 23 percent were less confident still. (The
margin of error was plus or minus 4.7 percent.)
[Sex Education in America - General Public/Parents Survey. NPR/Kaiser/Harvard survey (2004). URL accessed on June 17, 2005.]Funding
Every time you stop a school, you will have to build a jail. What you gain at one end you lose at the other. It's like feeding a dog on his own tail. It won't fatten the dog. —Samuel Clemens, 1900
Funding for schools in the United States is a delicate and muddy issue. The current controversy stems much from the
No Child Left Behind Act. The Act gives the
Department of Education the right to withhold funding if it believes a school, district, or even a state is not complying and is making no effort to comply. However, federal funding accounts for little of the overall funding schools receive. The vast majority comes from the state government and from local property taxes. Various groups, many of whom are teachers, constantly push for more funding. They point to many different situations, such as the fact that in many schools, teachers, especially those at the elementary level, must supplement their supplies with purchases of their own.
[Teachers Dig Deeper to Fill Gap in Supplies. New York Times article (2002). URL accessed on June 26, 2005.]Property taxes have been a problem for years; California residents used their state constitution's clause for public initiatives to enact limits on property tax increases by a direct popular vote. Many communities across the country are dealing with what has become a major issue. Many parents of private school and homeschooled children have taken issue with the idea of paying for an education their children are not receiving. However, tax proponents point out that every person pays property taxes for public education, not just parents of school-age children. Indeed, without it schools would not have enough money to remain open. Still, parents of students who go to private schools want to use this money instead to fund their children's private education. This is the foundation of the
school voucher movement.
One of the biggest debates in funding public schools is funding by local taxes or state taxes. The federal government supplies around 8.5% of the public school system funds, according to a 2005 report by the
National Center for Education Statistics. The remaining split between state and local governments averages 48.7 percent from states and 42.8 percent from local sources. However, the division varies widely. In
Hawaii local funds make up only 1.7 percent, while state sources account for nearly 90.1 percent.
[Revenues and Expenditures for Public Elementary and Secondary Education, Table 1. National Center for Education Statistics. URL accessed on February 15, 2006.]At the college and university level, funding becomes an issue due to the sheer complexity of gaining it. Some of the reason for the confusion at the college/university level in the United States is that student loan funding is split in half; half is managed by the Department of Education directly, called the Federal Direct Student Loan Program (FDSLP). The other half is managed by commercial entities such as banks, credit unions, and financial services firms such as
Sallie Mae, under the Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP). Some schools accept only FFELP loans; others accept only FDSLP. Still others accept both, and a few schools will not accept either, in which case students must seek out private alternatives for student loans.
Control
There is some debate about where control for education actually lies. Education is not mentioned in the
constitution of the United States. In the current situation, the state and
national governments have a power-sharing arrangement, with the states exercising most of the control. Like other arrangements between the two, the federal government uses the threat of decreased funding to enforce laws pertaining to education.
[Federal Role in Education. U.S. Department of Education. URL accessed on February 16, 2006.] Furthermore, within each state there are different types of control. Some states have a statewide school system, while others delegate power to
county,
city or
township-level
school boards. However, under the Bush administration, initiatives such as the No Child Left Behind Act have attempted to assert more central control in a heavily decentralized system.
The
U.S. federal government exercises its control through the
U.S. Department of Education.
School accreditation decisions are made by voluntary regional associations. Schools in the 50 states and the
District of Columbia teach in
English, while schools in the territory of
Puerto Rico teach in
Spanish.
Nonprofit private schools are widespread, are largely independent of the government, and include secular as well as
parochial schools.
Competitiveness
The national results in international comparisons have often been below the average of developed countries. In
OECD's
Programme for International Student Assessment 2003, 15 year olds ranked 24th of 38 in mathematics, 19th of 38 in science, 12th of 38 in reading, and 26th of 38 in problem solving.
[International Outcomes of Learning in Mathematics Literacy and Problem Solving. National Center for Education Statistics. URL accessed February 18, 2005.] In addition, many business leaders have expressed concerns that the quality of education given in the US system is generally below acceptable standards, and should be adapted in order to conform to the needs of an evolving world .
Bill Gates has famously stated that the American high school is "obsolete".
[Gates Foundation Puts $2.3B Into Education. ABC News Online (2005). URL accessed on June 26, 2005.] However, America continues to develop the well rounded student and does not specialize students into their strongest areas of intellegience until college, where the student may decide what their specialty may be.
The first American schools opened during the colonial era. As the colonies began to develop, many began to institute mandatory education schemes. In
1642 the
Massachusetts Bay Colony made "proper" education compulsory.
[Massachusetts Education Laws of 1642 and 1647. History of American Education Web Project. URL accessed on February 15, 2006.] Similar statutes were adopted in other colonies in the
1640s and
1650s. Virtually all of the schools opened as a result were private. The nation's first institution of higher learning,
Harvard University, opened in
1636. Churches established most early universities in order to train ministers. Most of the universities which opened between 1640 and 1750 form the contemporary
Ivy League, including
Harvard,
Yale,
Columbia,
Brown, the
University of Pennsylvania, and several others.
[Agriculture and Education in Colonial America. North Carolina State University. URL accessed on February 15, 2006.] After the
American Revolution, the new national government passed the
Land Ordinance of 1785, which set aside a portion of every township in the unincorporated territories of the United States for use in education. The provisions of the law remained unchanged until the
Homestead Act of
1862. After the Revolution, a heavy emphasis was put on education which made the US have one of the highest literacy rates at the time.
The school system remained largely private and unorganized until the
1840s. Education reformers such as
Horace Mann of
Massachusetts began calling for public education systems for all. Upon becoming the secretary of education in Massachusetts in
1837, Mann helped to create a statewide system of "common-schools", which referred to the belief that everyone was entitled to the same content in education. These early efforts focuses primarily on elementary education.
The common-school movement began to catch on.
Connecticut adopted a similar system in
1849, and Massachusetts passed a compulsory attendance law in
1852. By
1900, however, 31 states required 8- to 14-year-olds to attend school. As a result, by
1910 72 percent of American children attended school and half of the nation's children attended one-room schools. In
1918, every state required students to at least complete elementary school. Lessons consisted of students reading aloud from their texts such as the
McGuffey Readers, and emphasis was placed on rote memorization. Teachers often used physical punishments, such as hitting students on the knuckles with
birch switches, for incorrect answers. Because the public schools focused on
assimilation, many immigrants, who resisted Americanization, sent their children to private religious schools. Many of these were
Roman Catholics. Though the new private schools met opposition, in
1925 the Supreme Court ruled in
Pierce v. Society of Sisters that students could attend private schools to comply with compulsory education laws.
Secondary education progressed much more slowly, remaining the province of the affluent and domain of private tutors. In
1870 only 2 percent of 14 to 17-year-olds graduated from high school. The number rose to 10 percent by
1900, but most were from wealthy families. The introduction of strict
child labor laws and growing acceptance of higher education in general in the early
20th century caused the number of high schools and graduates to skyrocket. Most states passed laws which increased the age for compulsory attendance to 16.
Higher education
At the beginning of the 20th century, fewer than 1,000 colleges with 160,000 students existed in the United States. Explosive growth in the number of colleges occurred at the end of the
1800s and early twentieth century. Philanthropists endowed many of these institutions.
Leland Stanford, one of
The Big Four, for example, established
Stanford University in
1891.
Many American public universities came about because of the
Morrill Land-Grant Colleges Acts of 1862 and 1890.
[Primary Documents in American History. Library of Congress. URL accessed February 19, 2005.] During the rapid westward expansion of the United States during the 19th century, the federal government took control of huge amounts of so-called "empty" land (often after forcing the previous
Native American residents into
reservations). Under the Morrill Acts, the federal government offered to give 30,000 acres (121 km²) of federal land to each state on the condition that they used the land (or proceeds from its sale) to establish universities.
[[4]Primary Documents in American History. Library of Congress. URL accessed February 19, 2005.] The resulting schools are often referred to as
land-grant colleges. Founded in 1855,
Michigan State University is the pioneer land-grant institution. Other well-known land-grant universities include
Pennsylvania State University,
The Ohio State University and the
University of California system. Two states,
New York and
Massachusetts, designated private universities as their land-grant institutions. Repectively, these are
Cornell University and the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Following
World War II, the
GI Bill paid for the college education of many former service men, and helped to create a widespread belief in the necessity of college education and damaging the belief that higher education was only for the wealthy.
[1944 GI Bill of Rights. History of Education: Selected Moments of the 20th Century. URL accessed on February 18, 2005.] As such, attendance at institutions of higher learning has grown ever since.
Segregation and inequality
For much of its history, education in the United States was segregated (or even only available) based upon race. For the most part, African Americans received very little to no education before the
Civil War. In the
south where
slavery was legal, many states enacted laws which made it a crime for blacks to even be able to read, much less attend school alongside white classmates. After the Civil War and
emancipation, blacks still received little help from the states themselves. The
federal government, under the
Radical Republicans, set up the
Freedman's Bureau to help educate and protect former slaves and passed several civil rights bills, but neither survived the end of
Reconstruction in
1877.
After the end of Reconstruction, many southern states began to enact so-called
Jim Crow laws which mandated racial segregation between blacks and whites. The
Supreme Court case of
Plessy v. Ferguson of
1896 legalized the segregation of races as long as each race enjoyed parity in quality of education (the "separate but equal" principle). However, very few black students actually received equal education, often with low funding, outmoded or dilapidated facilities, and deficient textbooks (often ones previously used in white schools).
The
Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s helped overturn such laws; in
1954 the Supreme Court in
Brown v. Board of Education unanimously declared separate facilities inherently unequal and unconstitutional. The
Civil Rights Acts of
1960 and
1964 further helped end the period of segregation. Integration itself was a long and drawn out issue; although required by law, the first integrations of minute numbers of black students met with intense opposition across the south. In
1957 the integration of
Little Rock,
Arkansas, had to be enforced by federal troops; this was after President
Dwight D. Eisenhower had federalized the
National Guard, which the governor had called in to prevent integration. Throughout the 1960s integration continued with varying degrees of difficulty, including a period of forced busing, popular during the administration of
Richard Nixon.
Although full equality and parity in education would take many years (many school districts are technically still under the integration mandates of local courts), technical equality in education had been achieved by 1970.
[Madison Desegregation Hearing To Be Held Tuesday. TheJacksonChannel.com. URL accessed on February 14, 2006.] The actual equality of education, however, is still often the subject of dispute.
*
Educational attainment in the United States*
Public education*
Universities in the United States*
Lists of school districts in the United States*
Lists of high schools in the United States*
:Category:Lists of schools*
Scouting in the United States*
College Board*
ACT*
List of Church of the Nazarene Christian schools
43. United Nations Development Programme Report 2005, PDF file (undp.org)[
5]
*
U.S. Department of Education*
National Center for Education Statistics*
National Assessment of Educational Progress
