US Education Blog

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In the US, more than in any other country, education plays a very important role in the development of individuals. Due to education, knowledge is valued above all by all generations.

In most part of the country ignorance was ended. According to the statistic data the illiteracy rate changed from 11.3 % in 1900 to 0.6 % in 1980, so altogether it was reduced on 11 %. More people could receive education than before. In 1990 ¾ of Americans aged 25 and older, finished high school, when in 1940 it was only ¼ . Moreover, in 1990 20 % graduated from a university. This growth in education contributed to the cultural development of the nation.

Education

In the United States, everyone can get education, starting from prekindergarten and finishing by graduate school. Institutions may be either private or state. Elementary and secondary education covers12 years of schooling, one who shows good results is offered to go to a high school.

Theoretically, the public education system is under control of local authorities. In reality, , mostly state institutions are in charge of school funding, academic standards, and curriculum. Each state has its own regulations when it comes to public education; it means that there are great variations within the states. Though there are of course a lot of similarities, as education is the object of national interest.

Public education is financed by three levels of government—local, state, and federal. Local school districts usually take property taxes, due to which public schools are financed. The today’s conflict concerning the problem of public schools lays in the fact that the level of the property tax rate is very high while the quality of education in schools leaves much to be desired. Plus, rich communities can pay more than the poorer ones, which leads to disproportion in the quality of education.

In the mid-17th, the time when public education was started, it was aimed to break down the differences in social classes. Public schools were established for representatives of all nationalities, classes, and religions.

Higher education in the United States is not cheap. Some four-year universities can charge almost $50,000 for one year only, without paying for housing, transport, and other living costs. Of course one can get less expensive education, but still of high quality. Most universities cost minimum $10,000 per year, but for the best part you will pay $20,000 to $30,000 annually. For U.S. families covering their children’s education is a big problem, that is why the money for this purpose is saved from their child’s birth.

Though it should be mentioned that the tuition, though it is very high, doesn’t cover all the education costs. Universities and colleges are always in the search of new institutions that can provide financial support in order to pay for buildings, facilities, and salaries.

Prospective students have a chance to lower the expenses by means of finding a job, which is by the way provided by colleges. Enrolling in a community college is also possible for working adults, because they are allowed to take classes in the evenings or at weekends.

Apart from family savings, there is also funding for college, so called loans and grants. The difference between them is that loans must be paid back, with interest and grants are not returned. Though the interest for students loans are lower, which is a good thing. Many people work their first years with the purpose of paying back their student loans. In this sense grants have an advantage as they needn’t be paid back, though they make a students face certain obligations as for instance having high grades. There also exist scholarships, which are sums of money a student can receive due to his or her academic, athletic, or civic success, or because of some circumstances. Going through all the application procedures can be confusing for families when they fill in the application forms. For there purposes there are specific offices which will give all the necessary information. They are located in colleges and secondary schools.

The whole procedure must seem more confusing for international students, as most of other countries give cheap or fee-less education for their students. What possibilities do foreign students have, if they want to be enrolled in a college in the US, but don’t have enough money?

Community colleges give a chance go receive higher education for those who wish. They give an opportunity to get credits before entering a university in high accredited institutions. It is not a secret that the tuition in colleges is lower than in universities, so it is another good way to save money. Students can also attend training connected with different careers.

It is worth mentioning that community colleges are growing in number nowadays. In the United States there are now almost 1,200 community colleges, where more than 11 million students are enrolled, which is about 46 percent of all the undergraduates.

Foreign students have lots of benefits, such as improving their English and understanding American culture and society better.

Let us concentrate on community college benefits:

Lower Tuition. Simply compare $12,000 to $20,000 annual tuition costs in four-year colleges and universities with about $5,000 per year community colleges. Feel the difference?

Easy Move to a University. Most community colleges have conventions with four-year colleges and universities, according to which credits of students of community colleges can be easily counted toward the four-year degree program.

Accreditation. US community colleges, four-year colleges, and most of universities are all accredited by one and the same institution.

Wide Choice of Programs. Students have a chance to choose from hundreds of majors in community colleges, including the most wanted ones.

English as a Foreign Language. Most colleges offer English courses help students from other countries to adapt themselves to a new language.

A Friendly Learning Environment. Students study in small class sizes, usually fewer than 30 students, where individual approach is guaranteed. Also there are different support services for students.

Diversity. As the students come from different cultural environments, the colleges provide a wide range of extra-curricular activities that support the diversity.

A Chance To Investigate U.S. to interact with Americans and to experience American culture.

Different Locations and Campus Sizes. Community colleges differ in their size, from small schools located in the countryside to large institutions in megalopolises.

Outstanding Alumni. California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and ex Maryland Governor Parris Glendening, director of Star Wars movie series, George Lucas and many other distinguished people graduated from them.

The states where big public universities are situated receive assistance from the state authorities and are called state universities. They are respected and have a lot of traditions. Best students from all over the country and the world too tend to study there.

Normally, these kinds of universities have biggest numbers of students studying there as well as professors teaching. Public universities also have a lot of academic programs. Let’s take the university which I have graduated from as an example. The University of Minnesota Twin Cities provides education to 50,000 students, gives a huge number of degrees, and is a leading one in different spheres.

Public universities are of great importance to the country and most of them are concentrated on technology through research, while the level of research is different among them. Every year up to hundreds of millions of dollars are awarded to those who are successful in their research. Though the level of support varies from state to state. State universities normally get 10 to 30 percent of their budgets from the state which they are supported by. They receive the rest of the money from tuition and fees, contracts, and gifts mostly.

It simply means that lots of graduates get financial support due to research grants and contracts provided to a university. Although most of state universities are now in the search of extra funding for international exchanges and study, it is still very law when it comes to international students. The reason for that is mostly because undergraduates do not usually conduct research.

Large state universities can be situated both in large metropolitan areas and in small towns. Many of them own a number of campuses all along the state.

Boards of trustees are in charge of public universities. Many universities in other countries report to a federal-level minister of education while in the US they do not. And this is not the only tradition that makes American system of public universities different from those of the other countries. The thing is that even though these institutions are supported by the state, students anyway have to partially pay tuition and fees, and the prices are increasing each year. It is a normal thing when a student needs to borrow money to pay for his or her college.

Speaking of all U.S. universities, large public ones often enroll the largest number of international students and staff. For example in the University of Minnesota over 4,500 international students and scholars study are there. The University of Minnesota provides al the necessary services to help foreign students get used to their culture and many public universities have programs of the kind.

Public universities in the US are in enrolling best students from all round the world. If you think you can be one of them, don’t waste your time and look for rich opportunities that public universities in the United States give.

On November 02, 2007 in Dushanbe, Tajikistan the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on School Quality Learning Project (SQLP) for the period of 2007-2012 was adopted. Mr. Abdujabbor Rahmonov, Minister of Education, of the Republic of Tajikistan, Mr. William Frej, Regional Mission Director, U.S. Agency for International Development for the Central Asian Republics (USAID/CAR) and Mr. John Dreire, Chief of Party, Creative Associate International Inc., USAID School Quality Learning Project, were the participants of the meeting

The main points of the new regulations concern desire of the US Government to continue teamwork with the Ministry of Education of the Republic of Tajikistan, with the aim of improving the access to content of education. William Frej claimed during the meeting that the USA pays lots of attention to education. The country plans to provide funds to support Tajikistan in his effort of international cooperation.

This is the second regional project coming into force in Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Turkmenistan will provide more access to quality of school education. Such education programs as PEAKS, IBET/ISET, and Step by Step Project give good ground to new achievements. Among the new implementations of the project is expanding access to teacher training in interactive and studying centered methods. A larger number of assessment methodologies will be put into practice, teachers will have a more active role in the process of learning and new schools will gain more financing.

Creative Associates International Inc. has a lot of experience in this sphere, that is why cooperation with the Government of Tajikistan in this program can bring good results.

Due to USAID support there are more than 58,000 students in 104 schools in basic education

There were a lot of aid programs provided by the U.S. government, and the School Quality Learning Project is only one of them. Since 1993 more than $270 million were invested by the American people, and due to this financial support visible advance can be noticed in democratic institutions, health care, and education systems of Tajikistan.

In spite of the fact that education in the US gives wide educational perspectives for students, no doubt there are some groups of Americans that have gained from it more than others. After the 1950s, government aimed to provide greater equity educational opportunity for everyone. Politicians tried to iron out discrimination in schools, which was even more important for them than educational quality. Providing equal educational opportunities to all US citizens became the first perspective for federal governments.

Racial Equality

In the 1950s race discrimination in schools was still widespread. In the South states schools for African Americans were separated from those for the whites, and this fact was confirmed officially by the Supreme Court of the United States in Plessy v. Ferguson (1896). In the Northern part of the country there were no such laws, but racial discrimination was still accepted. Segregation normally meant lower levels of education for blacks throughout the country. Funding of schools for whites was higher than those for the Afro Americans. It was better to be a teacher in white schools because one could earn more, and facilities in schools were much more modern.

The illegal nature of racial discrimination in schools was proclaimed in 1954 by the Supreme Court in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka. It was the starting point in getting rid of the legalized segregation system in schools. Though discriminating tendencies could not be overcome in one moment and in spite of judicial banning of segregation, most American schools still did not enroll black people.

The target of the policy that we have already mentioned was to increase educational growth among black students. But anyway educators complained of unequal chances in education for Hispanic American students. According to statistical data, in the year 1996 most Hispanic Americans went to non-white schools and schools that don’t have enough educational resources. It also means that the level of literacy for Hispanic students was lower than for whites. In the1999-2000 period 7.4 % of Hispanic students gave up school, comparing with 4.1 % for white students. Language barriers and low income also separated them from white people.

The situation in the school system of the US before the 20th century was dramatically different from what we have got nowadays. Only a small number of teenagers attended schools. These schools prepared students for college, or taught them the skills necessary for finding a job. Though not many of them could or simply wanted to continue secondary education. In 1900 les than 10 % of teenagers aged 14 to 17 (who by the way came from wealthy families) attended high schools.

Boston Latin School, which was established in 1635, was the first publicly supported secondary school in the country, but still up to the late 19th century it were private tutors or privately supported academies that provided secondary education. Before 1874 it was not financed by the government , when a Michigan Supreme Court firstly provided state monetary support of high schools.

In the 20th century there were much more people who were involved high school attendance, and it can be considered as great progress. The number of teenagers graduated from high school grew from 6 to 88 % during the last century. People started to understand that additional schooling was their way to successful future in the new urban and highly industrialized society. Moreover, in the early 20th century some child labor laws were introduced. They decreased the number of teenagers allowed to work. Of course it lead to more time for them to attend classes. School gave them a better alternative to labor and a chance to establish a family, or begin college before they start working. In the 20th century most US states proclaimed compulsory education laws for the children up to16. Staying at school was a better perspective for most students than dropping it and beginning to work.

The 20th century it was only the US where high school existed. Already at that time it was obvious for the Americans, that getting higher education will help a person to meet all individual and community requirements. High schools gave teenagers a possibility to experience adolescence with their peers. They also gave students necessary knowledge that they needed for everyday life, in order to get a job, or to continue their education. By “Americanizing” immigrants into mainstream political and social values, public high schools worked to accomplish for adolescents what the common elementary school had always attempted for younger students. High schools gave attainment to students from all family backgrounds to the American society.

The number of people involved in higher or postsecondary education increased in the 20th. Te facts say that in early 1920-th only about 2 % of the population aged from 18 to 24 entered a college. At that time there were fewer than 1,000 colleges that took about 157,000 students. Closer to the end of the century already about 60 % of this age group, were enrolled, and a number of higher educational institutions increased up to 3,500. This dramatic change influenced 6,500 postsecondary vocational and technical institutes, but the problem was that they were те accredited to give bachelor’s or associate degrees.

The period form 1636 to 1701c played an important role in the development of the educational system in the US: at that time Harvard, College of William and Mary, and Yale were established. Competition among Protestant organizations caused establishment of hundreds of colleges during the 19th century, though because of many а them being privately supported, a lot of them did not survive. Though even with these problems, in 1870 573 colleges still functioned, providing education and making Americans believe in happy future through education.

Public institutions never took over higher education, because elementary and secondary institutions were always supported and controlled. In contrast to the religious education, state schools never betrayed the main perspectives of the American society. State powers also believed that colleges trained the most wanted specialists as physicians or engineers. In 1862 and 1890 The Morrill Acts gave state monetary support to state colleges. As a consequence, many new land-grant colleges and state colleges were founded, due to the gifts of federal land to the development of higher education.

At the end of the 19th century research was the area on which most of the private and public universities concentrated. Putting the knowledge on practical use raised the amounts of financial aid for public institutions. Moreover, the enrollment of students after World War II raised1945 dramatically. After the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act in 1944 state supported education specially, providing with all the necessary facilities, which automatically meant increase in the number of students.

There are also educational institutions in the US which are created, controlled and financed by private groups or individuals. About 11 % of American primary and high schools are non-governmental. Private education is also provided at many American preschool institutions as well as at many higher educational institutes.

What makes nearly all private schools different from their state counterparts which are free, is that they charge tuition. The costs may differ depending on the type of school and the level of education provided. It is important that far not all the American families can afford the costs of private education., but at the same time some financial support to applicants from disadvantageous background is always provided. Apart from tuition payments, private schools also get support from different private sources, as for example religious institutions, endowments, grants, and donations.

In this article you will know about American primary education of elementary and secondary levels. To find the necessary data concerning private higher education in the US, search for Colleges and Universities: Independent Colleges and Universities.

Private American schools in the United States may be divided into religious and (nonreligious) institutions. Catholic Church controls almost all religious schools in the country. Boarding schools are also known as particular type of private schools. Their most distinctive feature is that they provide their students with lodging, unlike day schools, which do not offer accommodation. Preparatory schools get students ready to enter college. Both religious nonreligious private schools are single-sex and provide accommodation.

The notion of independent school means any private school which is independently controlled by a board of trustees only ( but not any religious organization). Independent schools have either a religious or nonsectarian destination. They get money mostly from tuition, fees, charity, and sponsors. The National Association of Independent Schools is the main governing body which is in charge of independent schools in the US.