The USA

There is no formal provision for a education in the USA. That is a problem of a local province and a state government.
Elementary and secondary education 1965 – offers programmes for economically and educationally disadvantaged children.
Education must be free and compulsory for all children between the ages of 6 and 16. A school year begins each September and ends in June. No religious education is provided by school in America. Students have average 5 hours a day, 5 days a week.

The system
Children between the ages 3 – 4 go into a nursery school.

Elementary school
At the age of 5 he goes into a kindergarten. Officially a elementary school begins at the age of 6. One school year is one grade. Elementary school consist of 6 grades. During these 6 year the emphasis ( důraz ) is laid upon the basic skills of reading, speaking, writing and math.

Secondary school
It’s begins at the ages of 12. Children move to the junior high school. They are spending there next 2 years (= grades 7 – 8 ). And then they go in high school ( 4 years, grades 9 – 12 ).

There are two types of school
· Comprehensive high school – the curriculum offers both general academic course
· Specialized subjects – they offer to prepare students in certain specialized areas of training ( školení ) : agricultural schools, business schools…

In the ninth grade student are called a freshman, a sophomore in the tenth grade, a junior in the eleventh and senior in the twelfth.
The children have some `core` subject ( f.ex. English, math, science… ). They choose `elective` subject according to their interests ( f. ex. Art, music, computers, drama… ). Children can learn by inquiry ( to solve problem than memorize facts ) or by doing ( f.ex. driver education, home economic…).
Students must earn some credits to get their high school diploma. Students must get good grades to find a good job. They receive a grade on the basis of course work and a written examination. They can receive A,B,C,D or F. Each grade corresponds to a number of points: A = 4, B = 3… The points are important for GPA ( = grade-point-average ). If he has an average 2,5 he probably had some Bs or Cs.
At the end of high school there is a ceremony there, called graduation. Students receive their diploma. They wear caps and gowns. Extra curricular activities are important for future life.