Education Q&A

Tomorrow morning I will be interviewed by French college students studying English about the American education system.

In the past few years, I have reflected a great deal on the differences between the French educational system and the American one. I would say the one feature that stands out the most between my experience and the typical French experience is the boxing of French students. Their classmates from kindergarten follow them all the way up through high school most of the time. In a student's freshman year of high school (year 1 of 3), based on his/her performance in certain subjects and the motivation apparent in their behavior, a student is recommended by each of their teachers for a track or "filiere". They will either study socioeconomics and become philosophers and politicians, study science and become doctors or scientists, study literature and , or study business and pursue a higher degree or begin work right out of high school. The order I just listed is more or less based on the order in which students are ranked: the smartest kids study socioeconomics and the kids with the lowest grades get dumped in the business track, or STG. There are exceptions of course, but this is certainly the rule. And these tracks play the central role in who people associate with during high school.

I welcome your input on my answers to these questions! I will be conducting the interview tomorrow morning, so this is your chance to influence what changes between now and then.

1. What do you study at UCLA?
Actually, I studied at UCSC – The University of California, Santa Cruz. Santa Cruz is a small town two hours south of San Francisco. It was once a large retirement community, but when the University was founded, in 1965, it became a large part of the city’s culture and now accounts for most of the city’s economy. It also gave birth to a Progressive population and surfer culture in what was generally a community of conservative Republicans.
At UCSC, I studied French Literature. UCSC is not well-known for French Literature, but since I was not accepted to UC Berkeley or Yale, the top two French Departments in the United States, I was determined to make do. I took one French Literature class and one Literature class (usually American or World Literature) each quarter for three years.

2. What are the steps to go to university?
In order to attend a university in the United States, an American must first obtain his/her high school diploma or pass an equivalent test, called the GED. After having thus finished high school, one must apply to universities. In order to apply, one must complete an application process far more complicated than the typical French University application. One must take the SAT and/or ACT, standard tests that provide schools with an idea for the student’s competence in general subjects. Then, an online application is filled out; this application asks for the student’s family racial background, income, and composition (divorced/married/separated, how many brothers/sisters), his/her interests, and then one must write a two to three-page essay explaining why the student would like to attend the university in question and what makes he/she a qualified candidate. Finally, the student must pay an application fee. For privately-funded schools, one must provide a letter of recommendation from one of his/her high school teachers in order to show the teacher’s confidence in his/her student.

3. What are the levels from 3 to 18 years old?
From three years old to about five or six years old, a child attends preschool, or nursery school. Between five and six years old, a child attends kindergarten, followed by first, second, third, fourth, and fifth grade. These six years are called ‘elementary school’. When one is eleven or twelve, one attends middle school, or sixth, seventh, and eighth grade. Finally, Americans in high school are between fourteen and nineteen years old.

4. Did you have ceremonies when you received diplomas?
Yes – I had a graduation ceremony for my high school and college diploma. For my high school graduation ceremony, all the graduating seniors (equivalent of terminales) took a seat in the gymnasium and the family members sat to the left and right of students, on the bleachers. My school colors were black, red, and white, so the boys wore red and the girls wore white gowns with caps. Students who had made great achievements were given separate awards, but otherwise each student’s name is called followed by a short mention of their achievements and they receive their diploma one by one. For my college graduation, the ceremony was held outdoors and the graduating class sat on bleachers to the left and right of the friends and family. Several speeches are made by students and professors, and then each student is called to take their diploma and shake the provost’s hand.

5. What kind of relationships do you have with your teachers?
That depends on the teacher and the class. In a class with 100+ students, a student will not be able to meet the teacher one-on-one unless he/she goes to office hours, which are hours set aside by the professor to speak with students and establish a connection. In smaller classes with twenty to thirty students, the students spoke about as much, if not more than the professor. UC Santa Cruz is known for being progressive, so the majority of my professors embraced a more informal approach to learning: for example, the class sat in a large circle in order to make everyone feel equal. I am still in touch with four professors via email: I recently asked them to write me a letter of recommendation for graduate studies, which allowed us to catch up and gave me a chance to seek their advice on a more intimate level.

6. What have you to do to become [a] teacher in the USA?
In order to teach in elementary, middle, or high school, one must have a master’s degree in education and a teaching credential valid for the state in question. Getting these two degrees generally takes about two and a half years, the typical duration of a master’s degree. There are, however, more competitive, extremely intensive programs in which one can attain both degrees in a year and a half.

7. Can you describe a normal week in an elementary school (timetable)?
Tough question: that was a long time ago! If I remember correctly, an elementary school student has class from 8:00am until 3:30 or 4:00pm Monday-Friday. On Wednesdays, class usually only goes from 8:00am until 1:30pm. Lunch is usually between 12:30 and 1:30pm and there are two fifteen-minute breaks at 10:00am and 2:00pm.

8. Are there educational reforms under Obama’s presidency?
Yes; he is currently trying to implement a system to raise educational standards. Some schools in the US are very good and some are very bad. I don’t know much about the reform, but I do know that it would provide incentives for the schools that are improving and would cut federal aid to schools that are not getting any better. I think there is currently a debate over how to measure a school’s performance. President Bush’s “No Child Left Behind” law made students take a lot of standardized tests, which helped compile data on schools that are struggling, which has subsequently helped the new reform take action in more effective ways.

9. Do you think education needs reforms?
Yes! The only way to find out whether alternative educational systems work better or worse is to implement them, and as long as the representatives making those decisions are defending the people’s best interests, reform is very important.

10. What did you like during your year in France?
This year, I have really tried to immerse myself in French society. It has been a very enlightening experience to see how the French view things, as opposed to how Americans view things. For example, I was brought up with the expression “time is money”, and it has become central to how I make decisions. I might decide not to do something because there is no economic benefit to doing it, especially if it requires a lot of time and effort. Here in France, I don’t think this way of thinking is common: instead, I see people making decisions based on what they want to do, people choosing the path in life that will make them the happiest, not necessarily the richest.

11. How pupils are valued? (How are pupils evaluated)
Students at all levels (K-12, even into college) are graded on a letter system that runs from “A+” to “F”. An “A+” is given for an exceptionally good piece of work; it is almost never given. An “A” is for an excellent piece of work, and an “A-“ is for something just short of excellent. The system continues all the way down: A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, C-, D+, D, D-, F. Anything below a C- is a failing grade, and the student may choose to receive very little to no credit for his/her work, or in some cases may do the work over again. An “F” indicates no effort on the part of the student; literally, “failing”.

12. In France, from 3 to 6 years old pupils go to Maternelle. What system takes place in the USA?
In the USA, children go to preschool from 3 years old to five or six years old. I believe it is the parents’ choice to decide when the child enters kindergarten, but that may not be true for all schools.

13. What surprised you most when you arrived in a French school?
The students are so shy! In the USA, participation is a large part of the grade: sometimes it counts for as much as 30% of your final grade in a high school class! Students are encouraged to ask questions and speak their opinions. This is a good thing because it promotes a diversity of ideas in the classroom, but it can be a bad thing when the teacher does not make enough time for his/her lesson or when a student simply talks too much.

14. Did you practice repeating a year?
No. I have had friends who had to repeat a year because they were too young; sometimes the state needs to step in to regulate to correct misplacement. I have known people that have not earned passing grades and have had to repeat a year, but in my neighborhood, those cases were rare and exceptional.