American Schools

[shahi]

my school is known for having bad kids. last year in the 7th grade we had a fight and such every day but now were in 8th grade so the whole 8th grade is like we don't care any more were trying to get out of this hell hole. and the younger kids from different schools talk about us but we don't care this is our last year(no more evil teachers)

[DuoMax]

Ahh, the American school system. A cesspool of ignorance, poor teaching abilities (in most cases) and absolutely no funding. I hate my high school.

[Kinetic]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by cloricus [/i]
[B] You don't have to worry about fashion or not wearing dirty cloths when you run out and stuff like that, [i]also cheaper.[/i] [/B][/QUOTE]

Unfortunately, any school I've attended that forces us to wear uniforms has always made me buy quite expensive ones.

Back on topic, most of my life I've attended homeschool or charter school. Charter school is a mix between a public and a private school. It's state funded as well. The charter school that I'm currently attending is quite small and the rules aren't very strict. We're not forced to wear uniforms but we still have a standard dress-code. When we go on field trips and such, students are allowed to drive (since we don't have buses), and we're not under constant surveryance by the teachers. At public schools, however, the rules have always been extremely strict and since the schools are so large, you don't get as much attention from teachers. I prefer smaller schools overall, because the people there are more friendly, you get a better education (depending on the school), and you have more freedom.

[Guest cloricus]

Our school has fights but they never get serious since there are several teachers who have this really weird ability to be at a fight scene just as or before the first punch is thrown, it's scary...

Though it's normally how pests are dealt with, like last year a group of kids from the grade below us were getting very annoying (unprovoked for over six months) so one day a few of us kept them in a general area while Harlequin, TUN and several others went and got every person who these guys had ticked off. This resulted with our whole year level (about 180) coming down all at once; when they rounded the corner the look on the kids faces said it all. They haven't been near us for a good long awhile. Oh and if your wondering one of those teachers got there before anything happened, not that it was hard in that case. (You see a large group of boys all pissed off and heading in one direct, first thing to do is follow them right?)

Most schools in Australia have uniforms.

[Kinetic]

Lol, that's one of the funniest school stories that I've ever heard. Due to the fact that my school is so small though, it wouldn't take that long for such an uprising.

[Moony-]

[QUOTE]You know what the single largest problem at my school is? People calling in fake bomb threats. We all have to evacuate, and bam, there's half an hour of class down the drain. >=([/QUOTE]

[size=1]I completely know what you mean. Last year was aweful for our school. I mean, it was completely pathetic. Everyother day, during second perdiod, we'd have a bomb threat. That happened (consistantly) for about 3 or 4 months. Than, one day .. it just .. stopped. So we all figured it was over. It turns out the kid who was doing them had moved away, and than suddenly she moved back. So the bomb threats started coming again. Luckily, she moved away for good, and now we don't have them anymore.

Another thing that I absolutely hate about my school right now is the fact that our budget didn't pass. That's a total downer. They're most likely going to cut the sports (which I don't really care about) and the music classes. I CAN NOT LOSE BAND CLASS. I'll just... die. So it really sucks.[/size]

[Guest Crimson Spider]

Advanced Technologies Acadamy is a great school. While there are a few jerks, people are nice. The teachers are a little strict, though. I mean, they don't account for each indeviduals needs nearly as much. They are often stuck-up about their own superiority.

But there aren't any new rules. Most of them aren't really enforced, because that stuff just plain doesn't happen! No back-pack checks. No locker searches. I see teachers let up on rules all the time.

[Purple Haze]

At my school theres fight pretty often. but most of teh people who figth dont get suspended. just ISS ( In School Suspension) which is kinda fun. But we dont have a dress code, teh teachers aren't that strict. Teh main thing you can get in trouble for is being late.

[Kinetic]

Only ISS for fights? If you get into a fight at my school, you get three to five tickets and suspension (if not expulsion). That's the only reason I don't fight in public. I take it to a private place and make them shut up about it if they lose.

[wiccansamurai]

Our school spends money on stupid things... There are hallways with no air-conditoining, which I know isn't too bad, but we have a 25,000$, completely useless, canoe (sp?) hanging from the cafetorium wall. What a waste of money, especially with them all being pissy about how their referendum (sp?) wasn't passed.

[Genkai]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by wiccansamurai [/i]
[B]Our school spends money on stupid things... There are hallways with no air-conditoining, which I know isn't too bad, but we have a 25,000$, completely useless, canoe (sp?) hanging from the cafetorium wall. What a waste of money, especially with them all being pissy about how their referendum (sp?) wasn't passed. [/B][/QUOTE]

What's a cefetorium? A mixture of an auditorium and a cafetiria? Where do you put the tables when you are using it as the audtiorium
Well, we don't have people walk us to the bathroom or whatever, and I don't think much has changed sincs 9/11 or columbine. Teachers don't care if you curse as long as you make a mild effort to avoid them hearing.

No one's backpacks or lockers are searchedunless they're suspected for something serious. The worst part is the "up and down stariways"./. Our school is about 300 overcrowded, and due to some construction at one of the elementary schools we have 300 more, so we're 600 overpopulated. So, in the 3 minutes we have to travel accross the building in insane traffic, the teachers have made a useless effort to enforce the stairways as being strictly one direction. They're REALLY hevily enforced, and it's really annoying, because no one would be late if it weren't for those.. *sighs*....

[G.D. Ryoko]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by The Mac Attack [/i]
[B]
My sister told me that in New York schools they've had to re-educate children on how to speak English because of the highly colloquial diction they have adopted. Now they learn "English" as they would "Spanish" or "Japanese". I was wondering if there was any truth to this comment. [/B][/QUOTE]
:shifty: That is so not True, The Mac Attack, or at least not for me or any other school I know about. I know because I live in one of the worst area`s of Brooklyn in N.Y.C. and that doesn`t happen in my school, nor my friend`s school. I also don`t type like I need to learn English all over again, and I don`t talk like I need to relearn english, unless I`m impersonating the slang my friends talk. I think that my english is fine, don`t you?(considering the fact that I lived in the worst parts of N.Y.C. my whole life.) and if it`s not, please tell me.Basicly what you here isn`t true.

Sorry for going off topic.

[Charles]

My high school wasn't the picture of perfection. Many of the students came from [i]outside[/i] our township from the nearby city of Camden (due to their own schools stagnating in a state of total disarray). Due to the large droves of outsiders pouring in annually, the school administration simply gave up on locating them and filtering them out. So, they just stayed.

I found that as years passed, the overall condition of the school environment deteriorated. On a typical day there were a handful of fights despite rules being put into place that required students who involved themselves in physical altercations be escorted out of the building by police. I never saw that consequence carried out too often though. Bomb threats were also plentiful--but they were never serious, only pranks.

There were some bothersome rules though. Our school literally sat on the cusp of a lot filled with fast food joints. They were practically on the same ground (you didn't even need to cross a street to reach them). Yet, students were not permitted to eat lunch outside the school. Even at age 18, you would be given problems for attempting to sign yourself out. It just didn't make any sense to me. I can only assume they wanted their cafeteria (which is a totally different entity from the school financially) to pull in more revenue.

Also, during the summer months, beverages of all sorts were banned (i.e., water bottles, juice bottles, etc). Even plastic bottles.. It even went so far that they removed vending machines selling these products from our cafeteria. This didn't affect me, as I had already graduated. But, as I understand it, their current system calls for students to buy a beverage with their lunch, with the lunch ladies removing the cap upon purchase. Lame.

Plus, despite them building another cafeteria and expanding the space available, they've reverted to our middle school rules. Meaning, they call lunch tables up individually instead of allowing students to get in line independently. I can't even begin to stress how much I disapprove of that. It?s jut a total lack of trust in the student base for performing the simplest of tasks.

When I left, they also insisted that students wear an identification badge around their necks. No one seemed to abide by that policy though.

With all that in mind, I can personally say that the rules can be a bit extreme. Our middle school even outlawed backpacks. For a time they allowed clear ones--but they're not even welcomed anymore from what I?ve heard.

To be fair, I'd say it's because of the area. I wouldn't go as far as to say that [i]all[/i] American schools are overly strict or forced to take outlandish precautionary measures. Some places are better than others. It's natural with how things are set up here. But, depending on the circumstances, I welcome strict rules if it means keeping the students safe.

I was just relieved when I started attending college. It's definitely a whole new ballgame as far as freedom goes because not only are you recognized as an adult--you're treated like one as well.

[Vegitto4]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by cloricus [/i]
[B]In it she included things like every where they went they had to go as a group, every one was under constant watch and if you went off some where it was with a teacher also there were strict searching of students and their lockers. She noted that out in the country schools it wasn?t as harsh but the same sort of rules were in place.

So are things like this happening in schools true or was she over exaggerating? [/B][/QUOTE]

[jumping in late.......]


In Plano schools, it's better than most, but still not as good. Strict dress code, but it's easy to get around it. We have to wear ID's, but nobody does. The seniors[w00t] get away with everything.

We have a strict academic policy. we are rated one of the top school district's in the nation. one that produces some very successfull people in our society.


I know that some schools in the nation are insane about keeping watch over the kids in the schools. I work in the front office in mine, and we have all visitors sign in, and wear a visitor badge. kids get in serious trouble if you run into somebody who doesn't like it that you dont have an ID badge on.




Depending on where you live, it can change rule wise.

[Guest shorty #2]

Hey I already told u about the fight, but now since I was first banned I have had a lot of bomb threats at my school. Just yesterday there was two bomb threats, amazing isn't it.

~*Married to Inuluvr1 November 20, 2003*~

[Shinken]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Lady Katana [/i]
[B][color=darkblue]Our school is currently [i]trying[/i] to be that strict. The backpack searches they issue when you come in have gotten a lot more serious lately. They also have a no-pass policy in effect and if you need to go to the restroom or something, you have to have an administrative escort.

It's all very stupid, as none of it actually works. The only thing that does is the new "Hall Sweep" rule, where if you come tardy to 1st period, you automatically get a parent conference and if your parents don't come, you get sent to Juvenile for truancy. If you're caught skipping from 2nd-6th, you're automatically suspended for three days. They've already caught over 100 people.

It's my assumption that all this is to prevent school violence and to have kids actually come to class. I can understand this to a certain extent, but its largely a big waste of time and effort.

I guess that's my roundabout way of saying she wasn't exaggerating. ^^;[/color] [/B][/QUOTE]

Holy crap, that's strict. Juvenile?! I have one thing to say to you; Get out as fast as you can! :worried: In my school, it's not that strict, so you don't really have much to worry about. The only annoying rule applies to the Middle School (since I'm in 10th, I don't have to worry about it! :box: ) . They don't let you carry your backpacks anywhere in the middle school, except to your locker, and out the door. In the high school, backpacks are a necessity.

Again, HOLY CRAP THAT'S STRICT. I wouldn't last a day in that school. (Is it, like, a military academy or something? Juvenile is just way too harsh for missing a period of school.)

[Kei]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Shinken [/i]
[B]Again, HOLY CRAP THAT'S STRICT. I wouldn't last a day in that school. (Is it, like, a military academy or something? Juvenile is just way too harsh for missing a period of school.) [/B][/QUOTE]

[color=darkblue]No, I'm in just a regular old public high school.

The thing about this is that truancy in our school district is a major problem. According to news reports, there are at least 300 kids who have missed at least 45 days of school in one semester with unexcused absences (Rule is, more than seven days with unexcused absences, parents get dragged to court).

Our new superintendent, since our last was kicked out of office, has noticed this, and decided to do something about it. So, every school day downtown and on Wendsdays at my school, they did a truacy sweep. They caught about 75 downtown the first time they did it and around five at my school. Ms. Stier, my principal, decided that this was a wise idea, and decided to implement that policy. It is actually working, since when they first did it, the list that was announced over the PA had at least 50 kids on it, has been reduced to about 15.

Though it works, I do agree that being sent to JD is somewhat harsh. They should come up with an alternative means of punishment, like a better version of ISS, or something. But there's nothing anyone can do unless parents complain, and I really don't see that happening any time soon. *shrugs*[/color]

[KarmaOfChaos]

[color=deeppink]

Rules? What are these 'rules' you speak of...?

Heh. Okay, maybe it's not that bad. But our school definitely isn't as fanatical as some of the schools I'm hearing about on this thread. It's pretty easy to cut class, just get out during the time when class changes. Or, simply get a pass to your car during lunch, and then just walk right out.

And you could always just stay outside during all 3 lunches instead of going to third period.

There's some dress code...I think...no one cares though. As long as you're not decked out with thousands of 5 inch spikes and whipping chains, and you're not wearing something completly transparent, it's okay.

And the amount of drug transaction is ridiculous. It's one of the easiest things to do.

Of course, that's just my school. There's another thread somewhere around here about Stratford High, which is just down the road from us, which is far more rule crazy.

So it really depends on the school. Trying to generalize American schools would be stupid and pointless, lol.

-Karma
[PS: Banned bookbags...? That's insane. I'd die if I didn't have my bookbag with me. I hate going to lockers.]
[/color]

[Kinoko Shima]

My school isn't really all that strict. Nobody cares what you do as long as you're on time for class. ^_^ We're supposed to have a dress code, and we're supposed to wear ID tags, but nobody pays any attention to that. If people get in fights, which isn't much, they mostly just get a few days of ISS.
Public schools are good.....

[Guest cloricus]

Just on the topic of kids skipping school. They had a really bad problem with this down in Adelaide (South Australia) and them hanging around at the public train stations. Their solution, play country music.
It has been claimed as a total success by the council because of an 86% drop in teenagers hanging around the area's.

[Arcadia]

[size=1]I live in Florida, and as some of you might be aware, we're not exactly a genius state. Our parents can't even vote properly, so you can bet the education system is going to be a trip in itself. I like to blame it all on Jeb Bush and his stupid education plan, but part of it is also the parents. I don't know about you guys, but I did my homework, and I studied my *** off all four years of high school. Part of that is my own desire to, you know, [i]amount to something,[/i] but another factor is my parents - I learned very early on that it was in my best interests to do my work and be respectful of the teachers and mindful of my peers and all that crap. Otherwise, my life sucked - stuff got taken away from me, I couldn't do anything [i]but[/i] homework, and my dad is scary as hell when he's mad.

Now it seems like parents don't care all that much. They don't punish their kids if they do stupid things, or if they do, it's like a slap on the wrists and a "don't do that again." I understand that there are a lot of working parents who do have jobs to go to and all that, but are you going to tell me that they can't spend one hour with their kid a night? Help him study, do some homework? Where else are they going to learn responsibility?

While I agree that basic funding and the adminitstration at high schools isn't always up to par, I also think that the people who run the schools aren't always to blame. Of course, my high school might have just sucked compared to everybody elses, but hey. Welcome to Florida.[/size]

[outlawstar69]

My school isn't too bad, now that I've heard some of your guys' stories. As of now, there's alot of construction going on, which shows that they care about our old school getting better and stuff like that, in terms of up grading it. As for faculty and staff, they're nice enough. Alot of them are old, or related to everybody, so it's all good. :)