US teaching styles?

[SomeRandom]

So, I actually grew up around a family consisting of mainly teachers (and yeah it’s as annoying and alcohol soaked as you can imagine that being lol.)

Something that kind of piqued my curiosity over the years was their complaints and sometimes praises of the US teaching styles vs ours. Since one of their mates actually was originally from the States.
For instance, Australia is apparently far more strict about teaching qualifications across the board. Regardless of subject and age range taught, all teachers must, by law, have a Masters Degree. The only thing that differs between them is their specific style of teaching.
Ie how strict they are, how much they engage with the class etc
Whereas that’s apparently not the case in the US? Is that correct? By that I mean the qualifications differ state to state and can be quite lenient in some areas. Is that true?

Another thing that I noticed, just as an observation. My family will often ask me “Devil’s advocate” questions about whatever subject we are discussing. Always have. This is apparently quite the common teaching tactic and indeed I experienced that a lot during my school days. Didn’t matter the subject or age level. Even my science teachers did that from time to time. Well except for math but to be fair what devils advocate question can you ask in that lol
I guess the idea being that a student should be able to think on their feet and answer complex questions in order to facilitate critical thinking skills???
Their US friend was far less inclined to do that. I don’t know if that’s due to the subject he taught (Physics) or it simply wasn’t his thing? I don’t wish to make assumptions.

The work schedule is apparently also quite different. Australia (big shock) is a bit more relaxed, with less homework (even being phased out experimentally currently) with a more balance between STEM and the arts. Very rarely does a school not offer music, for example. There’s seemingly a lot more flexibility, with students with more options in regard to their elective subjects (Math and English being the only compulsory ones.)

But what are your thoughts? Criticisms? Praises? Ways to improve?

Like I said, I don’t want to make any assumptions. Merely curious

 

[metis]

The work schedule is apparently also quite different. Australia (big shock) is a bit more relaxed, with less homework (even being phased out experimentally currently) with a more balance between STEM and the arts. Very rarely does a school not offer music, for example. There’s seemingly a lot more flexibility, with students with more options in regard to their elective subjects (Math and English being the only compulsory ones.)

And the highest rated school system in the world is Finland's, and what you say above is very much what they do.

 

[Orbit]

So, I actually grew up around a family consisting of mainly teachers (and yeah it’s as annoying and alcohol soaked as you can imagine that being lol.)

Something that kind of piqued my curiosity over the years was their complaints and sometimes praises of the US teaching styles vs ours. Since one of their mates actually was originally from the States.
For instance, Australia is apparently far more strict about teaching qualifications across the board. Regardless of subject and age range taught, all teachers must, by law, have a Masters Degree. The only thing that differs between them is their specific style of teaching.
Ie how strict they are, how much they engage with the class etc
Whereas that’s apparently not the case in the US? Is that correct? By that I mean the qualifications differ state to state and can be quite lenient in some areas. Is that true?

Another thing that I noticed, just as an observation. My family will often ask me “Devil’s advocate” questions about whatever subject we are discussing. Always have. This is apparently quite the common teaching tactic and indeed I experienced that a lot during my school days. Didn’t matter the subject or age level. Even my science teachers did that from time to time. Well except for math but to be fair what devils advocate question can you ask in that lol
I guess the idea being that a student should be able to think on their feet and answer complex questions in order to facilitate critical thinking skills???
Their US friend was far less inclined to do that. I don’t know if that’s due to the subject he taught (Physics) or it simply wasn’t his thing? I don’t wish to make assumptions.

The work schedule is apparently also quite different. Australia (big shock) is a bit more relaxed, with less homework (even being phased out experimentally currently) with a more balance between STEM and the arts. Very rarely does a school not offer music, for example. There’s seemingly a lot more flexibility, with students with more options in regard to their elective subjects (Math and English being the only compulsory ones.)

But what are your thoughts? Criticisms? Praises? Ways to improve?

Like I said, I don’t want to make any assumptions. Merely curious

There's a difference in qualifications to teach K-12th grade and to teach in college/university in the U.S.. Each state for K-12 has it's own licensure process--you have to hold a valid "teaching credential" to teach K-12 and it has to be from that state.

To teach in college/university it doesn't matter what state your degree is from, and you have to have at least a Master's degree in your field of expertise (not education in general--unless that is your field).

K-12 teaching and college teaching are very different, and I'm not actually sure which one you're asking about.

 

[Koldo]

So, I actually grew up around a family consisting of mainly teachers (and yeah it’s as annoying and alcohol soaked as you can imagine that being lol.)

Something that kind of piqued my curiosity over the years was their complaints and sometimes praises of the US teaching styles vs ours. Since one of their mates actually was originally from the States.
For instance, Australia is apparently far more strict about teaching qualifications across the board. Regardless of subject and age range taught, all teachers must, by law, have a Masters Degree. The only thing that differs between them is their specific style of teaching.
Ie how strict they are, how much they engage with the class etc
Whereas that’s apparently not the case in the US? Is that correct? By that I mean the qualifications differ state to state and can be quite lenient in some areas. Is that true?

Another thing that I noticed, just as an observation. My family will often ask me “Devil’s advocate” questions about whatever subject we are discussing. Always have. This is apparently quite the common teaching tactic and indeed I experienced that a lot during my school days. Didn’t matter the subject or age level. Even my science teachers did that from time to time. Well except for math but to be fair what devils advocate question can you ask in that lol
I guess the idea being that a student should be able to think on their feet and answer complex questions in order to facilitate critical thinking skills???
Their US friend was far less inclined to do that. I don’t know if that’s due to the subject he taught (Physics) or it simply wasn’t his thing? I don’t wish to make assumptions.

The work schedule is apparently also quite different. Australia (big shock) is a bit more relaxed, with less homework (even being phased out experimentally currently) with a more balance between STEM and the arts. Very rarely does a school not offer music, for example. There’s seemingly a lot more flexibility, with students with more options in regard to their elective subjects (Math and English being the only compulsory ones.)

But what are your thoughts? Criticisms? Praises? Ways to improve?

Like I said, I don’t want to make any assumptions. Merely curious

I truly don't see the point of math and english being compulsory past a certain age (around 12-ish).

I wish education overall had a bigger focus on developing skills with practical applications.

 

[Twilight Hue]

It would be nice to see PE an elective and not compulsary, as it's just a another excuse to see people who are not adept or proficient bullied and brutalized each time the class assembles.

 

[Sand Dancer]

I truly don't see the point of math and english being compulsory past a certain age (around 12-ish).

I wish education overall had a bigger focus on developing skills with practical applications.

I think spelling and sentence structure is important but only in a practical sense. i.e., being able to write, read and spell well. Personal math is important but really, algebra, trig, etc is not important unless your college major would require it.

 

[Sand Dancer]

It would be nice to see PE an elective and not compulsary, as it's just a another excuse to see people who are not adept or proficient bullied and brutalized each time the class assembles.

PE is way different now than when I was in school. It was horrible back then. Now you can be active after school, or take classes that are fun instead of learning sports.

 

[Koldo]

I think spelling and sentence structure is important but only in a practical sense. i.e., being able to write, read and spell well. Personal math is important but really, algebra, trig, etc is not important unless your college major would require it.

That's pretty much it, in a nutshell. Way too much of the stuff I have learned in school was useless to me.

 

[Koldo]

It would be nice to see PE an elective and not compulsary, as it's just a another excuse to see people who are not adept or proficient bullied and brutalized each time the class assembles.

The typical PE class here in Brazil is: Let's play soccer. Not interested? Tough luck.

 

[The Sum of Awe]

It would be nice to see PE an elective and not compulsary, as it's just a another excuse to see people who are not adept or proficient bullied and brutalized each time the class assembles.

Disagree. I think there needs to be some physical activity course. My school had us choose between PE and learning how to workout (in the school weightroom)

 

[The Sum of Awe]

The typical PE class here in Brazil is: Let's play soccer. Not interested? Tough luck.

Same. I was the kid who would be last in dodgeball and everyone would shout to "Get out" on purpose so they could play again. I was the kid who was the last chosen to join a team. But in retrospect, I loved PE because it was a reason to be out of class and doing something relatively fun. I wish I had chosen to enjoy it more.

 

[Father Heathen]

It would be nice to see PE an elective and not compulsary, as it's just a another excuse to see people who are not adept or proficient bullied and brutalized each time the class assembles.

That and cut sports from schools entirely; it detracts funds, attention, and priority away from actual education.

 

[Koldo]

Same. I was the kid who would be last in dodgeball and everyone would shout to "Get out" on purpose so they could play again. I was the kid who was the last chosen to join a team. But in retrospect, I loved PE because it was a reason to be out of class and doing something relatively fun. I wish I had chosen to enjoy it more.

I used to, back when I was a teenager, play RPG and MTG with my friends during PE classes. Most teachers didn't care.

 

[JustGeorge]

At the school I was at, you could volunteer at the daycare to get PE credits... Big win win. There was a need for daycare access for young and unexpected mothers; it was provided. The option to volunteer gave hands on skills training for those who took that option(I sure did).

They did nobody any favors getting rid of it... more young drop outs. But, I guess some would rather put their heads in the sand than see the world as it is...

A lot of the required courses seemed like a waste of time... I've never used algebra in my adult life. I could have used budgeting... I did take consumer math, but that was a voluntary course; I feel that should have been required.

It would be nice if students had more say in the way their education unfolded... I think there's been some improvement with this since I was a student, but I think there's still some more progress to be made. As far as homework goes, it really isn't a thing here. My son will be 17 in a few months, and he's never had homework.

 

[The Sum of Awe]

I used to, back when I was a teenager, play RPG and MTG with my friends during PE classes. Most teachers didn't care.

That sounds amazing!

 

[Koldo]

That and cut sports from schools entirely; it detracts funds, attention, and priority away from actual education.

Here's the thing: PE classes are supposed, in principle, to be both fun AND educative. You are supposed to get engaged in physical activities from an early age. This is healthy.

In practice though, since PE classes tend to be all about playing competitive games, if you are not at the very least an average player among your peers your experience will be miserable. It is probably even worse in the US since school teams are pretty important.

Playing a cooperative game and focusing on self-improvement (I actually had fun trying to score free throws, taking turns with other people) would be ideal. But no... Schools ought to mess it up...

 

[Sand Dancer]

That's pretty much it, in a nutshell. Way too much of the stuff I have learned in school was useless to me.

Don't get me started on geometry. I failed that class, but my teacher gave me an A on the final, so I could walk away with my dignity with a D.

 

[Shadow Wolf]

Their US friend was far less inclined to do that. I don’t know if that’s due to the subject he taught (Physics) or it simply wasn’t his thing? I don’t wish to make assumptions.

It's not really a thing here. Even in college, I had a philosophy teacher who did that and most people didn't like her because of that. Which is unfortunate because she taught the subjects well, engaged with the class and actually made it about learning things and using information rather memorizing things. Her classes were actually a lot of fun and pretty easy (if you paid attention and approached it to learn and not memorize, that is).
Public school is even worse. And not really intended for teaching or learning but instructing and memorizing. Teachers may or may not engage the class, and no matter what passing standardized tests is the goal and heavily emphasized.
The Church stuff I was taught to was the absolute worst. PACE was one such cirriculum I learned from. It has a reputation of producing very smart kids, but it's nothing more than memorized information they don't know about or how to use beyond repeating that information. This is largely due to the belief that the Bible is the most important thing to know and the rest is there but don't let it distract you from god. There's also a basis in that Bible learning so heavily bleeds into other subjects that I'm surprised things like "1 man + 3 nails = 4given" isn't a math lesson. It's also very sexist and racist.
And though PACE isn't the only cirriculum, but the others I was exposed to are just as bad. And PACE is widespread and popular. When you hear of not just homeschool but even Christian schools that American parents are sending their kids to, many are using it.

 

[SomeRandom]

Don't get me started on geometry. I failed that class, but my teacher gave me an A on the final, so I could walk away with my dignity with a D.

Hmm this is something else, I’m curious about. The grading system.
With ours, the curriculum is kind of spread out more than the US (apparently.)
So missing one or two classes here might be more challenging than in the States, where the intensity might mean that you’ll be able to catch up a bit better.
But I wonder if that also means that one test here, grade wise overall, is higher or lower than in the states…

I’ve also noticed. It’s purely aesthetic though.
The US seems to break up maths into specific categories. We just it math and teach it all at the same time

 

[JustGeorge]

Don't get me started on geometry. I failed that class, but my teacher gave me an A on the final, so I could walk away with my dignity with a D.

In PE class in middle school, you were supposed to be failed if you wouldn't dress for gym. We had a pool at the school, and I went into the pool... to have someone break into my locker and steal my pants. I had to roam around in my swimming suit, waiting for my dad to bring me a new pair of pants. I never dressed for gym again. She was supposed to flunk me, but I think she understood where I was coming from, so she always passed me with the lowest possible grade that was still passing...