20##-20##学年第二学期

课 程 论 文

英美社会与文化

English Title:

The Characteristics of American Education                           and Implications                       

专业班级：英语2班

学生姓名：庄玥

学生学号：  20123527

20##年7月 11日

说明

1.      该课程论文选题要围绕美国教育的特点以及对中国教育的启示来进行；

2.      字数限制在1,500-2,000字，用英文撰写；

3.      论文写作格式要统一，包括：封面，正文结构，参考文献格式，A4纸打印；页码等；

4.      严禁抄袭，严禁直接从网上下载，一经发现即判不及格。

The Characteristics of American Education and Implications       

                              Zhuang Yue

1.     Introduction

The American educational development is the process of ceaseless self-development and innovation process, is the forming process of diversification and a wide range of social participation process.  In American, everyone should have the opportunity to receive the best education, and to develop the individual talents and abilities. Whatever they are poor or rich.

2.     The characteristics of American education

                  The educational system

2.1 Early Child Education

   The first year at school is called kindergarten. It is required of all American children enrolled in the American education system. The second year at school is considered the first year of primary school and is referred to as first grade. In America, the word grade has two meanings: The first is the score achieved on an exam or in a course, and the second is a year of education in primary or secondary school. Primary school most commonly consists of five years of education, referred to as first through fifth grades. 

In primary school, course for children include reading, writing and there are also course (such as history, geography, and civics of government), science, art, and music. Students can also learn cooking and manual skills such as carpentry and sewing.

2.2 Secondary Education

 Upon completion of fifth grade (the last year of primary school), American children enrolled in the American education system advance to secondary school. Secondary school most commonly consists of a total of seven years, referred to as sixth through twelfth grades. The ninth through twelfth grades are most commonly referred to as high school. Upon completion of twelfth grade, American students are awarded a certificate called the high school diploma. In the American education system, students must have obtained a high school diploma before they are admitted into college or university. Foreign students who would like to attend an American college or university must have completed coursework that is equivalent to what is taught at an American high school. Foreign students who would like to attend an American high school, need to consider how the high school they select will give them access to the best colleges.

In most high schools, in addition to general education, there is also vocational training for specific occupations. Through this kinds of training, students may obtain enough skills to work as secretaries, or automobile mechanics, etc.

2.3    High School Education

 For a long time, America has led the world in higher, education, quantitatively at least. The aggregate number of U.S. institutions of higher education is, at last count, 3,280. This figure represents one institution for every 75,000 Americans. Slightly more than half of all institutions of higher education are privately supported many of them by religious groups.

In American colleges and universities, a vast array of subjects is offered. The student can sample different fields of knowledge, but he usually majors in one field during last two years of college. If he wishes, he may obtain professional training at the undergraduate level, for example, in accounting, teaching, journalism, or dramatics. Certain state colleges specialize in training agricultural experts and engineers.

Most importantly, they work intensively with students writing thesis or dissertations. Guiding master's and Ph. d. candidates through the final writing and examination stages of their programs may be seen as an extension of the teaching act; nevertheless, it takes up much faculty time. Here the faculty member becomes both critic and editor of manuscripts which maybe several hundred pages in length.

2.4    College and University 

Students who have completed high school and would like to attend college or university must attend what is referred to as an undergraduate school. These are schools that offer either a two-year degree (called an associate degree) or a four-year degree (called a bachelor school) in a specific course of study. That course of study is called the major. While most schools that offer a four-year degree will admit students who have not yet chosen a major, all students are required to select (or declare) a major by their second year at school. Students who complete an associate degree can continue their education at a four-year school and eventually complete a bachelor degree.

There are over two thousand universities, colleges or other higher education institutions in the United States of America. The term “college” refers to an institution requiring a secondary school certificate for admission. A college may or may not be a part of university. A university may have many branches. About a quarter of all the colleges and universities are private. Every state has at least one public university. But the academic programmers are similar in these private and public universities.

There are three types of institutions of higher education in the United States of America.

The first type is the two-year college, originally called a “junior college”. Now it is named a “community college”, which services as a bridge that connects secondary schools and universities.

The second type is the four-year college, often called a “liberal arts college” or a “college of arts and science,” whose curriculum is confined to humanities, social and behavior science and natural science. 

The third type is the American university, which is an institution, more comprehensive and complex than any other kind of US higher educational establishment. Many universities have one or more professional schools, such as medicine, dentistry, law, veterinary medicine, etc. And they may have a variety of research units in various fields.

There are three ways of dividing up the academic year.

The semester system divides the year into two equal terms of about 16 weeks.

The quarter system consists of three terms of about 11 weeks with the fourth held during the summer month.

The trimester system has three equal terms of about 15 weeks each.

There are two kinds of master’s degree.

The first requires a dissertation paper, which counts for a certain number of credits that usually constitute part of the degree program. 

The second kind doesn’t require a dissertation paper, but credits are required in the process of study. An oral or written examination may also be required for the degree that doesn’t require a dissertation paper.

Students who have obtained a bachelor’s degree can continue their education by pursuing one of two types of degrees.

The first is a masters’ degree. This is usually a two-year degree that is highly specialized in a specific field. Students are sometimes admitted to a master’s degree program only if they have a bachelor’s degree in a closely related field. However, there are many exceptions to this, such as with students who want to pursue a Master’s in Business Administration (MBA) degree. Students who want to advance their education even further in a specific field can pursue a doctorate degree, also called a PhD. A PhD degree can take between three and six years to complete, depending on the course of study chosen, the ability of the student, and the thesis that the student has selected. The thesis is a very intensive research paper that must be completed prior to earning the degree. It is always required of students pursuing a PhD, and may sometimes be required of students pursuing a master’s degree (depending on the school). 

Certain courses of study are only available at the graduate school level in America. The most notable of these are law, dentistry, and medicine. Students who want to pursue a degree in one of these fields must first obtain a bachelor’s degree.

  3. Implications on Chinese Education

 Have said so much above, we can see that American education have lots differences between our Chinese educations. 

First, the Federal government has no power to make laws in the field of education, so they don’t have to think of the benefits of the government, what they should do is just teaching and tell students right from wrong. However in China, our schools are influenced by the government, so, the teacher have to tell us the positive things instead the fact about our government.

Second, unlike China, there is no entrance exam before we go to the high school in American, so that the American children can enjoy their children hood and train the interests on every fields. When we are busy on our exam, they are making their plan for the future!

To the Chinese, although they had been working hard, they was poor in independence. What we can see from the parents and children in the indulgence was that they were content with the status quo and more conservative like the doctrine of the mean. In turn, these characteristics make the Chinese education more oriented. Of course, it also has great influence from the ancient imperial examinations. Chinese students learnt how to get into the university and then find a good job from school instead of learning the real skills. Students seldom learn the true skill from the books but learnt how to deal with the exam. The teacher was forced to force the students to complete their homework.

4.   Conclusion

In short, American education mode do not fit for Chinese and Chinese education mode is not good for the Americans at the same time. I do not think it is accident that most billionaires have no culture in China. American education method is not appropriate for the Chinese, but we can let our knowledge education get better. We can develop more intelligentsia and this can also fill the lack of ability. We should try to find suitable method for us to make our education better.

  Bibliography:

[1] 陈德，2008，《新编英语国家概况》[M]，西安，西安交通大学出版社。

[2] 龚艳，2007，《悦读联播》[M]，北京，外语教学与研究出版社。

[3] 王奇民，2007，《英美社会与文化》[M]，北京，科学出版社。

[4] 吴延迪，1998，《美国风情录》[M]，上海，东方出版中心。

[5] 朱永涛，2012, 《英美文化基础教程》[M]，北京，外语教学与研究出版社。

正文格式规定如下：

The Characteristics of American Education and Implications(size 3)

                 Kang Guangming(size4)

1.     Introduction(size4)

   American Education is...(size 5)

This paper.....

2.     Characteristics of American Education

2.1 Early Child Education

2.2 Elementary and high School Education

2.3 College and University

3.     Implications on Chinese Education

4.     Conclusion

Bibliography

[1] A. Samovar, Larry. 2004.Communication Between Cultures [M].  

   Beijing: Peking University Press.

[2] Booth---

[3] 项贤明. 20世纪90年代以来美国的教育改革[J]. 比较教育研

   究，2003（5）.

[4] 朱永涛. 英美文化基础教程[M]. 北京：外语教学与研究出版

   社.1991.

[5] -------