1. Main target
The main goal of senior high school students in China is to prepare for the college entrance examination and finally get into an ideal university. The main goal of American high school education is to cultivate people who can independently undertake family and social responsibilities, and at the same time prepare for applying for universities.
2. Public and private high schools
There are many famous public high schools in China with rankings. Private high schools have poor students, and private high schools charge for profit as the main purpose. Some public high school students also have to pay a lot of money. There are many famous private high schools in America, and there are also famous public high schools. Schools have their own specialties, and their ranking awareness is not strong. Students in public and private high schools are different from each other. Generally speaking, private high schools have better students. Public high schools are completely free and accept voluntary sponsorship; Private high schools are expensive, but you can apply for scholarships. Profit is not the main purpose, some of which are church schools.
Enter high school
In China, according to the results of the senior high school entrance examination, students enter different high schools or pay for private or public schools, and the results of the senior high school entrance examination play a decisive role. In the United States, private schools need to apply for admission about eight months before. Application materials include teacher recommendation, transcripts, SSAT scores, interviews, etc. Math and English scores are relatively important. Moreover, private schools have boarding schools, and foreign students can also apply. If you want to go to an American public school, you can automatically enroll as long as you have a legal address and identity in the school district; Non-school district students need to fill in an application for admission to a non-school district (GE). If there are vacancies in the school, they will generally be admitted. Therefore, if you want to go to public schools, it is very important to choose a good school district to live in.
4. Academic system
China senior high school for three years (grade 10- 12). Students usually arrive at school around 7: 30 in the morning, go home at 5: 30 in the evening, and some have evening self-study. One class lasts about 40 minutes, and there are about 9 classes a day, and the lunch time is more than 1 hour. American high school is four years (grade 9- 12). Like the university system, students of all grades are the same as the university. Classes usually start at 8 am and end at 2: 30 pm. A class lasts 80 minutes, which is similar to that of a university. There are 3-4 classes every day and 30-40 minutes for lunch.
5. Class
The fixed classes in senior high schools in China have strong collective consciousness, but they are poorly connected with universities (especially American universities); American high schools, on the other hand, have no concept of class, and implement course selection system and credit system, which are similar to universities and naturally connect with universities.
6. Courses
In China, all students have a fixed course, generally there is no difference, and students have no choice. There are basically no practical courses in the school. And most schools only offer one foreign language course. In the United States, students can choose courses with different difficulties that they are good at and interested in according to their own level and interests, including general courses, honor courses, AP courses and IB courses (also divided into general courses and advanced courses). Schools generally have practical courses for students, such as flower arrangement, pottery and cooking. Most schools offer many foreign language courses for students to choose from.
7. Classroom
In domestic high schools, teachers usually give lectures and students attend classes, so students' autonomy and independent thinking ability have not been well cultivated. American high schools pay attention to cultivating students' autonomy and independent thinking ability. For example, English (equivalent to Chinese in China) class often has 15 minutes of fast writing. Students read about 4 literary works and write comments each semester, and they are also required to comment on their own works. Foreign language (equivalent to English in China) courses often require students to make a three-minute oral statement on a topic and write a composition of 120 words. Art class requires students to do oil painting, sculpture, etc. Appreciate and analyze works of art. Health classes should understand physical and mental health, common first-aid methods and the use of first-aid equipment, and cultivate a sense of family responsibility.
8. Grades, credits and rankings
Generally, China has a percentage system, and there are obvious differences between 100 and 90, 89 and 80. Test scores, especially the final exam scores, account for a large proportion, and the ranking is open. American high schools have a credit system, which is divided into five grades: A, B, C, D and F. F means failing, and you have to retake the exam to get credit. 100 is almost the same as 90, both are A, and there is no difference from 80-89, both are B, and so on. The final grade of the course includes homework and exam scores, each accounting for about half, and some courses also have reward points, which are included in the final grade. The total score of each subject is calculated by GPA(GradePointAverage), and the ranking is not open.
9. Exercise
In China, physical education class in senior high schools is generally not considered as an achievement, and schools rarely organize extracurricular sports activities, and there are few inter-school sports competitions. Physical education class in the United States is counted as a credit, which is included in GPA. There are various sports teams in the school, and there are many events, such as golf, swimming, cross-country, tennis, track and field, etc. Students participate voluntarily, usually training from 3: 30 pm to 6: 00 pm. There are also many competitive sports teams in the school, such as rugby, basketball, volleyball, swimming, judo, fighting and baseball. , to participate in the inter-school league. The main force of the school team has a certain advantage when applying for the university.
10. Associations and extracurricular activities
There are few high school clubs and extracurricular activities in China. There are many high school clubs in America, such as National Honor Society, Mathematics Team, Model United Nations, Language Society, etc. Activities are carried out regularly and there are many extracurricular activities.
1 1. Volunteer activities
High school students in China have little time to take part in voluntary activities because of their heavy study tasks and high pressure of college entrance examination. American high school students often volunteer in activities organized by community organizations at night, weekends and holidays, such as assisting in elections and exhibitions. They also take part in other voluntary community activities, such as cleaning parks and caring for the elderly.
12. Holidays
Students in China usually have more than three weeks of winter vacation. Students will travel and make up lessons, while summer vacation lasts about 50 days. Students can attend summer camps and courses abroad. Students mainly study during holidays. The winter vacation in the United States usually lasts only two weeks, and students arrange their own travel or study. The summer vacation lasts more than two months. Generally, they attend summer camps, summer courses (counting credits) and internships abroad, and there are basically no cram schools. Students not only study, but also accumulate work experience during the summer vacation.
13. University admission factors
In China, the results of college entrance examination are basically the only criteria for university admission.
In the United States, university admission depends on many factors, including SATI or ACT scores, SATII subject examinations (three in top universities, two in first-class universities and one in ordinary universities), GPA, university application statement, extracurricular and voluntary activities, grade ranking, teacher's recommendation letter, course selection difficulty, leadership, challenge and so on.
14. University application (application)
China generally volunteers after the college entrance examination, with limited choices and only one college entrance examination a year, which is not humane enough. Generally, the United States can apply for any number of universities 1 year in advance (but the cost of applying for universities is about $85). Generally speaking, international students want Satie's scores. Some universities don't need TOEFL scores when Satie reads above a certain score, and some schools must have TOEFL scores. Sati, Satii, and ACT can all take the exam many times, and get the best results to apply for the university.
Summary: From the comparison of 14 above, it can be seen that high school students in China focus on learning, and the test scores are king. The college entrance examination will be successful with a single goal. China High School is completely out of touch with American universities.
However, the admission inspection of American universities is comprehensive, and full SAT scores are not necessarily accepted by first-class universities. American high school students need to consider many factors. American high schools are fully integrated with American universities. American high school students are more independent after graduation.