Educational institutions are divided into:
- Preschool (for children 3-5 years old), analogous to our kindergartens.
- Elementary school (up to fifth grade)
- Middle school (sixth through eighth grade).
- High school, the equivalent of our 10-11th grade high school.
- Higher educational institutions
Unlike in the post-Soviet countries, the U.S. has many private schools. In our country this is a rarity, and the vast majority of students attend classical public schools with a common curriculum. There are a huge number of private schools in America, and another 15% or so are religious schools attached to churches. Yes, America is one of the most religious countries in the first world. Although, in Great Britain the study of religion is even part of the school curriculum.
The high school (the one after eighth grade) is separate, and high school students do not overlap with other students. It is divided into several tracks. A student can enter an academic school, where he will be prepared to enter a prestigious successful institution – such training will add to his chances. Or you can choose a specialized school, which is similar in direction to a college: there students are taught practical narrowly focused subjects. And the third type, mixed, combines the features of the previous two.
Graduates who wish to continue their studies take the SAT. It is divided into two levels: SAT I and SAT II. The first qualifies you to attend an intermediate-level college or university, but to enter a prestigious U.S. university you need to take the advanced version of the exam.
An American teenager may have many more classmates over the course of his or her life than we do, since the composition of classes is constantly changing. Similarly with teachers: while here a teacher can teach a course from beginning to end, an American student will change several times.
