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32 Seemingly Normal Things About American Schools That Confuse The Hell Out Of Non-Americans
Growing up in a European country and never witnessing what it's like to go to an American school, watching American high school comedies, to me, has always been a pretty surreal experience. I'm sure that most of you fellow non-Americans reading this article could relate to me on this.
There are so many things about American schools that have always seemed utterly fascinating to me. For instance, you get letter grades instead of number ones, schools have swimming pools inside them, there's a club for almost anything, you have to get a hall pass to go to the bathroom during class, and lunch meals are usually pretty bizarre. The list goes on. With that being said, Bored Panda invites you to look through this list of tweets from non-American Twitter users in which they share things that they find the strangest about American schools. Feel free to explain to us the things we don't understand or add your own in the comment section!
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#3
Caitlin Davenport 3 years ago
Yes, but the cheerleaders were just normal students, not stuck up and they didn't wear their uniforms in class.
#5
Charlotte A. 3 years ago
In Sweden it starts in august and ends in june. Nothing odd about it, to me.
#7
#8
Caitlin Davenport 3 years ago
They used to have E as a failing grade, but people thought it meant Excellent, so they changed it to an F.
#12
Aunt Messy 3 years ago
Canadian here. They don't close schools in Canada unless it's been colder than -40C for three days in a row.
#13
Imtiredandiwannagotobed 3 years ago
Because we put all our budget into our announcements and lockers
#18
Eva Bryson 3 years ago
Yes, teachers want you in class to learn, not loitering in the bathroom.
#19
SimplySarcastic40 3 years ago
yep...at least in the suburbs because most of us start driving at 16
#20
Maya Kuntz 3 years ago
No not ice, tiny wet folded paper towels in cling wrap that stay cold for approximately 3 seconds.
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Alex Bailey 3 years ago
They have school nurses in the UK too. Weird question (like many).
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cassiushumanmother 3 years ago
We have school nurses in France, and they give some medicin (paracetamol, pain relievers...some specials for the girls), allow us to sleep until we feel better... They manage treatments of insulin dependant kids, or other strong treatments needed by the students.
Whawhawhatsis 3 years ago
They used to. These days they don't have the budget; most schools are lucky to have one nurse who works for 6 or 8 schools. So the office secretary passes out the bandaids.
Michelle C 3 years ago
Yes..it's mandatory for school to have qualified medical professional to provide aid immediately if there's an emergency. Also kids on regular medications , they store and get their doses from the nurse.
David Gripon 3 years ago
Yes, we do. That's because American school misleads the students in many ways. In this case, it doesn't cost thousands of dollars and 2 weeks before a visit. It's immediate and free.
Bloxmakesgames2019 3 years ago
I am so confused. I thought all this stuff was normal this is hurting my head
Jyri Hakola 3 years ago
Also here in Finland as a part of the public healthcare system. Annual Health inspections, Vaccinations that are part of the national vaccination plan etc
Horror Hero13 3 years ago
Yes, but the Nurse for my middle school was only there in the middle of the day.
You are Beautiful 3 years ago
As everyone should know from tiktok - THE NURSE AND HER ICE SAVES LIVES!!! DO NOT DISRESPECT THE NURSE!!!!
Alethia Nyx 3 years ago
We have them in Australia too. Teenagers get into all sorts of trouble, have accidents, get sick, get period pains, or migraines, some have to have daily medication/injections. Who else is going to deal with all this?
RoseTheMad 3 years ago
UK schools had "nurses", or at least people who had some medical know how.I think when there's hundreds of kids in a building together you kinda have to have someone like that. My secondary school also had a room with a cozy bed for people who were unwell to lie down and rest in case their parents etc were unable to immediately pick them up. Yes, I once fell asleep in there.
II️ovecatsandogs 3 years ago
Wait, do non-American schools not have school nurses?!?!? That’s crazy! Who’s soposed to give you ice packs then?
Turdman59YT (Jay) 3 years ago
ice ice ice--- they're favorite thing in the world---ice ice ice
BABY_FOX_ヾ(•ω•)o 3 years ago
American TV shows with a nurse in the episode be like, Oh you fell and cut you arm and its not even bleeding? You can go home :) IRL, OH YOU CUT YOU ARM IN HALF? YOUR LYING GO BACK TO CLASS * gives ice* literally anybody *;-;* Or Asian moms " hmm? your almost sick?NAH "me" * vomits*
Catherine Fraser 3 years ago
Yes. The nurses do lice checks, administer prescription medications the kids bring from home, handle anaphylactic shock, call parents when a kid is sick, kiss boo boos, and call 911 for broken limbs.
Evil Little Thing 3 years ago
Yes because there are laws about who is allowed to dispense medicines to students. Even ibuprofen or acetaminophen (paracetamol) is illegal to give to a child unless the kid has doctors orders.
Eva Haarhuis 3 years ago
In Holland we don't have a school nurse. Never missed one now I am thinking of it. Your teacher helps you of you need a bandage. Calls your parents when your sick. Worked perfect when I was a kid, and it works perfect now I'm a parent. So for me it is strange that there is something like a school nurse
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Antonia Schofield 3 years ago
Yes but at my school the nurse was only there 2 days a week because she traveled from school to school
ArtistinResidence 3 years ago (edited)
Yes, we have nurses at each school but in some schools there may be only one who travels. Believe me kids get sick and a lot of their job is to call parents to come pick up the kids they sent to school sick! Then again there are students who may have physical problems who need treatment throughout the day in our nurses do that. They also do yearly physicals and eye checks as well as hearing checks for the students. Tell me other countries don’t do that?
BoredDragon 3 years ago
I remember getting a tick in first grade. The nurse did nothing, just left my mom to pull it off. *shudders *
Leo Domitrix 3 years ago
Well, in my area, it was approximatley 75 minutes' driving to the nearest emergency room by ambulance, soooo.... No school nurse, we had no first aid/emergency care.
Cybele Spanjaard 2 years ago
Schools mostly have some service or some have a nurse in a special room called the sick bay here for sick or hurt children
Nightshade1972 2 years ago
I always went to schools that had at least one nurse, but apparently that's not terribly common across the US. Really depends on the size of the city, the size of the district, and the size of the individual school. If you're in a rural area with a small, one-room schoolhouse, it's unlikely there'll be a nurse.
Elizabeth Tunney 3 years ago
Yep. Had a contagious disease and it was brushed off as allergies ( I don’t even have allergies!). Had a headache and it was said to be COVID. Throw up in class, and they just gave me a mint and put me back in class.
Joanne Hudson 3 years ago
In the olden days the school nurse gave students a physical once a year. And if you were puking, she took you home.
Lynn Bradway 3 years ago
They used to- now it's not unusual to have one nurse for 4-5 schools.
Susan Egan 3 years ago
Some do. We have nurse that is shared between all the schools in our town. They do hearing tests and vision tests. Some will do health discussions. Along with bandaids, and fever checks etc.
Martha Higgins 3 years ago
Many schools have school nurses and some schools share nurses among several schools.
Jane Alexander 3 years ago
Again, the bigger schools would but the smaller or rural ones may not.
starhunter64 3 years ago
yeah but all there allowed to give you is a band aid and *maybe* a call home if you are bleeding like crazy
Klaus Hargreeves 3 years ago
at my elementary school all they could give you was a frozen plastic baggie filled with water and a paper towel.
Charles Murray 3 years ago
The nurses are pretty useless they just give you the magical healing potion-ICE
Marilyn Bojanowski 3 years ago
Yes, idk how much medical training they have to have, but you can go if you need something like a bandaid. I never really went except once or twice plus the required eye exams, so they probably have stuff for kids with more serious medical conditions.
Emily Smith 3 years ago
They do have a trained staff person who can treat minor things in case kids get injured or sick while at school. For example, I broke my arm falling off monkey bars in first grade. In my senior year of high school, I cut my finger open in art class with a glass cutting wheel (we were making stained glass pieces). I ended up needing stitches. That class was the last one of the day and when I walked down to the office where the nurse it, I learned she had already gone home for the day! LOL
beautiful plumage 3 years ago
some schools have a nurse and some don't. depends usually on budgeting priorities, how many students, etc. they're usually in charge of student meds, scrapes, cuts, upset bellies, and now covid policy enforcement and planning.
Don't Look 3 years ago
Schools have to have a nurse. For one thing they get to call the parents. Seriously, that’s their primary thing.
Citizen Josie 3 years ago
They do but they actually just put bandaids and call your mom for everything.
Blackheart 3 years ago
Yes. Any student with any health issue is entitled to attend public school. This year, nurses are fielding students and staff for coronavirus
Amy Pattie 3 years ago
Australia has school nurses... what happens when you faint or sew through your finger?
Jessica Cifelli 3 years ago
Yes but generally all a school nurse really does is hand out ice for minor injuries and the occasional cough drop. Also sometimes a student has to take medicine during the day. The nurse would have it. And also if your a girl, the school nurse has emergency feminine products...
InfectedVoice 3 years ago
We always had a school nurse, Mrs Martin, and she didn't take anyone's crap.
Morgan Olson 3 years ago
no. they have an annoying person that is not a nurse pretend to be a nurse tho. Here is how it goes: Student: Nurse, i just poked my eye out off my head. Nurse: Hi, honey, go sit over there you can grab an ice pack if you want, i will check on you in a moment. 20 minutes later... Student: Nurse, my eye hurts Nurse: Ok, it has been a while, i think you can go back to class. Give me your name and teacher. Student: ...
I'manoob! 3 years ago (edited)
Yeah, but mine didn't do their job right! My elementary school nurse had a real AT👏TI👏TUDE👏 She would question anyone who walked in. Starting with a: "What are you doing here?" and if you tell her you're sick, she'll reply: "Are you really though?" And if you happen to cough : "I can do that too*imitates your cough*" Seriously, the only way you can convince her is if you barf, but it has to be in front of her or else she'll think you're pretending as you claim you did in the bathroom. Like...WTH LADY! She finally retired and got replaced. Good Riddance! I'm now in high school and my nurse is my mom cuz of quarantine, who actually takes care of me ^^P
Rowena Ravenclaw 3 years ago
My school technically does but she's never there. My friend broke her arm and a different teacher had to help her.
Harløw-Banditø 3 years ago
Yeah but she usually doesn’t do anything. When I was in elementary school the nurse was an absolute jerk. One kid threw up seven times before she got to go home, another time some kid threw up all day and didn’t get to go home, and once I had a migraine and she wouldn’t give me anything for it. I was ten bitch, you can’t let a little kid sit through that much pain without doing something
Imtiredandiwannagotobed 3 years ago
Yeah, but they’re useless, so I just use a tissue for a bloody nose, and any spare paper for something bleeding
Powercat 3 years ago
In highschool the school nurse called me to her office because she assumed I had a eating disorder because I was thin 🤦♀️ Thin-shaming... awesome 😑
JessG 3 years ago
Did she actually assume, or did she just ask you? If she asked you, that is certainly appropriate for a school nurse and isn’t “thin shaming”, it’s her job to ask those questions, just sayin’
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The Zooble 3 years ago
To be very honest, I'm English and I usually do page count rather than word count
#25
Caitlin Davenport 3 years ago
So we aren't "distracted". Even rooms with windows usually had the blinds closed.
#26
Caitlin Davenport 3 years ago
Not really. We have nearby schools we compete against in sports, but any rivalry is very light-hearted.
#32
Caitlin Davenport 3 years ago
Candy was usually a very tiny part, if it was there at all. But it was the most exciting part!
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Shelp 3 years ago
I'm European and I read each one of these facts thinking "wait... they do *what*??!"
Doggo 3 years ago
im american and reading these were like: wait other schools dont do that. its pretty cool to read this post and see other people's perspectives
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Leo Domitrix 3 years ago
I have no idea what anyone does outside exactly three countries, one of them US, and I think it's a case of "whatever is unfamiliar is weird" here. BTW, clubs at US schools were a great way to pad your CV to get into college/uni, and to not go home to shi**y circumstances. So I'm for the clubs. That 7 AM thing, eh, I grew up in farm country. We were up anyway!
Alex Bailey 3 years ago (edited)
Some of the questions were odd even to me in the UK. In most instances, in many countries, we all have various versions of similar things. Pools in some schools, water fountains in some, after school activities are common place (but not called clubs), ditto lockers. The only thing that stuck out for me was the time of day lessons started and that has pros and cons. Younger children are (usually) naturally earlier risers but there are studies that show older children benefit from later starts. I like hearing how other countries do things but I'd really like another country to take a turn. Bored Panda - why not take the focus OFF the US, just for a moment, and pick countries that are less known and maybe we can share info from them?
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angie but who cares 3 years ago
but how is having a parking lot wierd ??????????????????
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spirit wolf 3 years ago
Jeezzz relax!! Just because things are done differently here doesn't necessarily mean it's weird. I had the opportunity to go to schoo in different countries because of the nature of my parents work. I can tell you with great assurance that every one had their own way of doing things and that's all okay.
Aliquid A 3 years ago
A lot of the questions are "do American schools ___?". Which is a fair question... since these people's perception of American schools is from TV. Take cheerleaders for example. Do all American schools have cheerleaders? Or is it just a few of them, but cheerleaders make a good character for a TV show or a movie, so they get over-represented. Same with cafeterias, maybe only like 30% of schools have one, but since it makes such a convenient set, 100% of schools on TV have one.
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Roadkill The Brave 3 years ago
One trend I'm noticing, which is a frequent thing on 'People in the U.S. *insert here*' is that a lot of people posting don't seem to understand just how BIG the U.S. is. Cars are a culture here but of necessity. Public transportation may work in major cities but we have vast areas where you need a car. There is so much diversity in even what is available. I went to a K-12 school once where there were 22 of us my freshman class and we were one of the largest classes they'd had in years, and I've been to a school where my graduating class was over 2,000 people. Both those schools were in the same State just opposite ends of it. Canada gets it, but still, it's something people keep forgetting.
Doug Mullett 3 years ago
Australia - nearly the same size as the USA and public transport does work for students - dedicated school buses.One school I taught at (P-12) had the first student picked up before 7:30 and dropped off by around 5 - a long day if you're 5! All except three students came by bus (those three lived next to the school and were always late!) Our catchment area was well over a thousand square kilometres. In suburban areas where, especially in primary school (P-6) most parents will drop off and pick up, traffic is horrendous at those times and far more dangerous. Walking, riding or public transport is far safer for everyone.
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Petra Schaap 3 years ago
im not from the States but think this is super silly. Ofcourse Sweden doesnt cancel school when it snows, pretty sure they wont in Alaska either, pretty sure not only schools close, but all hell breaks lose if it will ever snow on Hawaii.... :-D
Aliquid A 3 years ago
You can say that again. If you are FORCED to pledge allegiance, then are you really "free"?
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AnInrovert 3 years ago
I live in Canada... we do some of these. Some of these just seem... plain weird...
Dynein 3 years ago
I don't live in the USA, but I would wager that most of the people here aren't comparing "US schools vs other schools in the world" so much as "US schools vs THE SCHOOLS IN MY OWN COUNTRY because actually I have no goddamn clue what schools in other countries/continents are like". Some of the posts are true for Germany, or at least not totally unseen, and I definitely know of other countries that do some things in schools differently than we do... different countries are different, who'd have thought.
Colin L 3 years ago
Here's one that they didn't list: SROs (Student Resource Officer) at high schools. We had a police officer assigned to my high school, hypothetically to help students out. In reality, he harrassed some students and was basically useless (I literally reported being threatened by another student with a gun, and he didn't take a statement, register a complaint... nothing).
Benjamin Lensgraf 3 years ago (edited)
This just makes me think the U.S. is the only normal country and European countries are weird.
Martha Meyer 3 years ago
This is weirdly,assuming that all European schools are exactly the same and we all find the exact same things about American schools strange.
Maximum Ride 3 years ago
I’m American and I am just now learning some of these things. My school did not have hall passes, a cafeteria, dances, vending machines, buses, and whatnot.
Mal 3 years ago
US here. What your school has also depends on the wealth of your school district. These can be extremely different from school to school. My elementary-Jr High was in a very well funded system and we had a lot of opportunities and resources in school. Breakfast and lunch was provided and both were awesome. In High School, I moved states and was in poorer district. The school was small, over crowded and underfunded. We had "open lunch" because not all the students could fit in the caf, so we could leave campus for lunch hour. This school was in the mountains so yes the bus took me from home 27 miles to school everyday. If it was too cold, the diesel in the bus would gel and half the kids who lived on the other side of the pass got a snow day because the bus couldn't go.
Joy Stowe 3 years ago
So true! If you lived in a very prosperous district, your school benefitted from that. If you own a house in that district, it's worth more because the schools are usually a cut above the rest, and most Americans want their children to go to the best school possible even if the taxes there are higher.
Load More Replies... Angela Jester 3 years ago
Maybe it's just my state of mind this morning but it seemed like most of those were "look what dumbf*cks they are in America" statement and not really "you do this and it's different from us. Why?" And a lot of the questions were just strange. Lockers? Water fountains? Lunch rooms?
Mii 3 years ago
Well in my school in Germany we really didn't have lockers, lunchrooms or waterfountains. Everyone brought thier food and water and just ate in the hall or outside. Also I don't think the questions are meant menacingly. It's more of a "wait, it's really like that and not just a clichee we see in movies?!"
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Csilla Kaszas 3 years ago
I'd like to know, how often do they 'pledge their allegiance to the flag of the United States of America'?
A.M. Pierre 3 years ago
My elementary school did it occasionally, my middle school never did it, my high school did it every single day. It just depends.
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Botox 3 years ago
The most terrifying thing is lessons from 7 a.m!! )) some other things made me jealous... but not nurse: we have medical rooms and nurses at schools and pediatrician + nurse are in kindergardens . In my childhood there were even weeks of dentist's care, not any more. But still first aid and some vaccination like against flue can be done there
Bellatrix Lestrange 3 years ago
I have never been or heard of a school that had classes starting at 7:00 am most have it start at 8:00 - 8:30 am.
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Jason Doakes 3 years ago
Most of these are just due to the fact that american schools are usually huuuge. I went to a big business school in Europe when I was 16 and we had almost all of the same "anomalies" listed above. When you have 5000+ students you need to organize stuff on another scale.
Wilf 3 years ago
I did a placement in a US school about 10 years ago. I was so shocked by how old fashioned the teaching was. All the classrooms were just grim lines of individual desks facing front, and it was pretty common for kids to just sit there in total silence while a teacher lectured at the front. The schools were absolutely obsessed with quantative assessments (such as useless multiple choice tests). A lot of teachers were very poorly qualified and not really learning specialists in any modern sense. That sort of treat-everyone-the-same "talk and chalk" teaching style disappeared in the 1980s in my home country. It was a real shock.
Doug Mullett 3 years ago
As an Australian, our public schools don't supply lunches or cafeterias (although some country schools have them). Our students eat their lunch sitting in the yard, or if very young, in the classroom before being allowed out to play. I did work in a private school where staff had a room to eat lunch and had soup supplied if wanted. Swimming pools? Only in private or similar schools. Clubs? Voluntary and in everyone's own time (staff and students). Bathroom passes? We expect our students to wash themselves outside school time. Toilet visits? Usually up to the individual teacher, and refused when too frequent with no reason. Buses to school? I worked at one school where all except three students came to school by bus. The furthest boarded the bus at 7:30 and got home around 4:45 - a long day for a 5 y.o. in Prep. Many students in suburban schools are driven by their (usually) mother - resulting in traffic jams around 8:30 to 9 a.m. and the equivalent in the afternoon.
Don't Look 3 years ago
It all comes down to money and government. All of it. I used to have a difficult time understanding why my parents put me in private schools. Turns out public schools are, at best, just weak.
Jules Caldwell 3 years ago
Deja vu. You guys had basically the same post (most of the same entries) last week. And two weeks ago. And a month ago.
Mimi777 3 years ago
I don’t miss those school lunches but I feel like everyone would always get super excited when it was chicken strip day. Those weren’t bad. I like the mini breakfast pizza it was tasty. But that’s about it. As a kid I absolutely loved snow days and when there was no school. Kids today won’t be able to experience it because there’s virtual learning. Anyways I’m so glad to be finished with school. I hate getting up so early.
Phoenix 3 years ago
Some of these I found odd. Is it really only America that has buses, lockers and clubs?
HyacinthTheRainWing 3 years ago
Canada has all three! My school even had a D&D club, before Covid.
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Owen Salmon2028 3 years ago
i live in nh i go to kersharge we have nurses mental health people mostly women and lots of over teachers that help the kids its a very ice school with also has many groupes and clubs and a black market for pokymon cards
Owen Salmon2028 3 years ago
yes we have a black market becuse the cards arnt allowed but we dont care right now they have in and at home learning
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Aliquid A 3 years ago
America's number 1 export is "media". TV shows, movies, etc. People from other countries watch it, and form their ideas of what "America" is from that... considering that TV & Movies are designed to be entertaining, it is understandable that foreigners see America as being an entertaining place.
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the pan with a plan 3 years ago
oh no i have a nurse in case someone has an asthma attack oh no i have clubs were i can expand my social circle....save me lol
Load More Replies... Shelp 3 years ago
I'm European and I read each one of these facts thinking "wait... they do *what*??!"
Doggo 3 years ago
im american and reading these were like: wait other schools dont do that. its pretty cool to read this post and see other people's perspectives
Load More Replies... Leo Domitrix 3 years ago
I have no idea what anyone does outside exactly three countries, one of them US, and I think it's a case of "whatever is unfamiliar is weird" here. BTW, clubs at US schools were a great way to pad your CV to get into college/uni, and to not go home to shi**y circumstances. So I'm for the clubs. That 7 AM thing, eh, I grew up in farm country. We were up anyway!
Alex Bailey 3 years ago (edited)
Some of the questions were odd even to me in the UK. In most instances, in many countries, we all have various versions of similar things. Pools in some schools, water fountains in some, after school activities are common place (but not called clubs), ditto lockers. The only thing that stuck out for me was the time of day lessons started and that has pros and cons. Younger children are (usually) naturally earlier risers but there are studies that show older children benefit from later starts. I like hearing how other countries do things but I'd really like another country to take a turn. Bored Panda - why not take the focus OFF the US, just for a moment, and pick countries that are less known and maybe we can share info from them?
Load More Replies... angie but who cares 3 years ago
but how is having a parking lot wierd ??????????????????
Load More Replies... spirit wolf 3 years ago
Jeezzz relax!! Just because things are done differently here doesn't necessarily mean it's weird. I had the opportunity to go to schoo in different countries because of the nature of my parents work. I can tell you with great assurance that every one had their own way of doing things and that's all okay.
Aliquid A 3 years ago
A lot of the questions are "do American schools ___?". Which is a fair question... since these people's perception of American schools is from TV. Take cheerleaders for example. Do all American schools have cheerleaders? Or is it just a few of them, but cheerleaders make a good character for a TV show or a movie, so they get over-represented. Same with cafeterias, maybe only like 30% of schools have one, but since it makes such a convenient set, 100% of schools on TV have one.
Load More Replies... Roadkill The Brave 3 years ago
One trend I'm noticing, which is a frequent thing on 'People in the U.S. *insert here*' is that a lot of people posting don't seem to understand just how BIG the U.S. is. Cars are a culture here but of necessity. Public transportation may work in major cities but we have vast areas where you need a car. There is so much diversity in even what is available. I went to a K-12 school once where there were 22 of us my freshman class and we were one of the largest classes they'd had in years, and I've been to a school where my graduating class was over 2,000 people. Both those schools were in the same State just opposite ends of it. Canada gets it, but still, it's something people keep forgetting.
Doug Mullett 3 years ago
Australia - nearly the same size as the USA and public transport does work for students - dedicated school buses.One school I taught at (P-12) had the first student picked up before 7:30 and dropped off by around 5 - a long day if you're 5! All except three students came by bus (those three lived next to the school and were always late!) Our catchment area was well over a thousand square kilometres. In suburban areas where, especially in primary school (P-6) most parents will drop off and pick up, traffic is horrendous at those times and far more dangerous. Walking, riding or public transport is far safer for everyone.
Load More Replies... Petra Schaap 3 years ago
im not from the States but think this is super silly. Ofcourse Sweden doesnt cancel school when it snows, pretty sure they wont in Alaska either, pretty sure not only schools close, but all hell breaks lose if it will ever snow on Hawaii.... :-D
Aliquid A 3 years ago
You can say that again. If you are FORCED to pledge allegiance, then are you really "free"?
Load More Replies... AnInrovert 3 years ago
I live in Canada... we do some of these. Some of these just seem... plain weird...
Dynein 3 years ago
I don't live in the USA, but I would wager that most of the people here aren't comparing "US schools vs other schools in the world" so much as "US schools vs THE SCHOOLS IN MY OWN COUNTRY because actually I have no goddamn clue what schools in other countries/continents are like". Some of the posts are true for Germany, or at least not totally unseen, and I definitely know of other countries that do some things in schools differently than we do... different countries are different, who'd have thought.
Colin L 3 years ago
Here's one that they didn't list: SROs (Student Resource Officer) at high schools. We had a police officer assigned to my high school, hypothetically to help students out. In reality, he harrassed some students and was basically useless (I literally reported being threatened by another student with a gun, and he didn't take a statement, register a complaint... nothing).
Benjamin Lensgraf 3 years ago (edited)
This just makes me think the U.S. is the only normal country and European countries are weird.
Martha Meyer 3 years ago
This is weirdly,assuming that all European schools are exactly the same and we all find the exact same things about American schools strange.
Maximum Ride 3 years ago
I’m American and I am just now learning some of these things. My school did not have hall passes, a cafeteria, dances, vending machines, buses, and whatnot.
Mal 3 years ago
US here. What your school has also depends on the wealth of your school district. These can be extremely different from school to school. My elementary-Jr High was in a very well funded system and we had a lot of opportunities and resources in school. Breakfast and lunch was provided and both were awesome. In High School, I moved states and was in poorer district. The school was small, over crowded and underfunded. We had "open lunch" because not all the students could fit in the caf, so we could leave campus for lunch hour. This school was in the mountains so yes the bus took me from home 27 miles to school everyday. If it was too cold, the diesel in the bus would gel and half the kids who lived on the other side of the pass got a snow day because the bus couldn't go.
Joy Stowe 3 years ago
So true! If you lived in a very prosperous district, your school benefitted from that. If you own a house in that district, it's worth more because the schools are usually a cut above the rest, and most Americans want their children to go to the best school possible even if the taxes there are higher.
Load More Replies... Angela Jester 3 years ago
Maybe it's just my state of mind this morning but it seemed like most of those were "look what dumbf*cks they are in America" statement and not really "you do this and it's different from us. Why?" And a lot of the questions were just strange. Lockers? Water fountains? Lunch rooms?
Mii 3 years ago
Well in my school in Germany we really didn't have lockers, lunchrooms or waterfountains. Everyone brought thier food and water and just ate in the hall or outside. Also I don't think the questions are meant menacingly. It's more of a "wait, it's really like that and not just a clichee we see in movies?!"
Load More Replies... Csilla Kaszas 3 years ago
I'd like to know, how often do they 'pledge their allegiance to the flag of the United States of America'?
A.M. Pierre 3 years ago
My elementary school did it occasionally, my middle school never did it, my high school did it every single day. It just depends.
Load More Replies... Botox 3 years ago
The most terrifying thing is lessons from 7 a.m!! )) some other things made me jealous... but not nurse: we have medical rooms and nurses at schools and pediatrician + nurse are in kindergardens . In my childhood there were even weeks of dentist's care, not any more. But still first aid and some vaccination like against flue can be done there
Bellatrix Lestrange 3 years ago
I have never been or heard of a school that had classes starting at 7:00 am most have it start at 8:00 - 8:30 am.
Load More Replies... Jason Doakes 3 years ago
Most of these are just due to the fact that american schools are usually huuuge. I went to a big business school in Europe when I was 16 and we had almost all of the same "anomalies" listed above. When you have 5000+ students you need to organize stuff on another scale.
Wilf 3 years ago
I did a placement in a US school about 10 years ago. I was so shocked by how old fashioned the teaching was. All the classrooms were just grim lines of individual desks facing front, and it was pretty common for kids to just sit there in total silence while a teacher lectured at the front. The schools were absolutely obsessed with quantative assessments (such as useless multiple choice tests). A lot of teachers were very poorly qualified and not really learning specialists in any modern sense. That sort of treat-everyone-the-same "talk and chalk" teaching style disappeared in the 1980s in my home country. It was a real shock.
Doug Mullett 3 years ago
As an Australian, our public schools don't supply lunches or cafeterias (although some country schools have them). Our students eat their lunch sitting in the yard, or if very young, in the classroom before being allowed out to play. I did work in a private school where staff had a room to eat lunch and had soup supplied if wanted. Swimming pools? Only in private or similar schools. Clubs? Voluntary and in everyone's own time (staff and students). Bathroom passes? We expect our students to wash themselves outside school time. Toilet visits? Usually up to the individual teacher, and refused when too frequent with no reason. Buses to school? I worked at one school where all except three students came to school by bus. The furthest boarded the bus at 7:30 and got home around 4:45 - a long day for a 5 y.o. in Prep. Many students in suburban schools are driven by their (usually) mother - resulting in traffic jams around 8:30 to 9 a.m. and the equivalent in the afternoon.
Don't Look 3 years ago
It all comes down to money and government. All of it. I used to have a difficult time understanding why my parents put me in private schools. Turns out public schools are, at best, just weak.
Jules Caldwell 3 years ago
Deja vu. You guys had basically the same post (most of the same entries) last week. And two weeks ago. And a month ago.
Mimi777 3 years ago
I don’t miss those school lunches but I feel like everyone would always get super excited when it was chicken strip day. Those weren’t bad. I like the mini breakfast pizza it was tasty. But that’s about it. As a kid I absolutely loved snow days and when there was no school. Kids today won’t be able to experience it because there’s virtual learning. Anyways I’m so glad to be finished with school. I hate getting up so early.
Phoenix 3 years ago
Some of these I found odd. Is it really only America that has buses, lockers and clubs?
HyacinthTheRainWing 3 years ago
Canada has all three! My school even had a D&D club, before Covid.
Load More Replies... Owen Salmon2028 3 years ago
i live in nh i go to kersharge we have nurses mental health people mostly women and lots of over teachers that help the kids its a very ice school with also has many groupes and clubs and a black market for pokymon cards
Owen Salmon2028 3 years ago
yes we have a black market becuse the cards arnt allowed but we dont care right now they have in and at home learning
Load More Replies... Aliquid A 3 years ago
America's number 1 export is "media". TV shows, movies, etc. People from other countries watch it, and form their ideas of what "America" is from that... considering that TV & Movies are designed to be entertaining, it is understandable that foreigners see America as being an entertaining place.
Load More Replies... the pan with a plan 3 years ago
oh no i have a nurse in case someone has an asthma attack oh no i have clubs were i can expand my social circle....save me lol
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