Are there schools that run a British school curriculum (Houston: credit, how much)

[kmom]

Just wondering if there are schools that run a British school curriculum?

Thanks

[DaSkorpion]

Originally Posted by kmom

Just wondering if there are schools that run a British school curriculum?

Thanks

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I have not come across one yet .... but if you do please relay the info - the Queen will be proud about it...!!!

[backtotx]

Hi, just came across this post. Just to let you know that there are British schools in the US although not in PA. The first British School opened in DC and then Boston and Houston followed closely after. There is now one in Chicago and the last British school to open here is in Charlotte, NC. The Charlotte school only goes up til about 8th grade I believe, but the others go up to 12th grade, or Year 12 I should say. When we lived in Houston, my kids went to the British School and the curriculum is exactly the same as if you were living in the UK. The fees are high of course, at Chicago I believe it is about $18k. Interestingly enough when my kids were at the British School, my daughter was the only British girl in her class! The schools attract children of all nationalities. In fact the school in Chicago has a student body of 80% American kids and a mix of others!! The website for the British schools is The British Schools of America provide high quality education in a structured, positive and caring environment, which meets the individual needs of pupils.

[Friendly_Guy]

What is a British school curriculum?

Do they teach spelling differently, such as 'catalogue?" j/k

[Katarina Witt]

I was just about to ask the same question. Or do they track them at a young age and encourage most of them to finish high school at 16 and have no further education?

[backtotx]

Colour, jewellry, tyre, etc etc................
The curriculum of a British school is more demanding than the traditional US one. If students are more academic for instance they can progress onto the next level in reading, math etc and not be stuck doing the coursework that is assigned for their grade. By the time a student reaches the age of 16 and passes (hopefully) their GCSE exams, they have the equivalent of a high school diploma. In the US some of the British schools have introduced the IB program which then enables them to take an extra two years (finishing at age 18) which will give them entrance into a university worldwide. With a regular US high school education you are unable to go straight into universities in most other countries. More and more high schools in the US are now introducing the IB diploma into their schools and students can choose whether to go with the SATs or the IB. Also the IB diploma gives students more of an international education.

[Katarina Witt]

I don't know much about international college education, so I'll defer to you, bactotx on that issue.

However, to get into most colleges in the US, one must take either the SATs or the ACTs, even if one is pursuing the IB. If the school requires SAT or ACT, it requires it of everyone. Some colleges (not all) give credit for IB classes, if the student has passed the IB exams with a particular score. The same is true of AP tests. Some of the more rigourous colleges do not give any credit for that stuff (e.g. University of Chicago). Some colleges do not admit students as sophomores no matter how much IB/AP credit they have (e.g, St. Olaf College).

I am not impressed with European public education in general. Too much tracking.

[backtotx]

There is quite a difference in parts of Europe regarding education. In the UK we are criticised for starting our kids too early in full-time education. Our kids start Reception/Kindergarten in the September after they have turned 4. This is a full-day program. In Holland, kids start school around 6 or 7 I believe. They soon catch up to their British counterparts however. I'm not sure if by tracking, you mean testing. Yes, we do test at a ridiculously early age. Formal tests happen at Year 2, which is equivalent to your First Grade. We normally have exams/tests once or twice a year. We track again at Yr 6/5th grade and the next formal tests happen around age 13 I believe and then the first set of major exams (GCSEs) happen at age 15/16. After this our kids can decide to stay on at school for a further two years to do A levels which if they pass, permit them to enter universities world-wide. However, the A Levels are extremely rigorous and not everyone stays on at school to do them. It has been suggested that our kids should have to stay on at school until the age of 18, whether this will happen I'm not sure. I think in America more kids go onto 4 year college than back home. Maybe it is because our kids our burnt out by then. What I have difficulty getting to grips with is the limited classes that are available here. My 7th grader in England had English, Math, History, Geography, Physics, Biology, Chemistry, Art, Music, IT, Design & Technology, RE, Gym, Swimming and PSHE (a class about social awareness). Over here she has English, Math, Science, French, History and Geography combined, Art every other eight weeks and music every other eight weeks. I don't know which is best. I feel it is good to have such a wide range of subjects that are standard for all and not just elective but maybe doing the same limited core subjects every day makes it 'sink in' more, I don't know. My 7th and 5th grader are tested more frequently over here, I guess to check that they are understanding everything. I don't know whether they get formal exams because we are new to all of this. Going back to testing in the UK, our test results make up the often criticised league tables that we have in the UK. A school can be placed towards the bottom of the list if they just have a handful of kids who don't test well/aren't academic etc.

I do feel that in the UK our kids get a good international perspective in their education. We study World History straight away. My 7th grader is amazed at how little her classmates know about other countries.

[Katarina Witt]

I do feel that in the UK our kids get a good international perspective in their education. We study World History straight away. My 7th grader is amazed at how little her classmates know about other countries.

That is certainly a criticism that others have made as well. I remember studying world history in 7th grade back in PA. I honestly can't remember when my kids studied it here in Colorado.

By tracking, I mean what they do in France, Germany, and possibly some other European countries where kids are separated into "college prep" tracks and "vocational" tracks at very young ages; age 10, I believe in Germany and 13 in France. In the US, more allowance is made for the "late bloomers". Students can attend community college via "open admission", meaning there are no entrance requirements other than graduation from high school. Some then go on to complete college. Most students graduate from high school at around age 18. Graduation from high school is comparable to passing the A levels, I think.

It is always hard to know what system is best, but I do like the universal education in the US through high school.

[toobusytoday]

Thanks for the post backtotx, I didn't know most of that information about the UK educational system. The one thing I've always felt that is lacking from our US education system was international history. It wasn't until my kids were taking Advanced Placement European history (AP Euro) that I learned how much I didn't know about that. We tend to study all history as to how it relates to the US. My younger son told me that in 6th grade they covered the western hemisphere and in 7th they covered the eastern hemisphere but I don't think it was a very in-depth study.

I have to respectfully disagree about graduating from High School being the equivalent to passing A levels. You can actually graduate from public high schools with a D avg. As long as you pass the classes that are required for graduation you will graduate.

I generally like the education here in the US but I think it's very telling that many of my daughters friends that graduated with ed degrees last year are choosing not to teach in the public school systems.