There is a big difference when it comes to Schools in both Australia and America. I studied a year of elementary education in Australia, but when I came to America, I decided to change my major because of all the differences.
For starters, the set up of American education is as follows (approximately):
Elementary School: Grades 1-6
Middle School: Grades 7-9
High School: Grades 10-12
Australia education is as follows:
Prep: Preschool
Primary School: Grades 1-7
High School: Grades 8-12
In American college, each year has a different name. These names can also be used in highschool:
Freshman
Sophomore
Junior
Senior
The physical set up of the school is also completely different. America’s schools are usually one big building and they have corridors connecting the classrooms and lockers everywhere. Australians would refer to this as ‘the school in the movies.’
Australian schools are wide open. They take up a large space of area and in order to get from one class to the other, you have to walk outside. The reason for the difference is probably because of weather.
American schools do have cafeterias for the students. You pay a couple dollars per meal but children are allowed to bring their own food. The only thing like this in Australia is a Tuckshop or Canteen. Children though, do not eat at the Tuckshop/Canteen everyday. I personally would rarely eat there, only on special occasions. When I did eat there, I would have to stand in line for ages and I would pay when I reached the counter. When I was in school, they would serve hotdogs, meat pies, iceblocks, candy, chico rolls etc.
Another difference is the grading of students. In America, a large percentage of the students are straight A students or strive to be straight A students. It is just like the movies where parents would describe their children as straight A students. It is quite different in Australia. Students are graded on the bell graph. Only a few students have top grades, majority in the middle and then a few failing students. I was mad when I came to BYU because you need a 3.6GPA out of a 4.0GPA. In Australia, you are rated on a 7.0 GPA and I was on a 5.2GPA. Once BYU transferred my grades I fell on a 3.1GPA, which meant they could not accept me. I thought it was quite unfair because I had what was considered as a good GPA in Australia, but in America it is a poor GPA. ARGH-this still makes me mad. Straight A students in Australia are considered nerds who are CONSTANTLY doing homework and have no social life.
There is no such thing as a Cheerleader in Australia. To us, that is so American. This could be attributed to the lack of sport programs in schools. College basketball and football are incredibly popular in America and are even broadcasted on ESPN! There is really nothing like this in Australia. There is no college sporting teams or anything sport-like. Therefore, there is no school pride when compared to America. In Provo, every weekend students are going to the basketball court or football field to watch BYU compete with another college from around the nation. For example, one of BYU’s biggest games of the year is when the verse UofU (University of Utah). Everyone wears blue and white to support BYU and the stadium is always packed out. I compare it with State of Origin in Australia- except in America they are two college teams.
Another thing I noticed in America is a larger percentage of high school students go to college. You are looked down upon when you drop out of high school. In Australia, when I was in grade 10, students got the choice or ‘earning or learning.’ My class dropped in half because most of them found work so they didn’t have to attend high school anymore. Even when I graduated high school, not all my class was going on to attend college. It is definitely not as common for a person to have a university degree in Australia. What is even more surprising in America is that there are a large percentage of students that go on to get a masters degree after the graduated university. I believe this is due to the lack of employment once they finish school. It is very hard to find a job, especially in Utah so people have no option but to go back to school and get a Masters degree. I personally like the Australian system better. People can still strive and make A LOT of money even if they didn’t finish high school or attend college. For example, my dad never graduated high school but makes a great living as an electrical engineer. In America you would HAVE to attend university in order to get into that line of work.
A major difference is that in Australia there is a uniform for each school. In America though, it is free dress everyday! A comment I heard the most in Australia is that they like the uniform because it minimizes extra bullying. A students dress can tell a lot about a person. For example: their socio-economic background and their dress style (slutty, punkish, gay etc.). This idea is definitely true, but I would have preferred to wear free dress everyday! There are a couple photos of my primary school and high school uniform, above.
Another difference I thought of, is when you begin to attend college in America, you have to take generals for at least a year or two before you can start your major. This does not make sense to me because I thought that was why you go to high school to take general subjects before you attend college/university. I don't want to pay money for a class called American Heritage if I am not planning on becoming a historian. Or take a science class if I want to be a musician. I like the Australian university system because you take specific and related classes to your major for 4 whole years. I feel you are more prepared to begin work once you graduate and this may result in less people continuing to a Masters degree. In America though, most students have to continue schooling because their degree was technically only two years long.
I hope you enjoyed this blog! I always wanted to attend school in America. When I watched it on TV it looked so different! Leave comments if you have any other differences that I didn’t mention. xxxx
