TONGUE TWISTERS

In American schools of the 1800’s teachers believed that articulate speech was the sure sign of a well-educated person, so one of the compulsory school subjects for all children was “elocution” or proper public speaking. To practice the lessons of good speech, each pupil would stand before the class and slowly recite some difficult sentence or phrase over and over again until each word was clear and crisply spoken.

•“Bring me some ice, not some mice.”

•“Red leather, yellow leather.”

•“Rush the washing, Russell.”

Sometimes the class played an elocution game similar to a spelling bee in which each pupil in turn had to speak some tongue-twisting sentence clearly after correctly reciting each of the sentences that preceded his turn. Whoever goofed was out of the contest. A typical progression of sentences might have gone like this:

•One old Oxford ox opening oysters.

•Two tired turkeys trotting to the trolley.

•Three tricky tigers tipping ten tall trees.

•Four fat friars foolishly fishing for flowers.

•Five funny Frenchmen fanning fainting flies.

•Six sick sailors sighting sinking ships.

•Seven sinister sisters swallowing soothing syrup.

•Eight elegant Englishmen eagerly eating

éclairs.

•Nine nimble noblemen neatly nibbling nothing.

•Ten tiny ticks throwing terrible temper tantrums.

Proper speech and clear communication are

still important lessons, but elocution as a school subjects has nearly disappeared. All that is left are a lot of tricky tongue twisters, to be recited clearly and crisply and as quickly as you can without goofing. Some tricky tongue twisters are meant to be repeated over and over again a number of times in a row while others are difficult enough so that you are lucky to get through them correctly just once. Many of those tongue twisters were once actually school lessons, but now you can try them just for fun.

•Some shun sunshine –

Do you shun sunshine?

•A big black bug bit a big black bear

And the big black bear bled blood.

•A skunk sat on a stump;

The stump thunk the skunk stunk

And the skunk thunk the stump stunk.

•Cross crossings cautiously.

Sheep shouldn’t sleep in a shack;

•Sheep should sleep in a shed.

•The swan swam out to sea;

Swim swan swim!

•Three grey geese sat on the green grass grazing.

•The sixth sheik’s sixth sheep’s sick.

•She’s so selfish she should sell shellfish shells But shells of shellfish seldom sell.

•Two tutors who tooted the flute

Tried to tutor two tooters to toot. Said the two to the tutors,

“is it harder to toot

Or to tutor two tooters to toot?”

THE THREE R’s

It has been said that in America education opens the door to opportunity. It is a right of every American to receive education that will lead to a better way of life for him/her and a better society for all. But the methods and attitudes about education in America have changed greatly. In Early America it was the responsibility of the school to teach the “3 R’s” – originally Reading, Writing, and Religion – as well as love of country, nationalism, morality, etiquette, and whatever else was supposed to develop a good “American character”.

Since schoolbooks were not common, and those available were quite expensive, the family Bible became the child’s textbook. This was most appropriate considering the strong emphasis given in school and school textbooks to the teaching of God. Good penmanship was also considered important and children were often made to practice letters and numerals over and over again. Students used a wood-nib pen and ink, or a small slate chalkboard.

REPEAT AFTER ME

Learning meant memorization in Early American schools, with little explanation of the lessons provided. After the teacher read an exercise, the class, chanting in unison, would repeat the lesson several times. Each individual pupil would then be made to stand straight and motionless while reciting the lesson from memory. It was not so important that the student understand the lesson as long as it was implanted in his memory. And should a pupil make a mistake in his recitation, or even worse be caught napping, out came the “stick” for a good flogging.

Not every child went to school – most children had no schooling at all. It was for boys only, as it was generally thought that girls had delicate minds and could not easily absorb school learning. Too much education for girls could lead to a troubled mind and even insanity, it was believed.

Those children who did get to school did not attend very often. School was open only during the winter months and then only one or two days a week. Children were needed for work around the house or farm during the rest of the time. Only the children of the wealthy had schooling every day – provided, usually, by a tutor. Eventually laws were passed requiring towns and cities to have schools, and compelling children to attend them. Poor families still could not send their children, however, because they were needed at home to work.

Lessons were sometimes held at the teacher’s house because no other space was available, and when a town did build a one-room school it was cheaply made and furnished as inexpensively as possible. Early American schoolhouses were painted red because that was the cheapest color of paint that could be bought.

LEARNING FOR ALL IN ONE ROOM

All grade levels of children ages from five to sixteen were taught in a single room. A teacher would teach one grade of children at a time leaving the other grades to study. With so many different grades and ages packed into a dingy and small classroom discipline problems were constant. The teacher’s role was more often that of an orderkeeper than an educator. You can imagine that many towns looked for teachers who were physically big and strong. Sometimes it didn’t matter what teachers knew, or if they could teach, just as long as they were willing to take the job. A teacher might be the minister’s wife or a visitor passing through the town who had nothing else to do and so spent a few days a week drilling lessons. Teachers were not required to be very educated and were not paid very much.

As you know, schools in America today are much different and much better. Teachers are college educated and well respected, and there are programs and methods of teaching that can make it fun to learn. But most important, the student today is considered and individual. He is taught to think and reason rather than memorize.

Sources: www.pattersoninnmuseum.org; From Steven Caney’s Kids’ America

Present

Public School refers to schools run by a governmental authority. In some states, such as Hawaii, the state government runs all public schools; in others, local school districts (independent of any other governmental body such as a city or county) run the public schools. States differ also in how public schools are financed. In general, they are fi- nanced from taxpayer dollars. Tuition to public schools is usually free; though parents are often expected to pay for some expenses as well as for optional programs like sports or music. Public schools may not deny admission to students based on academic criteria; they may expel and bar students for extreme disruptive conduct.

Public schools are generally prohibited from offering any religious instruction, a major source of controversy within the United States. In many locales dominated by one religious faction or another, there are frequent calls to “let God back in the schools”. Neutral education on the subject of religion is permitted, as is the study of the Bible from a literary perspective; the prohibition is against favoring a specific religious view. Such courses are still uncommon, however.

Private School refers to schools run by private entities, unaffiliated with the government. (In the UK, these are called public schools, confusingly enough). Private schools may set admission criteria (many reject below-average students), almost always charge tuition, and may offer religious instruction. Many private schools are run by churches or religious orders, these are known as parochial schools.

Home schooling refers to the practice of educating children in the home (in many cases, parents who home-school cooperate in doing so). This is legal in the United States, though home-schooled students (and those in private schools) in some states are expected to pass state-administered placement tests. Home schooling is often motivated by objections to the public school curriculum, usually on religious grounds. Another motivation is the perception that the standard school environment in general is psychologically harmful or otherwise not conducive to quality education.

Grade Levels

The first mandatory year of schooling for children in the U.S. (like many things, this varies from region to region; education is for the most part considered a local matter under U.S. law) is first grade. It typically begins in the fall after the child’s sixth birthday, though in some areas five-year-olds who are near their sixth birthday are allowed to enter first grade. Grades 2 through 12 follow for the next eleven years; education is not compulsory past 16 in most states, though some states are debating raising the drop-out age to 18.

In addition, there are several years of “schooling” prior to first grade. Kindergarten (German for “children’s garden”) is a class for 5-year-olds. It is generally optional (though recommended); in some districts it is only half-day. Most public school districts make kindergarten available for children within their district.

Before kindergarten one finds preschool – typically offered for 3- and 4-year olds. In many places, 3-year olds attend preschool two days a week, 4-year olds for 3 days a week. Preschool focuses more on physical, social, and emotional development of young children, and far less on “education”. Preschoolers are often introduced to reading, writing, and the alphabet – but at a very early level. Preschoolers generally are not expected to have mastered these. Unlike kindergarten, preschool is generally not offered by public school districts; instead it is provided by churches, daycares, or cooperatives.

In most districts, the grade levels K-12 are physically segregated into three different types of school: primary school (or elementary school), middle school (or junior high), and high school. Depending on the district, primary school is usually K-5 or K-6, middle school is 6–8, 7–8, or 7–9; and high school (sometimes “senior high school”) is 9–12 or 10–12. Other districts may do different things. Some use the term “middle school” to refer to a 6-8 school and “junior high” to refer to a 7–9 school, but this distinction is far from universal.

In some districts, different grade levels may be consolidated into a single class – usually no more than 2. (Though in very small rural districts, one may still find the one-room schoolhouse, where five-year-olds and pre-teens are all educated in the same room by the same teacher).

The following terms are used to describe students in grades 9–12; confusingly, they are also used for college undergraduates.

•Freshman: Grade 9, or first year of college

•Sophomore: Grade 10, second year of college

•Junior: Grade 11, third year of college

•Senior: Grade 12, fourth year of college.

http://c2.com

PUBLIC SCHOOLS IN AMERICA

Hundreds of years ago, most learning happened at home. Parents taught their children or, if their families could afford it, private tutors did the job. The Puritans were the first in this country to point out the need for some kind of public education. They established schools to teach not just the essentials-reading, writing and mathbut also to reinforce their core values.

After the American Revolution, Thomas Jefferson argued that the newly independent nation needed an educational system, and he suggested that tax dollars be used to fund it. His pleas were ignored, however, and the idea for a public school system languished for nearly a century.

By the 1840s, a few public schools had popped up around the country in the communities that could afford them. However, that smattering of schools wasn’t good enough for education crusaders Horace Mann of Massachusetts and Henry Barnard of Connecticut. They began calling for free, compulsory school for every child in the nation.

Massachusetts passed the first compulsory school laws in 1852. New York followed the next year, and by 1918, all American children were required to attend at least elementary school.

Next came the movement to create equal schooling for all American children, no matter what their race. At the turn of the 20th century, schools in the South, and many in the North, were segregated. The 1896 Supreme Court ruling, Plessy v. Ferguson upheld the legality of segregation. Finally, in 1954, the Supreme Court overturned its ruling with the landmark case, Brown v. Board of Education, and public schools became open to people of all races.

How Public Schools Operate

Public schools are operated at the state level through departments of education, and locally by school districts and publicly elected or appointed school boards. Approximately 15,000 different school districts operate in the United States, and most are run by counties. Because there is very little federal oversight, curricula in one state can differ from those in other states.

Students generally go to the public school in the district in which they live; however, with the growth of charter and magnet schools, students are now being offered more options. Public schools generally accept everyone who wants to go there, regardless of their income or skill level.

Here are a few quick statistics about public schools:

•Number of children enrolled in public elementary and secondary schools (2007-08): 49.6 million

•Estimated public elementary and secondary schools (2005-06): 97,000

•Number of charter schools (2005): 3,519

•Number of students enrolled in charter schools (2004-05): 887,000

•Number of teachers employed in public elementary and secondary schools (2007–08)

34

March 2013

SCHOOL RIDDLES

•What is white when it’s dirty and black when it’s clean?

(A blackboard.)

•Why did the teacher wear sunglasses?

(Because her students were bright.)

•Where did the music teacher leave her keys? (In the piano.)

•What did the pen say to the pencil?

(What’s your point?)

•How do you get straight A’s? (Use a ruler)

•Why did the kid study in the airplane? (He wanted a higher education.)

•What did you learn in school today?

(Not enough, I have to go back tomorrow.)

•What’s the king of the classroom? (The ruler.)

•What subject in school is easy for a witch?

(Spell-ing.)

•What did the computer do at lunchtime? (It had a byte.)

•What is a math teacher’s favourite sum?

( Summer.)

•What did the paper say to the pencil?

(Write on!)

•Which hand is it better to write with? (Neither, you should use a pen.)

•What is the smartest American state?

(Alabama, it has four A’s and one B.)

•What animal cheats at exams?

(The cheetah.)

•Why was the math book sad?

(Because it had too many problems.)

•Why did the student do multiplication problems on the floor?

(The teacher told her not to use tables.)

Schools in England

TYPES OF SCHOOLS IN ENGLAND

Children’s education in England is normally divided into two separate stages. They begin with primary education at the age of five and this usually lasts until they are eleven. Then they move to secondary school, there they stay until they reach sixteen, seventeen or eighteen years of age.

The main categories of school are:

•local authority maintained schools (State Schools) Free to all children between the ages of 5–16

•independent schools (Private/Public Schools) Parents pay for their children's' education.

State Schools

In the UK 93% of the children in England and Wales go to “state schools”. State schools are non fee-paying, funded from taxes and most are organised by Local Authorities (LA).

Parents are expected to make sure that their child has a pen, pencil, ruler etc. but the cost of other more specialised equipment, books, examination fees are covered by the school.

Parents are, however, expected to pay for their child’s school uniform and items of sports wear. Charges may also be made for music lessons and for board and lodgings on residential trips. Schools may ask for voluntary contributions for school time activities – but no pupil may be left out of an activity if their parents or guardian cannot or do not contribute.

Primary schools (5–11 year olds)

In the UK, the first level of education is known as primary education. These are almost always mixed sex, and usually located close to the child’s home. Children tend to be with the same group throughout the day, and one teacher has responsibility for most of the work they do.

Parents are strongly encouraged to help their children, particularly with reading and writing, and small amounts of homework are set to all children, even during the early years at school.

Secondary schools (11–16 year olds)

Most children transfer at the age of 11 – usually to their nearest secondary school, though the law allows parents in England and Wales to express preferences for other schools too. A place has to be offered at the parents’preferred school unless the school has more applicants than places; in that case it will admit the children who have the highest priority under its published admission arrangements which can vary a little in different places.

Most secondary schools cater for both sexes. They tend to be much larger than primary schools.

Nearly 88 per cent of secondary school pupils in England go to comprehensive schools, as do all pupils in Wales. These take children of all abilities and provide a wide range of secondary education for all or most of the children in a district from 11 to 16 or 18. All children in Scotland go to non-selective schools.

Grammar Schools are selective, they offer academically oriented general education. Entrance is based on a test of ability, usually at 11 (11+). Grammar schools are single sexed schools i.e. Children either go to a boys Grammar School or a Girls Grammar School. There are grammar schools in Northern Ireland and some parts of England.

Fee Paying Schools

Independent Schools

7% of the children in England go to independent schools. Independent schools are known as private schools and public schools . Parents pay for their children to attend

A preparatory school is a school to prepare pupils to go to a public school.

A public school is an independent secondary school. Public schools in England are not run by the government. The entrance exams used by most public schools are known as Common Entrance exams and are taken at the age of 11 (girls) or 13 (boys).

The most famous public schools are Eton, Harrow and Winchester.

Higher Education

Around 30% of the 18 to 19 year olds enter full-time higher education. The formal entry requirements to most degree courses are two A-levels at grade E or above. In practice, most offers of places require qualifications in excess of this.

Homeschooling

What do George Washington and the Hanson brothers have in common? Do you give up? Well, the answer is that both of them were educated in their homes. Queen Elizabeth, Thomas Edison, and Theodore Roosevelt were also educated at home. According to the Home Education Research Institute, 1.5 million students are staying home for class today. This number is five times more than ten years ago. This trend leads to many questions. Does home school education work? Do students receive a proper education? How does a home school student’s education compare to that of public school student? Does home schooling isolate a child socially? These questions are concerns of parents, educators, and politicians alike.

Each fall when school begins, a growing number of school-aged children in the West do not head off to a classroom. Instead, they learn at home with their families or with other children in their communities. Home schooling, once dismissed as a fringe activity practiced by religious reactionaries and hippies, is now widely considered an integral part of the mainstream education system in many countries. Growing more common every year, the practice has gained attention as home-schooled students sweep up scholastic and athletic honors at national competitions and high-profile politicians opt to teach their own children at home.

The rise of homeschooling, of course, reflects broad dissatisfaction with formal education in the U.S. and elsewhere. It takes many forms, from a daily routine following a scheduled curriculum to child-led learning in which parents supervise and help. Yet, home-schooled students can learn just as much as they would in regular schooling, provided they and their instructors work hard to cover all the subjects and experiences necessary

Homeschooling is legal in many countries. Countries with the most prevalent home education movements include Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Some countries have highly regulated home education programs as an extension of the compulsory school system; others, such as Sweden and Germany, have outlawed it entirely. Brazil has a law project in process. In other countries, while not restricted by law, homeschooling is not socially acceptable or considered undesirable and is virtually non-existent.

From 2007 to 2010, the number of children home-schooled in the U.S. increased by an estimated 7 percent; the number of children enrolled in schools increased by less than 1 percent over the same period. Nationwide, it has been estimated that 20 percent of home-school students enroll in public schools at least part time.

The modern-day homeschooling story is fundamentally one of a grassroots movement of parent educators, from Miami to Des Moines to Fairbanks, who have taught their children how to read and write at kitchen tables and in home offices.

Back in 1980, home schooling was illegal in 30 states of America. It was not until 1993 that all 50 states made the practice lawful. Attending school is no longer a legal requirement, but all children must be educated. In recent years, the practice of home schooling has increased and, while reliable numbers are hard to come by, some experts argue that it is the fastest-growing form of education in the country.

While debates over the benefits and risks of removing children from traditional learning environments continue, the home school movement has carved out its place in America’s education system. Every state has now established at least one home-school- ing association and several states have begun to develop regional associations. Public programs that offer support to home-schooled families are also popping up around the country.

There is no leader, and no reigning ideology to Homeschooling. There are instead at least a million American children – the real figure is probably twice that number – whose families want them to learn at home for many reasons, often having little to do with religion or politics.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/

JOKES ABOUT SCHOOL

•Teacher: Why are you late, Frank? Frank: Because of the sign. Teacher: What sign?

Frank: The one that says, “School Ahead, Go Slow.”

•Teacher: Glenn, how do you spell “crocodile?” Glenn: K-R-O-K-O-D- A-I-L”

Teacher: No, that’s wrong

Glenn: Maybe it’ s wrong, but you asked me how I spell it!

•Teacher: John, name one important thing we have today that we didn’t have ten years ago. John: Me!

•Teacher: Millie, give me a sentence starting with “I”.

Millie: I is...

Teacher: No, Millie..... Always say, “I am.” Millie: All right.. “I am the ninth letter of the alphabet.”

•Teacher: Harold, what do you call a person who keeps on talking when people are no longer interested?

Harold: A teacher.

•Teacher: Please name two pronouns. Student: Who? Me?

Teacher: Correct.

•Teacher: “I killed a person” convert this sentence into the future tense.

Johnny: The future tense is “You will go to jail”.

•Teacher: Your composition about your cat is the same as your sister’s.

Pupil: That is because it is the same cat!

•Teacher: What is a synonym?

Student: A synonym is a word you use when you can’t spell the other!

•Teacher: How old is your dad.

Student: He is as old as I am. Teacher: How is it possible?

Student: Because he became a dad only after I was born.

•Teacher: Sam, what is the outside of a tree called?

Sam: I don’t know.

Teacher: Bark, Sam, bark.

Sam: “Bow, wow, wow!”

•Teacher: Johnny, you know you can’t sleep in my class.

Johnny: I know. But maybe if you were just a little quieter, I could.

•Teacher: Did your father help you with your homework?

Student: No, he did it all by himself.

•Joe: I don’t think I deserve a zero on this test. Teacher: I agree, but it’s the lowest mark I can give you.

•Teacher: If you received $10 from 10 people, what would you get?

Susan: A new bike.

•Teacher: If you had one dollar and you asked your father for another, how many dollars would you have?

Joe: One dollar.

Teacher (sadly): You don’t know your arithmetic.

Joe (sadly): You don’t know my father.

•Teacher: Name two days of the week that start with “t”.

Pupil: Today and Tomorrow.