• Are American highschools the same as how they are depicted in films and television?
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Besides everyone being 30 years old, are they the same? In Australia our Highschool system is pretty damn different, but it's even the little things. Just a brief list. School buses don't pick people up from their houses, ever, they are just normal public transport buses that stop off at stops until they reach school. Primary schools (Elementary schools) never ever have detention. Almost all schools require a uniform. The size of the year level is usually about 150-200 people, so after about a month or so you basically know everyone. There are no cafeterias. Most schools will have a canteen with some assorted stuff, but generally kids bring their lunches from home. We don't have sport teams. Once a year we'll have a thing called 'interschool sport' where we spend a day versing two or three other schools in a sport. Usually footy, cricket, basketball, baseball or netball. The teams pretty much consist of the first 15 people to sign up and are never taken seriously. If you win you can go to zones and verse some other schools for a day or two later in the year. Which also means there are no school mascots, cheerleaders, spirit week, school marching band (Well there are bands, but they only play at some assemblies and parent information nights and stuff. No one sits at desks. Everyone sits at tables in either a big U shape, or in groups of six around the room. There are barely any stereotypes or popular kids (Now I know this one is played up a bunch in media, but even still, it has to be present for it to be focused on so much.) Some kids are more well liked than others, some are more renowned for being smarter, or sluttier, stuff like that. But there is not a big group of jocks, and a big group of nerds and they don't sit at opposite sides of the room. People are just people really. So anyway, sorry if my grammar or explanations are bad, I am half asleep. Basically, is American High School similar to how it is depicted in movies and television. Because if it is, we have it extremely different.
Meh, it depends really. I'm sure some high schools are exact duplicates of how Hollywood portrays them and some are extremely different. I like to think my high school was somewhere in the middle. There wasn't really a "cool crowd" per-say but there were football jocks who most people didn't like and other types of jocks that just kept to their own groups. There wasn't a nerd brigade either, it was pretty much just people being people.
Secondary school in England (Highschool): No school bus other than for disabled kids Primary schools have 'sit in the corner' time All schools require a uniform unless it's an occasion Year size, err, about 100-200 I think There's a cafeteria in most secondary schools We have football teams, some have rugby and basketball teams There aren't school mascots There are usually tables or rows, never desks unless exam There are some stereotypes - goth kids exist, so do jocks and nerds. We have a bonus - chav. Some people are more renowned for different things too - there are people who talk to a lot of people and there are people who stay to themselves. Nobody really hates anybody for reasons other than personal reasons (say somebody stole something or something)
Numbered for clarity. [QUOTE=darcy010;39255231]1. School buses don't pick people up from their houses, ever, they are just normal public transport buses that stop off at stops until they reach school. 2. Primary schools (Elementary schools) never ever have detention. 3. Almost all schools require a uniform. 4. The size of the year level is usually about 150-200 people, so after about a month or so you basically know everyone. 5. There are no cafeterias. Most schools will have a canteen with some assorted stuff, but generally kids bring their lunches from home. 6. We don't have sport teams. Once a year we'll have a thing called 'interschool sport' where we spend a day versing two or three other schools in a sport. Usually footy, cricket, basketball, baseball or netball. The teams pretty much consist of the first 15 people to sign up and are never taken seriously. If you win you can go to zones and verse some other schools for a day or two later in the year. 7. Which also means there are no school mascots, cheerleaders, spirit week, school marching band (Well there are bands, but they only play at some assemblies and parent information nights and stuff. 8. No one sits at desks. Everyone sits at tables in either a big U shape, or in groups of six around the room. 9. There are barely any stereotypes or popular kids (Now I know this one is played up a bunch in media, but even still, it has to be present for it to be focused on so much.) 10. Some kids are more well liked than others, some are more renowned for being smarter, or sluttier, stuff like that. But there is not a big group of jocks, and a big group of nerds and they don't sit at opposite sides of the room. People are just people really.[/QUOTE] 1. School buses pick people up at stops designated by the school and/or bus company (not sure who decides, exactly). Sometimes a kid gets lucky and his house is right next to the stop, but rarely is it ever just for him. An exception is that some rural areas might have a van or two that goes around the outer areas and collects kids one by one from the countryside. 2. I cannot remember if Elementary School (K-5) had detention or not, but Middle School (6-8) and High School (9-12) do. 3. Public schools very rarely require uniforms, but some private schools do. Most of the time there's a loose dress code that's just strictly enforced. 4. This depends entirely on the school. Some schools are only a couple hundred people, and some may have thousands (particularly the big ass city schools). 5. Every school I've been to has a cafeteria where you may buy lunch. Mine also served breakfast before classes started. Some city schools even have fast food places in the cafeteria, or allow you to leave school grounds to go get some. Mine did not, though, only teachers were authorized to leave school grounds for food (they could grant a student permission to come with them, this was rarely done though). Seniors were allowed to eat lunch at picnic tables in the court yard, though. 6. Yes we do have sport teams, and they are [I]serious business[/I]. Even the parents shit-talk each other over who's the greatest. One year we had the state police assist in monitoring sports events after a fight broke out amongst rival students and their families. 7. We have all those too. Most schools are identified by their name, mascot, and colours. Cheerleaders usually play at spirit assemblies (generally before a big game) and at sporting events. We have a band, but they only play at special occasions and sporting events, and in holiday parades. 8. Most classes use desks, on occasion a class will use tables if it frequently does group projects. If a class with desks does a group project, they would usually just pick a location in the class room and move the desks together in a square or rectangle (depending on how large groups were). 9. This exists to a degree, but is seriously overblown by media. Popular kids are usually the ones with the best personalities, such as being the most social and / or funny. Being in a sport does not automatically make you popular, however these types are more likely to be involved in a sport due to their personalities, so I can see where the correlation comes from (correlation isn't causation, though). 10. Most groups generally just hang out with each other. People of similar interests congregate and form groups, and nobody really holds much interest in what goes on outside that group. Due to the time they spend together, members of sports teams often become friends with each other, for example. Expanding on the above, the 'popular' kids are generally the ones that are pretty much likes by everyone, and can just hop into a group and have a laugh regardless.
Elementary had detention. For me, that is
The decor is pretty accurate.
So many detentions you start to not care for them.
Public schools are pretty much accurate to that, but you also have smaller city schools and private schools that kind of do things their own way.
Most of the stereotypes are true to a degree, I'm from the south, and sports is a big deal there. It's not as bad as in some places, but people still care about the games and watch them, I wouldn't say they'd actually start a physical fight over them though. Thanks to honors/Advanced Placement classes, the smart kids tend to stick together and the randoms stick together in their on-level classes, so you don't usually know many of the "jocks" persay if you're in the higher-level classes. Overall, I'd still say it's just people being people. It's not like there are defined cliques that people belong to. It's sort of a like a bunch of different social circles. Some people are heavily involved in 1 or 2 "social circles" while others may be lightly involved in 3 or 4, or may have one primary and a few secondary circles. For example, I'm one of the people who are lightly involved in several circles. I'm part of the classic rock circle, the hardcore gaming circle, the d&d circle, and know several people in the stoner circles, the anime circle, and the homestuck circle. On top of that, my main group of friends effectively acts as a larger circle, with all kinds of people that we normally hang out with. That's the best way I can explain it, but bottom line there are no harshly defined cliques, it's more like a big ball of social circles all intertwined and mashed together.
The local catholic high-school sends sports-coaches (Or what middle-schools call "Sport Assassins") and go about recruiting their best players and handing them a 15k scholarship for the high-school. It's ridiculous.
Not at all. I don't know what the fuck the people saying it's like in the movies are talking about.
[QUOTE=Zillamaster55;39258658]The local catholic high-school sends sports-coaches (Or what middle-schools call "Sport Assassins") and go about recruiting their best players and handing them a 15k scholarship for the high-school. It's ridiculous.[/QUOTE] We insulted the other team and the guy said it was an "education scholarship" We asked him: "What is the slope formula, who was the Roman emperor who invaded Gaul, and what is di-hydrogen monoxide" "duh... x=m+b...I unno....I unno..."
[QUOTE=Zambies!;39259293]We insulted the other team and the guy said it was an "education scholarship" We asked him: "What is the slope formula, who was the Roman emperor who invaded Gaul, and what is di-hydrogen monoxide" "duh... x=m+b...I unno....I unno..."[/QUOTE] Well that was unkind. No need to insult him.
I uh... thought secondary school was going to be like Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide. Boy was I wrong.
OP thought about the 30 year olds aswell :v:
The media really depicts your average "city" high school. And while it's not as bad as the media makes it out to be, it's still not a great environment. Fights do break out, you have the jocks and sluts and what not, and drug use is pretty common. How all of that is handled though is really based on what school you're going to though.
My high school does not have 6 feet tall lockers. Only rows of really small lockers.
I live in England and I got a school bus when I went to secondary. I had to pay 85p either way though, the school had organised a special bus rout. Had some great times on that bus, my head was used as an ash tray once and we once watched a student get taken off the bus and arrested.
My school is like the opposite of the op's school.
Mine really isn't. There aren't really any Cliques, and the ones that exist are extremely permeable by anyone. Our Cafeteria food is actually not terrible all of the time. People aren't thrown into lockers / dumpsters. We only have 1 teen pregnancy every year or two. The football / basketball / baseball & softball teams do get way too much credit though. They won states in class B and the school went nuts, whereas our ski team has gone 20-22 class A titles and no one even cares. [URL="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mt._Blue_High_School"]Except Wikipedia[/URL]
[QUOTE=munky91;39259691]Well that was unkind. No need to insult him.[/QUOTE] I like how your avatar is Ghandi. Most of this hate stems from schools that get by the system by saying "OH EDUCATION SCHOLARSHIP NYEH"
Jocks aren't bullies most of the time, and they aren't always the coolest people either Nerds can get women (albeit nerdy women) Those are the two main points that came to mind
[QUOTE=Zambies!;39259293]We insulted the other team and the guy said it was an "education scholarship" We asked him: "What is the slope formula, who was the Roman emperor who invaded Gaul, and what is di-hydrogen monoxide" "duh... x=m+b...I unno....I unno..."[/QUOTE] I don't know who the fuck that emperor was and I probably wouldn't catch that H20 joke were I not aware it was a joke itself. You sound pretentious.
[QUOTE=J$ Psychotic;39261296]Jocks aren't bullies most of the time, and they aren't always the coolest people either[/QUOTE] I don't think I've ever heard the word jock used outside of text or movies. Everybody here is just another person. Maybe it's because we're a small school, I dunno. [editline]17th January 2013[/editline] [QUOTE=darcy010;39255231] Almost all schools require a uniform. [/QUOTE] That would be terrible.
[QUOTE=darcy010;39255231]Besides everyone being 30 years old, are they the same? In Australia our Highschool system is pretty damn different, but it's even the little things. Just a brief list. [B]School buses don't pick people up from their houses, ever, they are just normal public transport buses that stop off at stops until they reach school.[/B] I went to out-back schools which do pick up from houses. [B]Primary schools (Elementary schools) never ever have detention.[/B] I don't know what primary schools you went too, but the 6 I went to did. [B]Almost all schools require a uniform.[/B] I can confirm this. [B]The size of the year level is usually about 150-200 people, so after about a month or so you basically know everyone.[/B] More like 50-400? But even then its irrelevant. [B]There are no cafeterias. Most schools will have a canteen with some assorted stuff, but generally kids bring their lunches from home.[/B] I can confirm this. [B]We don't have sport teams. Once a year we'll have a thing called 'interschool sport' where we spend a day versing two or three other schools in a sport. Usually footy, cricket, basketball, baseball or netball. The teams pretty much consist of the first 15 people to sign up and are never taken seriously. If you win you can go to zones and verse some other schools for a day or two later in the year. Which also means there are no school mascots, cheerleaders, spirit week, school marching band (Well there are bands, but they only play at some assemblies and parent information nights and stuff.[/B] Depends on where you are, this is half true. [B]No one sits at desks. Everyone sits at tables in either a big U shape, or in groups of six around the room.[/B] I've always say at desks? There was one class where I didn't, but then it was a Techincal Drawing Class. [B]There are barely any stereotypes or popular kids (Now I know this one is played up a bunch in media, but even still, it has to be present for it to be focused on so much.)[/B] This doesn't seem true either? Where abouts are you in Australia? [B]Some kids are more well liked than others, some are more renowned for being smarter, or sluttier, stuff like that. But there is not a big group of jocks, and a big group of nerds and they don't sit at opposite sides of the room. People are just people really.[/B] All the schools I went too had Jocks/Nerds/sluts etc. So anyway, sorry if my grammar or explanations are bad, I am half asleep. Basically, is American High School similar to how it is depicted in movies and television. Because if it is, we have it extremely different.[/QUOTE]
[QUOTE=AeroSinthetic;39261472]That would be terrible.[/QUOTE] Depends on which school. The girls formal uniform at my school is a thin white shirt and being a tropical Australian town, it rains plenty. It's watchable to say the least.
Time for the Arkansas point of view. [QUOTE=darcy010;39255231]Besides everyone being 30 years old, are they the same? In Australia our Highschool system is pretty damn different, but it's even the little things. Just a brief list. School buses don't pick people up from their houses, ever, they are just normal public transport buses that stop off at stops until they reach school. [b]Depending on town size, buses will pick up everyone from their homes.[/b] Primary schools (Elementary schools) never ever have detention. [b]Detention's been lessened down now, but from my town, elementary school detention was basically an open concept that depended on which teacher you got it from(Most gave you fucking hell.[/b] Almost all schools require a uniform. [b]Extremely large schools, maybe. Most I've seen around here say no.[/b] The size of the year level is usually about 150-200 people, so after about a month or so you basically know everyone. [b]We had 23 people in our graduating class. Let that sink in.[/b] There are no cafeterias. Most schools will have a canteen with some assorted stuff, but generally kids bring their lunches from home. [b]Cafeteria with the most generic-brand frozen food items you can ever find on the market/black market.[/b] We don't have sport teams. Once a year we'll have a thing called 'interschool sport' where we spend a day versing two or three other schools in a sport. Usually footy, cricket, basketball, baseball or netball. The teams pretty much consist of the first 15 people to sign up and are never taken seriously. If you win you can go to zones and verse some other schools for a day or two later in the year. [b]We revolve around the basics of baseball, football, and basketball, setting up seasons accordingly. Golf is a less popular but alternate option.[/b] Which also means there are no school mascots, cheerleaders, spirit week, school marching band (Well there are bands, but they only play at some assemblies and parent information nights and stuff. No one sits at desks. Everyone sits at tables in either a big U shape, or in groups of six around the room. [b]Many schools have adopted this rule but I can still remember having the shit desks you thought were made of corroded aluminum[/b] There are barely any stereotypes or popular kids (Now I know this one is played up a bunch in media, but even still, it has to be present for it to be focused on so much.) Some kids are more well liked than others, some are more renowned for being smarter, or sluttier, stuff like that. But there is not a big group of jocks, and a big group of nerds and they don't sit at opposite sides of the room. People are just people really. [b]Surprisingly still exists. Our school basically had an outdoor bench for each social class: nerds, outcasts, jocks, and seniors.[/b] So anyway, sorry if my grammar or explanations are bad, I am half asleep. Basically, is American High School similar to how it is depicted in movies and television. Because if it is, we have it extremely different.[/QUOTE]
[QUOTE=Zambies!;39259293]We insulted the other team and the guy said it was an "education scholarship" We asked him: "What is the slope formula, who was the Roman emperor who invaded Gaul, and what is di-hydrogen monoxide" "duh... x=m+b...I unno....I unno..."[/QUOTE] For the record, I assume that "roman emperor" here alludes to Julius Caesar, who was a consul, not an emperor. Get your facts right.
Damn this thread has really made me miss school (Australia btw)... finished senior school only a few months ago and I just miss it so bad. Was probably the last time the boys and I would ever be together at one place at the same time, teachers weren't your teachers they were your mates, and you got along with everyone in the year (only 70 people in it by the time it finished). Engineering Studies, although one of my worst subjects, was one of the most fun to be in. I remember numerous times sneaking out of school at lunch breaks with some friends to drive down to Maccas because the school canteen was shit and overpriced.
American schools really scare me. I don't know what it is about it, I just hate the whole thing. Jocks, sports teams, "pep rallies", those little L shaped desks - something about it is just super irritating. UK school all the way ~~~
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