Facebook is definitely the new class reunion. Anyone that has a facebook account, surely has reconnected with some old high school friends and even former classmates you might not remember. ClassFinders.com created a funny image of certain types of old high school friends:
In the United States high school is the typical last step before most adolescents turn in to adults. This coming of age or cross-over process not only addresses the continuing education of the students but also their maturation in to adulthood and as parents it is usually when we see our children test the boundaries one last time (or more) before they break free. In high school the children usually continue to improve their core skills in math, reading and writing; as well as, they have their first opportunity to actually pick some of the classes they want to explore (called electives) and to manage their own schedule. Another aspect of education at the High School level is that they have an opportunity to go deeper in to the study of sciences such as Biology, Chemistry and Physics.
All of these options and opportunities are self selected and in some cases only provided to those students that have shown an aptitude or capability in the subjects. Although the term ‘tracking’ isn’t very popular in the United States it can describe the academic selection process that occurs within the high schools. Those students who have done well in school leading up to high school can go on to take honors classes or other classes targeted to prepare them for going on to college.
The students who don’t apply for the higher level classes attend the regular level classes. Students can also mix and match and take a combination of honors classes in areas that are interesting to them and regular classes which are not. Typically the regular classes will cover less material, have less homework and go at a slower pace than honors classes. The grading scale is the same for both honors and regular classes and both typically meet State and Federal guidelines.
Along with the added academic freedom comes the introduction of organized clubs and sports outside of the classroom but within the school. These can include music (orchestra, marching and jazz bands), pep clubs focused typically on sports and the sports themselves. High School sports can include the core football, baseball and basketball sports and at larger schools it might include golf, lacrosse, soccer, swimming, rugby, hockey and I’ve even heard of bowling and chess teams. The sports supported tend to mirror the community interests of where the school is located and in some regions of the United States where there is a lack of college sports the high school programs can get almost fanatical support from the community.
