In the past few days, I have come across a book called "I Am a Teacher in the United States", which provides a true and comprehensive introduction to the situation of boarding high schools in the United States, and provides highly practical guidance for students and parents who are preparing to study in the United States or have already gone to the United States to study.
I have just read half of this book, and I have learned about some private schools in the United States, and I will elaborate on the points that impressed me the most. (The pictures in this article are from "I am a teacher in the United States")
Ownership, financial resources, and use of U.S. schools
There are investors behind private schools in China, so private schools are private or group-owned, but this is not the case in the United States. Private schools in the United States are not owned by private individuals or groups, but are independent beings, without investors behind them, and do not create economic profits for private individuals or groups. Private schools in the United States are not owned by anyone, and everyone in them is the owner of the private school and will contribute to their own school.
Private schools in the United States are self-governing and rely on the return on investment of permanent funds. The permanent funds of well-funded private schools even have hundreds of millions of dollars, which they hand over to professional financial investment companies to manage and invest the return on investment in the operation of the school. In addition, the donation of alumni is also an important financial source of the school, and the school does not care about the amount of donation, but more about the participation rate of the donation.
The school attaches great importance to physical education
In private middle schools in the United States, after the end of the course at 3 o'clock in the afternoon every day, there are 2-3 hours of physical activity time, and there are various sports teams in the school, and an academic year is divided into three seasons: autumn, winter and spring. The secondary school has mature venues, complete equipment and a strong school alliance, which facilitates regular competitions between member schools. The teachers of the school serve as the coaches of the students, "all the people are soldiers", and the teachers choose a certain sport to teach according to their hobbies and strengths in sports. The status of sports is almost on a par with the status of learning, and students who are not so prominent in learning will also be welcomed by their classmates and taken care of by teachers if they are stronger in sports.
Recruitment of teachers
The recruitment cycle in American schools generally begins in March and ends in July. Why? Teachers of private schools in the United States
Contracts are generally signed in one year, and most teachers decide where to go in February or March. Public school recruitment must require a teacher's license, and each state has a system with specific instructions; the principle of private school recruitment is competent, flexible and autonomous. There are three recruitment criteria for private schools: academic qualifications and work experience and matching with the school culture. Matching with school culture is the deciding factor, which sounds mysterious, but it does.