By Alex Ruttenberg and Polly Rodriguez, School Choice International There are a a diverse range of challenges families face as they move between international school systems. The following are other common aspects that can become pitfalls in the repatriation process.
With 50 different state school systems, the variety and quality range of U.S. education is significant. This can pose a serious challenge for families when moving back to or within the U.S. The Common Core, a framework of what students should achieve in English and math, can be interpreted at the state level, and not all states have adopted this.
Educational approach fundamentally impacts curriculum and how students learn within their local context. Although international schools do not always reflect the local style, it can be an influence. For example, the Swiss emphasize skills; French education is deeply rooted in philos- ophy; and the U.K. system teaches for specialization and is geared toward meeting national requirements. In the OECD’s worldwide PISA (Program for International Student Assessment) rankings, both Asian and Scandinavian countries are consistently among the highest-scoring in reading, math, and science. Asian culture focuses on intense academic pressure, studying and homework, tutoring and memorization. Scandinavian educational systems take a vastly different approach, venerating nature experience; there is even a Norwegian word for it—friluftsliv, which translates literally as “free air life.”
American education is much more open to debate and exchange of ideas than the systems found in Asia, the Middle East, or even parts of Europe. Students from abroad are often surprised by the American emphasis on class participation, as opposed to listening to the teacher lecturing. Children in the U.S. are taught to speak aloud in class from the earliest days of kindergarten. They have “show and tell” or “sharing time,” when each child is expected to speak to the whole class about something that has happened in their lives, such as a trip to the zoo, a visit from a grandmother, etc. This skill at articulation becomes especially important in later years, as children are expected to ask questions, think creatively about solutions — even if the solutions are wrong — and even disagree with the teacher. The American value of individualism is taught in this way, whereas in much of the rest of the world the teacher is the absolute authority, to be listened to and not to be questioned.
International schools tend to focus on global perspectives in history and culture and often have more foreign language instruction. When returning to the U.S., students may find gaps in their local and American history knowledge, the foreign language they have been studying may not be offered at the level they are taking, and the order in which math or science subjects are taught may be different.
Depending on the type of school students attended while outside the U.S., other differences can arise: For example, in many countries, the best private schooling options are religious-based schools and/or single-sex schools.
A school is much more than just a curriculum and a set of test scores. Each school and country has its own unique culture and social skill set. Children learn social skills and develop friendships, and the learning experience, particularly at local schools, develops their way of interacting with the world. This may make the daily adjustment to the U.S. school day feel awkward and undermine their confidence.
Even the degree of parental involvement might cause culture shock for returning U.S. expats. After being abroad for several years, families may be surprised at how involved American parents are with their children’s public elementary schools. Schools expect parents to:
All parents endeavor to enable their children’s educational achievement. These small examples illustrate the nature of the bumps in the road to international school transition that may not nec- essarily be avoided, but certainly can be managed with research and good advice.
This article is an excerpt from a feature by School Choice International that was originally published in Mobility Magazine, May 2017