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When growing up I ended up going through both systems (living in Texas and France), so I feel qualified to talk about this: I would finish school at 3 in the U

by rtpg 10y ago

When growing up I ended up going through both systems (living in Texas and France), so I feel qualified to talk about this: I would finish school at 3 in the US, at 5/6 in France. There's 3 hours of the day that French kids can't spend in structured things. That alone completely changes dynamics. Basically you get to have one structured activity (like learning an instrument) and that's about it. The French education system also doesn't promote much in terms of extracurricular activities. There's gym but you don't have sports in school or whatnot. Most depressing thing for me going from TX to France was losing Orchestra as a school class. Tried signing up to a conservatory but it would have ended up being my "1 thing" that I could do. Honestly I preferred the American system much better. It gives you more flexibility for things like Boy Scouts, sports, or learning to program. And I still had loads of time to go to my friends house to do whatever. So in the end the US system gives you more structured activities AND more unstructured time. School as an educational system is overrated. School as a socialised event organiser (like for Orchestra, Arts, and the like) is way underrated, and totally not a part of the French system. The counterpoint is that I've heard recently that US schools have started giving waaaay too much homework, eating up at the unstructured time. I'm a fan of letting kids investigate what they want to do. Homework's important but so is giving people the opportunity to discover things. Side note about the article: who brings their kids to Yoga class? Is that a thing?

vmarsy 10y ago
The elementary school I went to in France would finish at 4:30pm, and most busy days in middle school at 5pm. Did you go to some private school? In elementary school there's the long playground times, one in the morning, one big at lunch, and one in the afternoon. Kids have plenty of time to play soccer. In middle school the Wednesdays afternoon are always free, you have time do extracurricular activities there: soccer, swimming, tennis, music, whatever. There was time to do those things in elementary school, I don't remember exactly when. There was a special extra hours until 6 for those who want to, but basically at the end of those you'd be completely done with your homework.
- rtpg 10y ago
  Oh, yeah, forgot about Wednesdays. Like you said, it's a good opportunity for sports and whatnot. I also had the half days on Wednesdays but basically my classes always ended between 5 and 6PM (This was High School). There are the recesses in between, but it was like 20 minute breaks. I could sit and read, but usually ended up just chatting with friends. A nice break but kinda felt forced for me. I would have much rather taken most of that time and gotten out of school earlier and go to a friend's house or something... The schoolwork thing is a good point, I don't remember having much schoolwork for home in France compared to the US. There were books to read or things to study but I had math homework every day in the US. I think the big thing I dislike about the French system is the lack of many elective courses (apart from art, latin, or something like an extra foreign language). Felt like I had a lot more choice in the US (at least in my well-funded school). On the other hand, the French system isn't just multiple choice questions...
deleted 10y ago
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by rtpg 10y ago

vmarsy 10y ago

The elementary school I went to in France would finish at 4:30pm, and most busy days in middle school at 5pm. Did you go to some private school? In elementary school there's the long playground times, one in the morning, one big at lunch, and one in the afternoon. Kids have plenty of time to play soccer. In middle school the Wednesdays afternoon are always free, you have time do extracurricular activities there: soccer, swimming, tennis, music, whatever. There was time to do those things in elementary school, I don't remember exactly when. There was a special extra hours until 6 for those who want to, but basically at the end of those you'd be completely done with your homework.

rtpg 10y ago
Oh, yeah, forgot about Wednesdays. Like you said, it's a good opportunity for sports and whatnot. I also had the half days on Wednesdays but basically my classes always ended between 5 and 6PM (This was High School). There are the recesses in between, but it was like 20 minute breaks. I could sit and read, but usually ended up just chatting with friends. A nice break but kinda felt forced for me. I would have much rather taken most of that time and gotten out of school earlier and go to a friend's house or something... The schoolwork thing is a good point, I don't remember having much schoolwork for home in France compared to the US. There were books to read or things to study but I had math homework every day in the US. I think the big thing I dislike about the French system is the lack of many elective courses (apart from art, latin, or something like an extra foreign language). Felt like I had a lot more choice in the US (at least in my well-funded school). On the other hand, the French system isn't just multiple choice questions...

deleted 10y ago

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