In Japan, school uniforms, as well as hats specific to each school, are mandatory
We haven't yet forgotten how our parents got us ready for school. Trips to school bazaars and stores, buying stacks of notebooks and new sports clothes… And how do they get schoolchildren ready in foreign countries today?
UNITED STATES
Lana, a resident of the US state of Florida, told us what it's like to be the parent of an American schoolchild.
Ordinary (non-millionaire) American parents look forward to the first day of school with great impatience. It is now that they will start to live, because they won’t have to pay for kindergarten, the average cost of which for one child is about $1000 and not always with three meals a day. And so, as a rule, on one of the first days of September (it varies by state and even by district), a five-year-old goes to kindergarten – an analogue of the preparatory group in Ukrainian kindergartens, but located in an elementary school building. No assemblies, no parades, no songs or festive clothes. Everything looks very ordinary. In first grade, one teacher teaches all subjects except art, music, and physical education, which take place once or twice a week.
Many educational institutions have mandatory school uniforms, but this is more often the case for private schools. In public schools, there is a corporate dress code, for example, blue or green top, black bottom. The cost of school uniforms varies – $5–7 for a T-shirt and about $10 for pants, $7 for a skirt and shorts. Plus shoes and a backpack. In total, around $200 to outfit a first-grader.
Each school sends out letters about exactly what needs to be purchased for a particular grade. For a first-grader, the amount does not exceed $20–30; for older children, $50 for the entire year. Of course, you need to have certain supplies at home: a equipped study area, pens, pencils, paints, etc. There is a parent organization (like a parent committee), but participation requires paying a fee from $5 to $1500 per year. For that, the generous parent can expect to see their photo on the school façade.
School attendance must be regular, no skipping classes, as this is enshrined in law, which also stipulates that school education in the USA is free, i.e., paid for by the state. Parents can drive and pick up their child on their own, but each school has several buses. And although many people dislike school buses, they resort to their services because it’s very hard to find parking for a car before the start of the school day.
SOUTH ASIA
As Irina, a volunteer from Odesa who spent several months in Cambodia, said, children there first get acquainted with school on October 1. Vacation for local schoolchildren is from July 30 to September 30, right during the rainy season, which often ends in floods. Unlike Ukraine, the first day of school here is the same as the rest. No flowers, no cakes. But sometimes children give gifts to teachers. The range of presents is crazy, from towels and soap to juicers. It all depends on the wealth of the students and the prestige of the school.
“In Cambodia, about 40 years ago (before the coming to power of the Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot – Ed.), they gave all sorts of small items that could decorate the house. And everyone dreamed of being a teacher,” says Sotia Dal, a former teacher at a village school. “Back then, a teacher earned crazy money, today about $1000. Now the salary is around $100. Often, this money has to support the whole family.”
School education is free, but parents must buy textbooks at their own expense. The pleasure is not cheap – $30 for a set. Many don’t have that kind of money, so they just photocopy the textbooks. “Teachers are forced to copy textbooks and then sell them to the children,” continues Sotia.
Getting a child ready for school in Cambodia costs $10–20 – notebooks, pencils, ruler, eraser, pens, and even a backpack and school uniform (white shirts and blue shorts and skirts). For example, a used backpack can be bought for just half a dollar.
The school itself, in our view, doesn’t really look like a school: in cities, these are solid stone buildings, and in villages, several bamboo huts on stilts. Each hut is one classroom, and each has its own name – “Tomato”, “Corn”. Each classroom has desks, a board that can be written on with markers, and in the corner, a chest with books, drawings, maps, pens.
True, in classes for the youngest – five-year-old students – there are no desks. They usually sit directly on the floor around the teacher or the blackboard and write right on the floor – lying down, in lotus position, or however they settle. A lot of educational materials are brought to such schools by volunteers from Europe and the USA.
Children in Sri Lanka also have their own September 1. They go to school when their Ukrainian peers are finishing up New Year’s Olivier salad at home – on the first Monday of January. Unlike the Cambodian children, these kids are luckier. The government provides them with both school uniforms and textbooks. Parents buy the other supplies themselves – this costs $10–15.
Going to school with flowers is not customary; sometimes children bring teachers a small gift – for example, chocolate. By the way, for little Sri Lankans too, the first day of school is not a holiday. Only a formal assembly, like in Cambodia, and a fiery speech from the principal urging them to study.
JAPAN
Japanese first-graders start school at age six in early April, when the cherry blossoms begin to bloom (there is no specific day). Here they believe that spring is the beginning of a new life, so it’s the right time to start learning. Japanese children study without breaks for five months, and then they get the entire month of August off, because at this time due to high humidity in Japan it’s very stuffy, and all residents of the country find this period hard to bear. The next vacation for Japanese students is in December.
There are no nationwide textbooks in Japan. In the first grade, students must study the state language (including calligraphy), arithmetic, music, art, life skills, and labor. Some private schools additionally teach religious studies, secular ethics, and health science. The corresponding textbooks, available in a wide range, are chosen by the educational committees of municipal districts or school administration. Wearing uniforms and cleaning the school by students is mandatory.
Elementary schools in Japan are named after the areas where they are located, not by numbers. For example, Kaichi Elementary School is the oldest elementary school in Japan, first opening its doors in 1876. Schools are divided into municipal and private.
The uniqueness of Japanese schools is that class composition changes annually, children are mixed, which allows students to develop sociability. Also, the entire teaching staff changes every year.
INDIA
In India, the school year begins in spring, in April. Indian toddlers as young as three start attending so-called play schools, where they spend 2–3 hours playing and learning letters. At age 4, young Indians go to first grade.
Only men teach in Indian schools. Mathematics is considered the most revered subject, perhaps that's why the country is famous for programmers. Each school has its own special uniform that children must wear constantly.
Long holidays in India are declared during the hottest months – May and June. Lessons resume at the beginning of July when the heat subsides a bit.
Irina KOVALCHUK.
Based on materials from Segodnya.ua.