<p>Now, hopefully this doesn't turn into a flame war of such (although most of the users on these forums are American, anyways :p)</p>
<p>But, as objective as I can be, I remember reading somewhere that us as Canadians have more rigorous and tougher classes than many schools in the US?</p>
<p>Does anyone have any proof/news articles/research to prove or disapprove this idea? </p>
<p>Also, for those students who live in Ontario (including me), the high schools here used to have 5 school years, but they were just recently (about 2-3 years ago) shortened to 4 school years, so now the information that we learn is packed into 4 years instead of 5 like before. Just an interesting fact :D</p>
<p>Canada is officially bilingual, but French is most common in Quebec and some of the Maritimes. Living in the Prairies, I have never had to use French outside of the classroom, whereas if I were living in Quebec, I would most likely be using it everyday.</p>
<p>I'm not sure if the Canadian system is different than the American system. I know that the curriculums are different (I know each province has a different curriculum but I'm guessing that they are pretty similar). I've heard (please correct me if I'm wrong) that in Canada, in social studies/history, students spend a lot of time learning about other countries/cultures whereas in the US, students are mostly learning about the US.</p>
<p>I've also read on these forums that Canadian schools tend to use less multiple choice questions and mark harder than American schools (I think I read somewhere that in Canada, anything higher than 85% is an A, while in the US, it's 90% or 95%)</p>
<p>Out of curiosity, do you know how many provinces have a 4 year high school? I live in Alberta and we have 3 years of junior high and 3 years of senior high school.</p>
<p>American schools are obviously harder; whereas the canadian grading system is corrupted.(I mean, c'mon since when is an 80% and A?) We have to 'work' and study our butts off just to make the 'grade'. In my opinion, Canada needs to get real.</p>
<p>Could you explain how the the Canadian system is corrupted? One could argue that the US has some serious grade inflation.</p>
<p>It's hard to say which system is harder simply by comparing what the minimum percentage is for an A. There a lot of factors to take into consideration (ie. how hard an assignment is marked, type of test: long answer vs. multiple choice, etc.). Maybe another way (slightly more accurate) to compare is by comparing the number of people with an overall average of, say, 90%.</p>
<p>Please note that I am only speaking from my own limited experiences. I have only experienced the Canadian system. Any knowledge I have of the American system is second-hand knowledge.</p>
<p>To be more clear, it would 'suck' real bad if you had a 98% and received an 'A', whereas someone who obtained an 80% and still got an 'A'. Here in the states, an 'A' would equal a 4.0 GPA, whereas in Canada they do percentages, right?</p>
<p>As someone who has studied in both Canada and the US, this is what I have to say...</p>
<p>It's difficult to compare the two curriculums. For one thing, the quality of education varies widely in the United States. For example, at my school (in Massachussetts), it's incredibly hard to get straight A's. There's no homework/fluffy grades and certainly no extra credit. Everything comes from tests/papers. Usually, only 1 or 2 people even get A- in AP classes. However, on AP tests, we generally get 5's. </p>
<p>My friend in Oklahoma, on the other hand, is getting straight A/A+ in her AP classes....she tells me that this is common in her school. They have open note quizzes and lots of fluffy grades. But when it comes to AP tests, her school average is only around a 3. So it's hard to generalize and say that the US is better than Canada or vice versa. </p>
<p>But I can say that in our school, we have several Canadian (Toronto) students. They used to be in "gifted programs", but now they are barely making the grades in honors (not even AP) classes. So....for my school...I'd say it's at least as hard if not harder than those Canadian schools.</p>
<p>Hmm that is interesting it could be true, on the other hand Canada and the USA are very similar to each other so it shouldn't be much different. Unlike some countries in Asia, where someone can be learning grade 9 math in grade 6 depending on where they live. I remember when I lived in Asia my class was learning long division and then when I moved to Canada my new class was learning 3x4=12. </p>
<p>Anyway (I apologize I am a scatter brain) I would be surprised if MOST Canadian students had it harder or easier then MOST American students.
An 80% for an A, if only it were that easy, at my school an 80% is considered a B at most, in most classes.</p>
<p>I think it's true (limited knowledge of this though) that Americans tend to learn a lot more about themselves than the rest of the world. At my high school, the required sequence of courses gives all students a "global" history class, but it doesn't seem to do much good. My friend could not pick out RUSSIA on a map in TENTH GRADE. She pointed to LITHUANIA. She later revealed that she didn't know what to call people from Denmark, Denmarkish? And people from the Netherlands, aren't THEY called Danes? Sorry for all the caps but I just find this frightening. I can see why a lot of people think that all Americans are fat and ignorant. It's a stereotype, yes, but it also happens to be true some of the time. I know this forum is abundant with exceptions :) and I am glad. lol</p>
<p>At my school, students on an advanced track will learn more world history and since we have better teachers, we pick up a greater perspective. Personally, I try to stay informed about everywhere, not just here. Reading the BBC news online, I notice that they have a lot more articles about global and/or foreign issues than American networks do. It's sad because I'll read a piece about some small aspect of American politics in a French or German magazine and then my mother won't even know who Gerhard Schroeder is. It may have something to do with the fact that we are the superpower and hence feel free to just... nevermind. Yeahhh. I'll stop now.</p>
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<p>Other than that, I don't know about the differences between Canadian and American schools. That an 80% is an A doesn't really mean anything unless the standards are the same in both countries, and evidently they aren't.</p>
<p>I think that there's just a lot of grade inflation in the states. in canada, 80% means honor roll, and yes we do learn a lot of stuuff about other countries. The thing is, the american system is better because it nurtures student's ability to analyze and observe all aspects of life whether it be political, social, or just personal. Some of the posts I've read from american cc'ers are the most enlightening and interesting discussions I've had with any teenager or even college kid. In canada, kids like this are incredibly rare. Conversing on cc is meaningful, whereas in canada insight esp political wise is shallow. They don't have a true understanding of government nor are they given the opportunity to understand and from an opinion. then again, canada sucks because its socialist and kids don't have potential anyway. there are very little exception to what i have just said.</p>
<p>Most international comparisons of achievement in education will put Canadian public schools in the upper middle range and US public schools in the bottom third of the range. At the top end the best Canadian schools eg, UTS, Lakefield are very good, probably not quite as good as Exeter but close. The bottom end does not seem to go down as low as in the US but there are lots of really terrible schools, as there are in every country. It is just that in the US these seem to constitute 30% of the total number of schools and is a national disgrace.</p>
<p>Within Canadian provinces, as between US states,there is a vast spread between the worst and the best. The whole point of SAT and AP is to normalize school achievement. An A by itself doesn't mean very much, the real question is what percentage of a class gets an A. With current grade inflation the A's are crowded into the 90% range and it is extremely difficult to distinguish between who is really good and who is only above average. It was not always thus especially not in Canada where marking prior to 1970 followed the British tradition of considering 75 % to be a "First". Under this systerm about 2% of the graduating class would have an average of 80% or higher and be considered really distinguished students. With the collapse of the Canadian Honours degree system in 1970, standards in Canada are roughly the same as at the better state universities in the US. Whereas under the old system a Toronto Honours degree would easily be as good as a degree from Harvard, right now it would be more in the range of Michigan or Wisconsin, maybe Cornell.</p>
<p>Good God! I live in Ontario and I find that getting a 95+ average is a peice of cake! It's so much easier here, well at least for me. Mabey it has to do with the curriculums but most kids in my school have 80+ averages, we're coasting!</p>
<p>mexican_dude: Your logic, which characterizes much of the logic running through other parts of this thread, is greatly flawed.</p>
<p>That in Canada anything over 80% constitutes an "A" --- whereas, in the States, it's 90, (right?) --- tells us nothing about the differences between the two educational systems. As someone else pointed out, you need more statistical information to analyze that difference... ie: what is the mean percentages in each country, what is the standard deviation, what are the percentge/percentile relationships, etc etc... Ultimately, percentages and marks are just numbers, which are completely relative. They indicate nothing of the actual educational system and its difficulty.</p>
<p>Also, someone said something about not being able do distinguish between, say, an 82% and a 98%, because both are an "A". But, in Canada, there is actually a much higher level of distinguishing between small percentage differences than in the States, because it is the exact percentages that are used in university admissions, not the "GPA" or grade system. So universities in Canada see the difference between an 84% and an 85%, whereas in the States, they do not.</p>
<p>seth blue: you asserted that the US system did a better job at engendering political / philosophical / personal insight in students; and, you supported this by how smart everyone seems to be on CC. Common man. That's weak. Not only is that pretty bad support for a large---and, superficially, perceptive---assertion, but CC is not an accurate representation of the average American student. This forum is filled with the cream of the crop, and that includes some Canadians as well.</p>
<p>Assuming that the same kind of students who would be shooting for Queen's in Canada would be shooting for Princeton in the US and that there are no distortions due to affirmative Action, the American students would have a much tougher row to hoe than the comparable Canadian. Not only would they be faced with a different distribution rquirement that makes it almost mandatory to take advanced mathematics in order to get into Princeton, they have to do so under conditions where the average calibre of the public school in which they find themselves is somewhat lower than the school where a comparable student in Canada would find him/herself. The worst kept secret in American education is that the average standard of public education is so low. The best american schools are probably the best in the world but the average school--where 99% of the american students go-- is very mediocre indeed. Of course the collapse of intellectual standards in the public school hits intelligent students from vulnerable families the hardest. The rich can always buy their way out of the public system, the vulnerable can not. While it is not impossible to get an education in the public system, if you knew how to do it, you probably wouldn't need it.</p>