What exactly do we mean when we talk about the US curriculum? It is something that is hard to pin down.
Most educational decision-making in the US takes place at state and district level, not at national level. And there is not a clear consensus across America on what children should learn: from arguments over school “book bans” in conservative states, to religious wranglings over issues such as creationism, it’s a mixed picture.
Nonetheless, around 50 million children are currently being educated in and there are around 1,700 American international schools around the world.
In comparison with England’s national curriculum, the system in US public schools is generally seen as more flexible, with more courses in the social sciences, interdisciplinary learning and opportunities for electives.
Learning is generally student-centred, and all students study a broad range of subjects right up until the end of high school.
What are the Common Core State Standards?
The are the closest thing that the US has to a national curriculum, given that education is largely left to individual states and local school districts.
Introduced in 2010, they were a national attempt to ensure consistent high-quality education across the 50 states by drawing up common standards in maths and English language, as well as for literacy in history, social studies, science and technical subjects.
While not dictating how things should be taught or the materials to be used, these benchmarks defined what each child should know and be able to do by the end of each grade of education from Kindergarten (equivalent to Reception in England) to Grade 12 (Year 13).
Adoption of the standards was linked to funding, and 45 of the states, plus Washington DC, took them up. Outlier states such as Texas rejected them and went their own way.
Within a short time, though, there was political opposition to the Common Core, with many believing that it was a heavy-handed mechanism of the federal government. Many states dropped the name Common Core and tweaked and rebranded their standards.
A showed 37 states running English standards the same as, or similar to, Common Core. In maths, 41 states were running something similar.
Alongside Common Core there are also the US-wide “Next Generation Science Standards”, introduced in 2013. By 2023, they had been adopted in 20 states plus Washington DC. They were rejected by some conservative states, which objected to the inclusion of topics such as man-made climate change and evolution.
How are US students assessed?
Alongside state standards, the American system is characterised by the widespread use of standardised testing, and public schools are required by law to measure student performance in maths, reading and science (private schools are not).
Children in Grades 3 to 8 (ages 8-9 to 13-14) are tested annually. Elsewhere in the system, high schoolers take college (university) entrance exams such as the SAT (Scholastic Assessment Test) and ACT (American College Testing).
To graduate with a basic High School Diploma, students usually have to take between 18 and 24 credits from a broad base of subjects.
Higher performing students may take Advanced Placement (AP) tests, which demonstrate academic rigour and strengthen their college application.
Are the Common Core State Standards used in international schools?
International schools using an American-style curriculum are the third most common type of international school behind British curriculum and International Baccalaureate (IB) schools.
However, given that Common Core is a set of benchmarks for students to reach that does not dictate pedagogy or content, there is a lot of flexibility in how international schools with US connections structure their own curricula.
International school leader Dr Nigel Winnard, currently interim head of an American school in Qatar, explains: “American curriculum schools overseas can choose Common Core Standards, AERO standards [ - a set of benchmarks aligned with Common Core designed for US overseas schools], one or more of the International Baccalaureate programmes, Advance Placement courses or a blend of those elements selected to meet their context and community needs.”
He adds: “Common Core and the Next Generation Science Standards aren’t a pedagogy or philosophy: they’re a set of standards and outcomes. The International Baccalaureate programmes are different. They are more skills-oriented, much more grounded in a pedagogical approach to learning centred on inquiry.
“It is common to find American schools overseas embracing the philosophy, principles and practices of the IB programmes.”
However, Winnard explains that ultimately “schools populate their curriculum with the standards that make most sense for their mission”.
TASIS - The American School in England, in Surrey, has adapted the AERO standards in line with its “mission of developing global citizens - principled and open-minded”, says curriculum coordinator Erica Moore.
She explains that the standards allow schools to be flexible in what they do, teaching with reference to the local currency, instead of US currency, for example, or reading global literature.
Testing and university admissions
From Kindergarten to Grade 8, TASIS students take “MAP” (Measures of Academic Progress) standardised tests every year.
Further up the school, students can work towards the American high school diploma including Advance Placement courses for university entry, normal honours classes aligned with AERO standards or a mixture of the two. The school also offers the IB Diploma programme.
On average, around 40 per cent of students at TASIS go on to US universities, while 40 per cent go to UK higher education and 20 per cent go on to study elsewhere.
Head of admissions Joshua Clark says: “Universities have become very sophisticated: there are enough students coming from around the world with IB, AP, you can get in with any of these big qualifications. We tell families, ‘The curriculum isn’t determining where you’re going.’”
