Serious question about US education from an Australian,do you get taught about the rest of the world at school

Question

Some of the questions on Y!A are difficult to believe in the extreme eg if I can't afford to fly how long would it take to drive to Australia?

So....do you get taught about other countries in your education system? Would the average student be able to name all the Scandanavian countries?

Thanks for all the serious answers I'm finding it very interesting - keep them coming and yes I did look up the Miss South Carolina vid on youtube. I'm guessing she ain't the typical american student; at least we both hope she isn't.

Answer 1

Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark. And I did that without looking it up.

Geography is one of my better subjects, however we don't have a geography class in our High school. It will vary a lot based on the school, but at our school we have classes in which we learn about different countries of a certain region. We are required to take either Early European (I believe that goes from the fall of west Rome 'till the French Revolution) and Modern European (French Revolution 'till the end of WWII), and one of either African, Middle Eastern, or Asian (which refers to the Orient) Civics. Other than that most middle schools have 1 or 2 years of geography in which you learn very little (well, atleast that was my experience).

I'm betting Baby Poots graduated atleast 15 years ago, and hasn't been back to a high school since. Most coaches now teach PE classes or Sports Medicine or something similar, and not actual academic subjects. That used to happen (or atleast that's what is portrayed in movies) back 15-25 years ago, however today it's certainly not like that for any except the smallest high schools where they have no other choice.

Answer 2

In New York state, all students are required to take 2 years of global history (9th and 10th grades). This class covers an overview of much of the world, excluding the US, Canada and Australia. (I can understand why the US isn't included, but leaving out Canada and Australia may be a time thing. ) However, children should know the continents in elementary school, making your example even more disturbing.
As for the actual knowledge Americans have, it's just scary. Only 1 out of every five Americans can find the US on a map of the world. I wouldn't be surprised if we have troops who don't know where Afghanistan and Iraq are.
So, would the average student be able to name all the Scandinavian countries? No way! Personally, based on my grades , SATscores, etc., I may be in the top 1% of all 12th graders in terms of intelligence, but I couldn't tell you with confidence. My best guess would be Norway, Sweden, and Finland. (After looking it up, I realize that I left out Denmark and Iceland.)

In short, Americans do learn about other countries, but not nearly at the level as the rest of the world.

Answer 3

Well, anyone who thinks they can drive to Australia from the US is just plain stupid...

By the end of high school, an average American student would know where (and some basic history of) major countries of the world, like England, France, Germany, China, and Russia. But no, no one would know much about the Scandanavian countries, or south American countries or the Middle East.

I'm a senior in high school, and the history/geography that was taught the most to me was the history of my state (California), and the history/government of the US. Sad but true– not much emphasis is put on stuff that doesn't relate to America.

Answer 4

The average student couldn't name all the states of their own great union, much less other countries!

I can tell you honestly, in my public school i wasn't taught anything about other countries, cultures or history. I took state history, and American history. I was slated for world history next, but I read the textbook and moved on. If I hadn't gone to a chartered boarding school, I would have missed out on a lot. The fact is that the culture dismisses the importance of other cultures, so even if it were taught, there would be very few who would be interested enough to actually retain the knowledge. Teens aren't shown enough to be interested in politics, history, culture, and most American teens aren't politically active, they haven't had to face the impact of other cultures from bordering countries (hell, half of them think Canada is part of the US, the other half think Mexico is just the place where you go on your senior trip to get drunk)

Anyway, just the opinion of one fairly patriotic American, who just shakes her head like any exasperated mother would.

Answer 5

The "average" American student can't even tell you about their own community, much less about the rest of the world!

Most "geography" teachers in the United States are coaches of basketball, football, baseball, track, and other sports. They don't care whether their students know anything about the world--only if they can dunk" a ball, kick a field goal, pass for 30 yards, or run the 100 yard dash in less than 20 seconds! These same people teach Driver's Ed!

Answer 6

Some do, some don't. Yahoo isn't the best place to assess a countries intellect..My high school kids are taking Global Humanities and probably could name a lot more than those countries-- but they don't play on Yahoo either as they are too busy doing homework! There are a lot of really gifted kids with better things to do than be on this forum!
I enjoy reading stupid questions as a form of relaxing!
I also know that all Australians don't wrestle crocodiles, drink beer and live in the bush! :)

Answer 7

Unfortunately, no the average educational system for an average student does not include much material regarding other countries. We generally are taught about other countries through their historic interactions w/ the U.S.
So this includes: England (Independence), France (French Quarter and Deal), and Mexico (Southwestern States Deal).