Adolescenti americani: il sistema scolastico degli Stati Uniti e la vita dei teenager

Questo appunto di Inglese riguarda gli adolescenti americani. Il primo paragrafo descrive il sistema scolastico americano illustrando le tre fasi che lo costituiscono (“elementary school”, “secondary school” e “higher education”); il secondo paragrafo si concentra sulla vita e i gusti dei teenager americani, mentre l’ultimo paragrafo tratta l’uso dei social media da parte degli adolescenti negli Stati Uniti.

American teenagers: school life

School life for young people in America begins at six years old when they start elementary school, which lasts for six years.

During these years children are taught by one teacher and stay with him/her for most of the day. They learn basic mathematics, reading, writing, social studies and science. Some days a week they go to another classroom to learn art, music and physical education. After elementary school, pupils continue on to secondary school, which also lasts for six years. Secondary school consists of two phases: the first is middle school, also called junior high school, and the second is high school. In secondary school, students study more subjects and have many different teachers to teach them. They attend more advanced classes in math, English, science and history; in addition, they begin taking the so-called “electives”, which are classes focused on specific skills or subjects of interest, such as journalism, creative writing, astronomy, theatre and dance. Students generally choose their electives following their interests and what they plan to study at university. The school year typically runs from early September until May or June and is divided into semesters. Most school adopt a semester system made up of two sessions: fall (September to December) and spring (January to May). Some school adopt the quarter system, which is made up of three sessions: fall (September to December), winter (January to March) and spring (March to May or June). In American schools, sports are very important; all schools have their own sports teams and compete in different tournaments. Cheerleading is also very popular in American schools. This is a sport that uses organized routines of dance and jumps to direct the spectators to cheer on sports teams at games and matches. Cheerleaders wear bright attractive costumes in the same colors as the sports team they are supporting. When teenagers finish high school at eighteen years old, many go on to study at university. University study is known as higher education. The most famous university in the USA is Harvard, which is one of the best universities in the world. When students apply to university, they are assessed on their graduating Grade Point Average (GPA), which ranks their performance using a scale from 0 to 4. In addition, most universities require applicants to take one or both tests: the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) or the American College Test (ACT); students take these tests while they are still in high school. Teenagers who do not go to university find a job or an apprenticeship.

Life of American teenagers

American teenagers enjoy the same things as teenagers in other countries, such as going out with their friends, watching films, going to parties and listening to the latest music. A very popular kind of party for teenagers in the US is the “house party”. This is when a large group of people all meet at someone's house, play loud music and drink alcohol all night long. It is one of the most popular ways of socializing. The most popular types of music among American teens are R&B and hip-hop; many teenagers listen to this kind of music on their I-pods and MP3 players. These types of music use lots of slang and rhyme and can be hard for adults to understand!

Social media and American teenagers

. According to 2018 data, 90% of American teens aged 13-17 have used social media. 75% have at least one active social media profile, and 51% percent visit at least one social media site daily. Two thirds of teenagers have their own devices with internet capabilities. On average, teens are online almost nine hours a day, excluding time for homework. The most popular social media platforms among this age group are YouTube, TikTok and Instagram. There are positive aspects but also potential risks involved in the use of social media. Potential advantages include:

• Communicating with friends and connecting with users from around the world;
• Meeting new people with the same or similar interests;
• Sharing art work and music with other people;
• Expressing themselves;
• Building social networks;
• Learning about a variety of subjects.

include:

• Exposure to harmful or inappropriate content and dangerous people;
• Cyber bullying;
• Sharing too much personal information;
• Interference with sleep, homework and other activities;
• Exposure to unrealistic views of other people’s lives.

Of course, the risks are related to how much social media teenagers use.