By Dr Ratan Bhattacharjee
The day I arrived at Washington Dulles International Airport in mid-June, the sky was a little cloudy, though the sun was hot. The weather felt like an Indian summer, and Renee’s presence in the air-conditioned Honda City provided a cool breeze. After three long years of separation, we finally met our four-year-old granddaughter. We had left her as a four-month-old baby when I came to the US on an invitation as an International Visiting Faculty before Covid. She went to India when she was just a one-year-old. She was already a good talker with clear American pronunciation and intonation. Throughout the two-hour car journey from the airport to Richmond, the capital city of Virginia, Renee excitedly shared her favourite pink dress while chewing on an Indian pink lollipop we got for her. She enthusiastically pointed out the green trees on both sides of the street, making us feel as if we were on our way to Dooars or Lava Lolegaon for a summer vacation. My mind was still attached to Kolkata and the farewell moment with my little friend Samadrita Swastika, Dr Kamal Sarkar, and Manash, who had helped us immensely in reaching the airport with our six big suitcases.
The invitation from Dr Catherine Ingrassia, Chair of English and Dean of Humanities at VCU, to join Virginia Commonwealth University as an Affiliate Faculty piqued my interest in the American education system. I had been previously invited twice by American universities in New Jersey. During my visits, I met Professor Talinn Grigor at Princeton University, an authority in Iranian Sculpture history. I also interacted with many distinguished luminaries at Fairleigh Dickinson, where I was invited as an International Visiting Faculty to deliver lectures on Whitman, Dreiser, and F. Scott Fitzgerald. The wonderful Frank Giovatto Library at Fairleigh Dickinson left me with unforgettable memories of a treasure trove of books. At Virginia Commonwealth University, I was given a spacious office space in the beautiful James Branch Cabell Library, which houses an excellent collection of books on Afro-American studies.
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Renee is now attending a play school, and my daughter told me about her education and food habits. I was surprised to learn that they are paying over one lakh Indian rupees for her pre-kindergarten play school. The education system in America can be quite expensive. During our short chat, we discussed various issues related to the education system.
In the United States, education is provided in both public and private schools, as well as through homeschooling. State governments set educational standards for K-12 public school systems and supervise them, usually through a board of regents, state colleges, and universities. Private schools have the freedom to determine their own curriculum and staffing policies, with voluntary accreditation available through independent regional accreditation authorities. However, some state regulations may apply. Education is compulsory between ages five and eight to sixteen and eighteen, depending on the state, and can be satisfied in public or state-certified private schools or through an approved homeschool program.
Compulsory education is divided into three levels: Elementary, Middle or Junior, and High school. Post-secondary education includes college, which awards the first tertiary degree, and graduate school. Many top-ranked universities in the world are in the United States, such as Harvard, Princeton, MIT, Yale, and many more. American universities offer a variety of programs, including undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees.
As an Affiliate Faculty at VCU, I was impressed by the spacious office provided to me in the James Branch Cabell Library, which demonstrated the university’s commitment to supporting research work. The US education system has seen significant developments over the years, including the Elementary and Secondary Act (ESEA) in 1965, which provided funds for primary and secondary education as part of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s War on Poverty. In 1975, the Education for All Handicapped Children Act established funding for special education in schools.
American higher education typically involves attending a college or university, with universities offering bachelor’s, master’s, professional, or doctorate degrees. Colleges primarily award bachelor’s degrees. Community and junior colleges are public institutions that offer a range of educational services and usually last two years. The average annual base salary for public school teachers in the US was $61,600 in 2020-21, with significant variations from state to state.
Education is mandatory until age 16 (18 in some states), and students attend 12 grades of study over 12 calendar years before graduating and earning a diploma. Annual undergraduate tuition varies widely from state to state, with additional fees applied. Graduate program tuition can range from $15,000 to as high as $50,000 depending on the type of school and program. The Higher Education Amendments of 1972 made changes to Pell Grants, and the Education for All Handicapped Children Act in 1975 established funding for special education. President Barack Obama signed legislation in December 2015, replacing ‘No Child Left Behind’ with the ‘Every Student Succeeds Act.’
During the pandemic, some colleges and universities faced the risk of permanent closure. Interestingly, during the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, more than 20,000 students arrived in America on student visas.
Overall, the American education system offers a diverse range of educational opportunities, with universities and colleges providing various programs to meet different needs and interests. (The author is affiliate faculty in English at Virginia Commonwealth University Richmond who can be reached at profratanbhattacharjee@gmail.com)
