Undoubtedly, education plays a critical role in our life. For one to achieve formal education in USA, individuals should graduate from both high school and college. Individuals take many years in school in USA to achieve the qualifications needed to work in various fields. The years spent in school are broken down into various levels, this include college and high school. In United States, people believe there are significant similarities and differences between high school and colleges. The similarities and differences of these levels of education are mostly educational and social.
Arguably, college and high school in USA are similar in various ways. In high school and college, individuals have the power and freedom to select the subjects of interest that she/he is comfortable to study. Perhaps, for individuals to perform well in these subjects of choice, a lot of time and effort should be dedicated for studies (Sowell 60).
Additionally, college is similar to high school through the subjects that one studies. Students in college, especially first and second years, learn the same things they learned in high school. Therefore, with the similarities in subjects, education classes are similar. In this situation, high school and college education leaves individuals with no option, but to attend classes, do home work, study hard as well as doing class work. Schwartz 57)
The social life of both high school and college are similar. In both cases, groups and clicks of individuals develop. Due to this similar scenario, individuals in both levels of education has the privilege to party together. In USA, fun among students is tremendously significant as it provides an opportunity to relax and be away from the class work.
According to Sowell, college and high school are remarkably different. They are differences are in various forms; hence the two levels of education lead to a clear picture of two complex worlds. For example, in high school individuals are strictly controlled and told on what to do. In college, there is a lot of free time; hence, one is free to do what pleases them, as well as living an independent live away from parents.
It is indeed clear that an individual must first go to high school before joining the college. Therefore, college provides a more technical and advanced level of education as compared to high school. This implies that the amount of work that individuals do in college is difficult and more cumbersome. Education is more general in high school; this means that, students are not given a wide variety of subjects to choose from. In college, students have numerous options to schools from in a certain field of specialization (Sowell 85).
In high school, life is most issues, and undertakings surround educational matters. Individuals in high school are still young; hence, they go to school to carry out their studies. In colleges, people go beyond their educational activities. College is a new experience, marked with unique aspects that define the life and future of individual (Schwartz 70). Mostly individuals participate in sports, in order to establish self-image and explore the chances of being successful.
Conclusively, even though college and high school varies in one way or another, they also have some aspects in common. It is a fact that high school gives one an opportunity to prepare for college life and education. The environments in colleges and high school are a period in once life full of new experiences and lessons to learn. College and high school are part of a new period in once life (Schwartz 97). In United States, college is just a mature and rebranded version of High School. To contrast and compare high school and college is probably unfair; this is because there are different things in which people do not delineate for themselves. The similarities and differences of college and High School are what individuals construct of it. The only best way to understand the similarities and differences between college and high school is through personal experience.
Work cited
Schwartz, B. The Teacher, the Student and stories: Images of Schools in contemporary America.
New York: Wiley. 2007
Sowell, T. Inside American Education. London: Free Press. 2003.
