School Levels

2.1 Describe two ways in which teaching in an elementary school differs from teaching in a middle school, junior high, or high school.

• Elementary teachers are responsible for teaching all the content areas, whereas middle school, junior high, and high school teachers all teach specific content areas. Elementary classes also have more flexibility on the amount of time spent on specific content areas, whereas the other three all have classroom schedules that are set ahead of time (e.g. 55 minute class periods).

2.2 What are four differences between effective middle schools and junior highs?

• Middle schools organize teachers and students into interdisciplinary teams, strive to create and maintain long-term teacher-student relationships, use interactive teaching strategies, and eliminate activities that emphasize developmental differences. Junior highs don't really do any of this - they're just like mini high schools.

2.3 What is a comprehensive high school? How does a comprehensive high school differ from a vocational high school?

• A comprehensive high school is a secondary school that aims to meet the needs of all the students through a diverse curriculum selection that organizes students into separate tracks along with sports, clubs, and other extracurricular activities. Vocational high schools are more geared towards getting students a job as soon as they graduate. They learn specific job skills in these programs and attend their "home" high schools for academic or general education courses.