Living In USA

Overview
Education is an important part of American life, and the wide variety of educational choices is sometimes difficult for visitors from other countries to understand. One-half of all the people in the country between the ages of 18 and 25 are enrolled in a college, university, or technical training institute. All boys and girls up to age 16 are required to go to school. There are three broad categories of education that serve this population: (1) public schools (including charter, magnet, and vocational schools), (2) private schools (including religious, boarding, day, Montessori, and Waldorf schools), and (3) home schooling.

Education here is intended for everyone. Schools are expected to meet the needs of every child, regardless of ability, and also the needs of society itself. This means that tax-supported public schools offer more than academic subjects. It surprises many people when they come here to find high schools offering such courses as typing, sewing, radio repair, computer programming, or driver training along with traditional academic subjects such as mathematics, history, and languages. Students choose from a large selection of courses, depending on state requirements, their interests, future goals, and level of ability. The underlying goal of American education is to develop every child to the utmost of his or her abilities and to give each one a sense of civic and community consciousness.

Because our population is so diverse, schools have traditionally played an important role in creating national unity and in "Americanizing" the millions of immigrants who have poured into this country. Schools also play an important role in the community, especially in small towns.

The American approach to teaching may seem unfamiliar to many, not only because it is informal, but also because there is less emphasis on learning facts than is true in the systems of many other countries. Instead, Americans try to teach their children to think for themselves, to analyze, to explore, to develop their own intellectual and creative abilities. Students spend much time learning how to use resource materials, libraries, and computers. Americans believe that if children are taught to reason and to research well, they will be able to find whatever facts they need throughout the rest of their lives. Knowing how to solve problems is considered more important than the accumulation of facts, which often grow obsolete.

Computers are used in many classrooms, frequently starting in kindergarten. If your child does not know how to use a computer, you can help him or her a great deal by providing computer lessons in advance, even while you are still in your own country. To find such classes after you arrive in the United States, consult the school or ask a local computer store where classes are given.

Naturally, when any family moves from one country to another, the question of schooling for their children is always an urgent one. Unless you are in a small town, there will be a variety of schools — public, parochial, or private; day or boarding; coeducational or all-boy/all-girl; traditional or experimental — available to you.

Live-in, domestic help is prohibitively expensive nowadays for all but the wealthiest Americans. More common forms of domestic help are (1) cleaning women, who come in once or twice a week or even every two weeks, and (2) baby-sitters, who stay with children when the parents go out. Otherwise, precooked and packaged foods, microwave ovens, no-iron fabrics, dishwashers, and washing machines — all time-and labor-saving devices — take the place of household help.

Household Cleaning or Party Help
The best way to find someone to clean your house is by asking people you know for recommendations. Start with your friends or your business acquaintances. This is a common request, and you need not feel embarrassed. Americans are accustomed to helping each other find domestic help, just as they are to recommending a doctor or dentist. People will ask their own domestic help if they have extra time, or if they know a relative or a friend who might be looking for work.

You can also ask the manager or superintendent of your apartment house. Perhaps there is someone already working in the building who wants more work. Sometimes the clerks at local laundries, grocery stores, pharmacies, or the like can give you suggestions. If you are known to be a regular customer, such people are likely to recommend people carefully.

If you cannot find anyone by word of mouth, there are other methods, though these tend to be less satisfactory. You can use a maid service, for example, listed in the Yellow Pages. Such services are more expensive; on the other hand, they assume responsibility for troublesome details like Social Security payments, insurance, and so on. There are also companies that offer housecleaning services. They send a team of well-equipped people in to clean your house on a weekly, biweekly, or monthly schedule, and to wash windows, clean rugs, and do similar heavy work at regular intervals — or once or twice a year, as you request. Housecleaning help is a growing industry in the United States, generally providing excellent services.

Another option is an employment agency, although it is likely to be expensive and is not preferred. There is no guarantee that the person will stay with you beyond the period covered by the usually high agency fee. Furthermore, you may have to interview many people. If you use this method, be sure to ask for references, both for the candidate and for the agency. Not every agency is dependable.

You can also advertise in the newspaper for a housecleaner. The difficulty with this method is that you know nothing about the people who may come to your house to be interviewed. If you do follow this method, check each reference very carefully before hiring, and don't try it unless your English is very good.

Finally, you can answer an advertisement. People who are looking for work frequently advertise their services. This way of finding help is particularly useful in smaller towns and rural areas where it is easier to find out about your potential employee. In larger towns and cities, be sure to interview carefully and check references thoroughly. Some of the best prospects are found in foreign language newspapers.

Many small catering companies specialize in residential parties. They may bring in food that has been prepared elsewhere or use your kitchen to do the preparation. You can ask the caterer to provide all the help your event needs, or you can limit it as you see fit and negotiate. If you go to a party you enjoy, ask the hosts if they hired a caterer or other help and for suggestions for your party. People are usually happy to make recommendations. You can also hire waitresses, cooks, bartenders, or butlers by the hour.

If you live in a town with a college or university, call its employment bureau. Some colleges hold extracurricular training programs in household skills or bartending to help students get jobs.