HIGH SCHOOLS, The truth behind the clichés

Do Tv series auch as "Glee" show high school life as it really is? 
Does everyone drive tos school?
Are there strict social groups?
"Today" talked to students across America to find out!

There ares strict social groups

YES, BUT... On Tva and film, Us high school kids are always divided into rigid social categories, as distinct as different animals in Africa's Seregeti National Park. Among males, the sporty "jocks" are kings, attacking the "nerds", "geeks" and "Goths" at random. For girls, the "Populars" decide who is in and out, hte girl at the top of the social tree being the "Queen Bee".
Except... it's not really like that. "There are cliques, but it's typically not as extreme as what's in the movies," says Heidi from California. "They do make friends among each other. It's not like the 'jocks' and "nerds" are sworn enemies for life ." Jack from Kansas agrees: "TV and movies have perpetuated a negative idea that high school is split inot sectors. "When I changed my path from letterman -jacket-wearing jock to theatre/ journalism nerd, my football firends didn't care. No one gave me crap."
Acording to a student at a high school in San Jose, California, "there are not the types ofcliques that are portrayed in movies. Usually, one can freely move from one group to another and, in my experience of high school, there are no "Queen Bees", but some people belive that ther are!"

"TV AND MOVIES HAVE PERPETUATED A NEGATIVE IDEA THAT HIGH SCHOOL IS SPLIT INTO SECTORS"
Jack from Kansas

Everyone has their own locker

NO. It looks great - a corridor full of big lockers where you can put  your things. No carrying around a heavy bag all day ... Sadly, however, we couldn't find any schools that have the big gym-style lockers you see on TV. "Small" and "tiny" were the words most often used by students all over with atuck if you wanted to put it in your locker," complains one student from Massachusetts. But at least these ones have lockers. That is only the case in about half of schools. "Some shcools don't allow them because kids can hide contraband in them," explains Heidi from California. Oh, well...

"SOME SHCOOLS DON'T HAVE LOCKERS BECAUSE KIDS CAN HIDE CONTRABAND IN THEM"
Heidi form California

Everyone has a car and drives to school

NO. The legal driving age is 16 in the USA, but as for those scenes we always see of kids driving themselves to school... it's the exception, not the norm. "Most people get rides from adults or walk," says a student from California. "Those who have cars do not necessarily have to be rich, but it definitely shows depending on the type of car."

Cheerleaders are the most poppular girls in school

YES, BUT... "When I was in high school, there was an unwritten rule that the Homecoming King and Queen had to be a football player and a cheerleader," says Mary, and Ohio journalist. But in her daughter's school, hte king and queen were members of the theatre club. "Theatre kids are popular now," her daughter says, something Mary says would have been "inconceivable" in her day.
"Jocks and cheerleaders are not at the top of the social tree," agrees a California student, but "there are some who believe that they are".
OK, but do they all go around in their uniforms, like they do in Glee? Apparently not: uniforms only come out for game days. And at least one school in California has banned them from classrooms: "Cheeks are hanging out," says Traci Williams, thes school principal. "We don't want (the girls) bending over."

"THEATRE KIDS ARE POPULAR NOW"
An Ohio student says

Canteen food is great

NO. Television scenes of high school students enjoying a fabulous lunch outside under the California sunshine do not, apparently, give a real idea of the average high shcool dining experience.
"Please don't mention school lunces or I'll... oh no! Too late! The horrible falshbacks!" says one New Yorker about his school days. "We had meatballs that literally bouced. People would bounce them back and forth to each other."
"Our school lunc was awful and nobody even had time for it during our 16-minute break," says Kristina form Florida. "Helloooo, vendin machine! Pepsi and a bag of chips!" 
The traditional solution for many US families is for students to take their own food to school with them in a luchbox.

"WE HAD MEATBALLS THAT LITERALLY BOUNCED"
A New York student 

Everyone akes fun of the Glee culb

NO. "I have never once seen someone get abused for being in the glee club," says a California student. "Instead, peoples praise the glee club and actually enjoy listening to them!"

"People don't throw slushies in our faces!" agrees an Illinois studentin a glee club. But that is not the most shocking difference betweenTV and rallity: "We almost never get to sing cool pop songs. I definitely enjoy it when the cas og Glee bursts our with Train or Rihannna, but we generally stick to 15th-century madrigals

High school spors are really important

YES. This is especially true for the schools, because they're a vital suorce of revenue through ticket sales, merchandising and, for the teams, TV righst. "Football games can be a GIG deal in many schools," says Heidi from California. "It's a big deal for the town too. It depends on the size of the place."

To generate ethusiasm and sell tickets, the whole school gathers for a "pep rally" several hours before the game. "A pep rally is when all the cheerleaders get together and put on a ig show," explains Sam from Arizona. "They have really cool moutines and have audience join in."

"All the students come together to cheer on a sports team before a big game," adds Kenize from Hawaii. "If you're lucky, the teachers will have to do something too!"

"ALL THE STUDENTS COME TOGETHER TO  CHEER ON A SPORTS TEAM BEFORE A BIG GAME"

Kenize from Hawaii

You have to be on the team to wear a letter jacket

NO. Apart from a cheearleader uniform, nothing symblizes US high schools like the jackets emblazoned with the initials of the school's name. On TV, only members of the football team seem to wear them but, in right to ewar one... If they buy it!

Classes are fun and iteractive

YES. The US apporach to teaching is radically different from teaching in a French high school. "There is usually a lot of discussion in class," says a student from California. "In English, the class talks in a group about the novel they are reading and discusses the philosophical aspects of it. Teachers are very supportive of studets and help them until they understand the material. They do not feel like they will be judged by their teacher of crticized, and it helps immensely as the student can learn at his or her own pace."

There is a lot of space and greenery

YES. BUT, as always, there are exceptions: "Most of my classes were in a converted bomb shelter," says Kristina from Florida. "The chool had been built just after the Cuban Missile Crisis. They turned the shelter ino additional classrooms. No windows, just fluorescent lights and despair." So ... that's a "no" then?

"THERE IS USUALLY A LOT OF DISCUSSION IN CLASS"
A California studetn