Global Connections
An amazing way to learn about another part of the world is to spend time with people living there. This year, Mason High School has the good fortune of adding five teenagers from abroad on its roster.
The students are from Norway, Sweden, Finland, Italy and Brazil. While chatting with these very charming young adults recently, I found them eager to share their cultural backgrounds and stories regarding daily life in their native lands. They were quick to express their appreciation for being able to spend a year in the United States and open to exposure to new adventures. For example, they mentioned going to some university sporting and music events, snowmobiling, and traveling to such places as Chicago and North Carolina.
While they all admitted missing friends back home, they said they were learning a lot in their classes. They are having fun participating in our sports’ programs, going to school events, such as Homecoming, and taking part in music and athletic events. They also enjoy engaging in host family outings, such as camping, fishing and traveling up north.
They expressed an appreciation for the support they are receiving from faculty, noting they have far less homework this year and admitting the courses here are less rigorous. They are finding, however, many of the challenges in school, such as phone and attendance policies, are similar to those in their home countries.
They have found they needed to adjust to the passing time between classes as at home, there is significantly more time between classes and most schools have an “open” campus as the result. They’ve also been struck by the amount of open land space, thus limiting their ability to walk to where they need to go.
While our student visitors have only been here for a couple of months, and luckily for us they will be here until June, they are eager to meet new people and broaden their life experiences.
