The student news site of Fraser High School

The Flash

The student news site of Fraser High School

The Flash

The student news site of Fraser High School

The Flash

An Exchange Student’s View

By Karoline Asdal

   This year, Fraser High School has welcomed six foreign exchange students from six different countries all over the world. KarolineI’m one of them.  My name is Karoline, and I’m from Norway, a small country in Northern Europe. I chose to move abroad, thousands of miles away from everything well-known and safe, to get an experience for life, to see how people live outside my own small hometown and to learn English.
   As an exchange student I get to know another culture, another language and another way of going to school.  Before I came here I had seen a bunch of American high school movies like Mean Girls and High School Musical. They have obviously given me some expectations, but how similar are the movies to real life, and in what ways is it different from the Norwegian high school?

   First, a significant difference is obviously the language. In Norway, we speak Norwegian (not Norwayan, which some people have suggested) and it is quite unlike English. I’ve taken lessons in English at school since I was 8, so I usually have no problem understanding what is said, but responding is a bit harder. Well, most of the times, people understand what I’m trying to say, sometimes after I’ve repeated it a couple of times and sometimes after I’ve gesticulated for a while. When I get stressed out or excited, I tend to start talking Norwegian, and people look at me like I’ve gone crazy. But altogether, I’m doing pretty well with the language part of exchange! 
   On the first day at Fraser, I stood in the hallway with a map, which confused me more than it did good, and absolutely no clue about where to go. Up until then I thought my school back home was big and crowded, but I was wrong. Very wrong. Every single time I feel pretty confident about where to find my classrooms, I seem to get lost. The other day I walked down the stairs and I headed towards room thirteen-hundred-and-something.  I turned left and was 100 % sure I was on the right way, but suddenly I found myself in the Fra’ Cafe at the complete opposite side of the school. For a moment I thought there were two of the cafes, but then I realized I was lost. Again.
   The lunch is pretty different in a lot of ways. We have one lunch, not four (tells you something about the size) and we absolutely don’t have nachos and pizza and chips every day! Back home we have warm food maybe once a weekThe cookies here are my favorite, they’re just too good. It may not be exactly good for your health, but it sure tastes delicious.
   An important part of school is friends. Back home I had lots, but when I came here I was suddenly by myself. It was a really weird feeling all alone when I stepped into the cafeteria and even weirder asking total strangers if I could eat lunch with them. They were really nice though! At least I didn’t eat my lunch at the restroom, which was what I expected after watching Mean Girls. I joined the swim team the second week at school, and even though I’m a pretty terrible swimmer, it’s a good way to meet people and make friends so I’m really glad I did that.
   A big difference from home is the school spirit. In Norway, it’s non-existing and everyone disappears from school as soon as the bell rings in the afternoon. Here, people stay to do sports and activities for hours. Also, every single student in this school seems to own about ten pieces of clothing with “Fraser High  School” or “I Love Fraser Ramblers” or something like that written all over it. I think I need to get hold of some of those to properly fit in. A lot of clubs and sports here go through the school, and I really like that part. Last weekend I went to my first American football game ever, and I didn’t know a single rule, I just applauded and cheered whenever everyone else did. I really enjoyed it though, and that part is definitively like in the movies!
   The worst part about American High School? Oh, that’s an easy one. The lockers, no doubt. You have no idea how many times I’ve been standing in front of my locker, turning it around and around like crazy. I’m always so sure I’m doing it perfectly correct, but it just won’t open. After trying about ten times I’m usually so afraid someone has seen my desperate attempt to reach my stuff inside the locker that I just walk away and pretend it wasn’t even my intention to open it.
   There are obviously lots of other things that are different. I’ve never called a teacher by anything else than their first name, I’ve never used a hall pass and I’ve never had dress codes. The language is different and people dress in a different way. Most parts of high school aren’t like the Hollywood-movies either, so this was pretty much totally unfamiliar to me when I started. It’s a lot to adjust to, but I really like it here at Fraser and I’m looking forward to the rest of my year!

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Asdal viewing a map of FHS.
Photo Credit: Josephine Morenski

 

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An Exchange Student’s View