In past couple weeks, Lakewood has been home for 27 German Exchange students. These students are living with families in Lakewood and have been shadowing Lakewood High Schools students.
Sitting down and talking with one of these students is something really inquire and provides an opportunity to really see how other people live. Much of the conversation among these students are the many differences between the school system in United States and the school system in Germany. Meggie Eysoldt, an exchange student on the trip, said, “The biggest difference is the teachers. They are more strict in Germany. School is a lot more serious here in the US.” She continued by saying that classes are also a lot easier as well. Meggie continued naming some of the differences by saying, “We don’t have as many computers like the Mac books in your school. We also can not eat during class, we just have our lunch breaks.”
The school schedule in Germany is different every day. They use a block schedule, which means they don’t have the same classes every day. In addition, there is no sports associated with school system in Germany. The only sport offered is the, American equivalent, gym class. If one wants to play a sport they must sign up for activities through the city. After paying a fee, students and residents can join sports like basketball, football, cheer leading, and soccer.
Aside from her experiences at high school, Meggie talked about one of her favorite things she was able to do while visiting. She said that meeting Ian Harding, an actor in pretty little lairs, was the most exiting thing she did. She was able to meet him at a movie festival in Chicago.
The exchange officially ends on Friday April 15th. It will be sad to see them go, but the footprint they leave on Lakewood High School will hopefully encourage many students to try to take part in something similar if they get a chance. The opportunity is definitely worth it!