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Rotary News
Taiwanese student slips into life at West De Pere
Taiwanese student slips into life at West De Pere Exchange program aims to show 'we're all the same' By Patti Zarling pzarling@greenbaypressgazette.com DE PERE ?Duded up in a cowboy hat and neck kerchief recently, Lee Lue looked as though he may have taken the idea of fitting in with Americans a little too far. The get-up, though, was to show spirit for West De Pere High School's homecoming celebration. Homecoming isn't a rite of passage in his native Taiwan, nor is football, for that matter. "We do baseball or basketball," said Lue, 17. "There's really no football or soccer. We don't have the space for that." But Lue, who arrived about a month ago, is now a senior at West De Pere High School and learning teenage customs ?right down to the occasional snooze in study hall. He's part of the Rotary Club's Youth Exchange program, and he's learning quickly about a teen's way of life in the Midwest. For one, people here are more friendly than he expected. "Someone told me Americans are cold, but everyone here is so nice," he said. "I've made lots of friends." And there's much more room. "There's lots of trees and parks, everything is more spread out," Lue said. "I live in a bigger city where there's more people and big buildings." He lives with his grandmother in an apartment on the 13th floor, he said. "Here I haven't seen a building more than a few stories high." Speaking the language hasn't been a big issue, other than reading novels for his American literature class. "In my school in Taiwan, we speak Chinese in the morning and English in the afternoon," Lue said. He attends a private school, which requires students to speak English. In most other schools, students just learn to read and write the language. "We have to do a lot of reading for my literature class, and it takes me longer than other kids," he said. "I have to look up some of the words." Lue is among several foreign exchange students in Northeastern Wisconsin. Experts say such programs offer foreign students a change to learn about American culture and allow local teenagers to learn that people are basically the same regardless of where they're from. West De Pere has one other exchange student this year, and De Pere High School has three. The Green Bay School District has 16 exchange students attending its four high schools. Ron Skow of the Green Bay West Rotary Club, which is sponsoring Lue, said the club pays for school expenses, while the host family takes students in as part of the household. But students and their families are required to pick up the flight costs and any extras. Students typically apply to be part of the program, Skow said, and clubs sponsor both foreign students coming to the states and Americans visiting abroad. There's also a summer program for kids who'd like to experience a foreign country but aren't able to dedicate a year. "It's helped students from many different countries to develop an interest in U.S. culture," Skow said. "And it helps host families learn about other cultures. "It shows people we're all the same." Other than the language, Lue said school here is fun, and slightly more relaxed. Students at his school in Taiwan attend class from 7:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. and wear uniforms. They spend all of that time in the same classroom with about 50 or so other students. Teachers move from room to room. He likes that students here have a choice about which classes to sign up for. He's taking French, choir, American lit and a Web site class. This is the first time Lue has been to the United States, other than a visit to Hawaii. In Green Bay, he's looking forward to something completely foreign to him ?snow. Read rest of the story here: from RotaryBingo.spaces.live.com Click to Open Web Page |
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