A lot of young people do an exchange year. These students are living with a host family for six months or even the year. They come from all over the world to learn another language and culture. This year you have some exchange students in your school.
Doing an exchange year is not easy. It is an important decision to take with a lot of consequences.
“We believe it’s a unique opportunity for her to have an extraordinary experience,” Mrs. Magali Dupont, an exchange student’s mom said. “It takes a lot of independence and courage to take on such a challenge.”
During his exchange year the student is not allowed to see his family or his friends. This rule exists because the point of this experience is to live another life. If it’s complicated for the student, it’s also for his family, his parents. The feelings about that year can be contradictory for both the family and the student.
“It’s a mix of excitement and worry,” Mrs. Dupont said. “However, we can’t help but wonder at every moment what she’s doing and how she’s feeling.”
With technology it is easier to give some news than 25 years ago. However, not to be all the time on his phone talking with his family and his friends is important. Otherwise, it’s going to be complicated to integrate and enjoy from the start. During that year you need to learn to be more self-confident because it is different from what you’re used to so the capability to adapt and to trust yourself is probably something important.
The exchange student’s parents are far away, and it probably will be hard to ask for some help from them with the time difference. He will therefore confide in his host family when in need for help or reassurance.
Ideally the new family will do its best to welcome the student as a new child for the year and to take care of him. The exchange students want to live another life for a year and discover a new culture, so the host family should live their life as usual to show them.
“I was fascinated by different cultures at that point,” Mrs. Aimee Ellis, who did an exchange year 30 years ago said. “And I decided that was I wanted to do from like the time I was like 12. So, I made that happen.”
A lot of people decide to do an exchange or just a gap year. Doing that between high school and college is the most popular. It is also possible to have that adventure during your high school years. This experience allows you to discover a new culture, language, country but the young also come back grown up, more mature and independent.
Most of the time the exchange student enjoys that year, but it can happen that some need to change host families. Living with a family for a year helps forge ties and at the end of the year the young keep with their host family. Some people who did an exchange year keep in contact with them all their life and for the lucky ones they even meet them again.
“I go back to see [the family] all the time now,” Mrs. Ellis said.
An exchange year is not an easy adventure but it’s the experience of one’s life.
