Foreign Exchange Program Returns to AHS
By Saarvi Deshwal
PHOTOGRAPHER
A group of students from South Korea is currently visiting AHS from January 19 to 30, and a group of students from Vietnam will visit from February 3 to 13.
The Global Pathways program at AHS works with the Academy at Harvard Square (TAHS) to make the exchange program possible. The organization collaborates with the non-profit Educational Divide Reform (EDR) to promote global education, with a focus on Asian students learning English. One of the major goals of Global Pathways is to foster cultural and academic diversity through enriching experiences.
“In Global Pathways, one of the components is to have an immersive experience, whether that’s by travel or looking at more in-house opportunities like this,” said Global Pathways advisor Rebecca D’Alise. “So we’ve been trying to encourage our students in Global Pathways to host these students so they can have an immersive experience that way.”
Since early November, students have had the opportunity to register to host exchange students from South Korea and Vietnam in their homes, regardless of whether they are a part of Global Pathways or not. It’s an excellent opportunity for students from other countries to learn what it’s like to be a student in the United States. It’s also a chance for AHS students to explore and learn about different cultures. “You just never know how things are different until you have to turn and explain something to them that is normal for everyone else around you,” said librarian Mary Coombs, “and now you know that this is a special thing, and we didn’t know it was special.”
The program hopes for AHS students to be able to share their lifestyles with those coming from abroad because “that’s what this program’s all about; experiencing those cultural differences, finding similarities, finding differences, and celebrating those differences. I only see upsides,” commented D’Alise.
This is also an opportunity for exchange students to practice their English language skills, and for host families to get a chance to learn something new. “Part of learning a language is figuring out how to communicate when you don’t speak the same language,” added World Language program coordinator Peter Hall. “That is a critical part of the learning process. It sometimes includes gestures, rephrasing using simple language, drawing, or using technology apps for assistance.”
Sophomore Lana Huynh prepares a guest bedroom for her foreign exchange student. AHS families have been asked to host exchange students from South Korea and Vietnam.
The school is still looking for a few more families to host male students and the visiting teachers. Hosts are excited to show foreign exchange students what it’s like to be a student at Andover High and get to know them. “I’d love to have friends from [Vietnam],” shared sophomore Lana Huynh, who is hosting two Korean students in January and one Vietnamese student in February. “The only Vietnamese people I know are my family, and I’d love to get to know someone from there who has a different lifestyle from me. I was raised in the United States, so I’m excited to share our differences.”
Prior to COVID-19, students from foreign countries had come to AHS for many years. Another goal of Global Pathways was to get this program back up and running again after having been shut down for three years. This is the first year our school has been able to run the program since the pandemic, with students having come from Korea, China, and Vietnam in the past.
Global Pathways also hopes for similar opportunities to be available for AHS students in the upcoming years. Currently, Hall is running a trip to France for French students to have an experience where they’re living with somebody in the country and going to their high school. “I can’t imagine that this is not going to, in some way, gain some attraction,” said D’Alise. “Hopefully, in the next couple of years, we [will] see [a similar] exchange with South Korea and other host schools.”
