American Values

What strikes you in the American society?

Do the American students work harder than the Danish students? Do they get much better qualifications?Who will get the good jobs in the future? The American or the Danish applicants? Or maybe they will meet - and work together in perfect harmony.

We have explored the differences in the American society and here are some of the reflections:


Elvis: What struck me the most, is how overprotective the parents are. We were planning a sleepover, but the parents wouldn't allow us to come over.

Emilie: I think that where they go to college is very important to both the kids and the parents. Almost all they think about is their grades and homework. But they are very sweet in America. there is a lot of pressure on the kids.

Elizabeth: They are very friendly.
College is one of their first priorities. therefore the kids have to do their best all the time.
Our food cultures are very different.

Emma, Albert, Caroline:
Inequality in the American society: many homeless people in Philadelphia
expensive school system
Connection between poverty and skin colour.
Contrast between the rich and the poor neighbourhoods
American values:
They are very polite
Ambitious
talkative

Victoria: How the American school system is different in every way.

Laura: I think that it was surprising that they freaked out about the snow and that they had to close the school because of it. The American girls also acted differently around the American boys and I think it is because they separate boys and girls in high school.

Sofie: The parents are overprotective. Everything is very focused and based on the school. The school plays a much bigger part in the American children's lives compared to Denmark. They do things the way they are used to and always do it.

Carl: It struck me how stressed the Americans were. Also how young people with interact with people of the opposite gender.

Performance in school. The sole reason my family were in the US was because of education (C)

Family values:
The biggest value of my family was happiness, but it was also important to get good grades and do well in school in general.  (V)

The mum in my family said that she wanted her kids to have good grades, be nice and practise on their sport.

They were all sweet and open. School was very important and sports, so they could get into college. It was also important to help each other, and that the kids have to fight for the American dream, but they need good luck to, just like their parents who were Republicans.

Josefine:
The were very polite and caring
Ambitious about their education
open- minded and  immature.

QUESTIONS for reflection and discussion:
However, we may ask the question: Are they academically doing better than we are?
Do they actually take their studies more seriously and get more out of their education than we do?
Does it make a difference when you have to pay in order to go to a good school?
Does it make you feel indifferent, when you receive free education? And what is the effect on us when we get the financial support from the Danish State?
Would it make us study harder, if we didn't take it all for granted?