5 Things I Learned Hosting a Korean Exchange Student

Five South Korean students and one teacher came to Shenandoah Valley Governor’s School from January 16-26 as part of an exchange student program. The students stayed with American families, all with students who attend the Governor’s School. The Korean guests are from Korea Science Academy, which is associated with Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology.

This is a personal reflection on what I, as a high school student and journalist, learned from hosting Gun Kuk.

1.  Just a few words go a long way.

One of my passions, aside from Journalism, is definitely learning languages. I hope that my language skills can one day help me to be able to interview all sorts of people, and help me better understand any situations on which I report. I have Korean friends, and they helped me learn some Korean. It has been very fun to talk to all of the students about the Korean words I know and let them teach me even more words and phrases.

The first night Gun was with us, we picked him up after his 14-hour direct flight from Seoul and a long day of traveling around D.C., and we were all extremely tired. We took him to the local grocery store just to get some snacks and any kinds of food he may want to have. I was happy to take him around, help explain American junk food… When I took him down the isle with Ramen (which is pronounced “Ramyeon” in Korean, and is as common in Korea as Easy-Mac is in America), I explained how American Ramen is nothing like it is in Korea (sadly). He smiled when I said “ramyeon” correctly (pronounced "rahm-yoon"). It’s fun to know small things about other cultures.

My family was honored to take the Korean teacher, Mr. Hahn, to dinner one night. We went to the Depot Grille in downtown Staunton, and had a wonderful time discussing South Korean culture and American culture. I was able to talk to Mr. Hahn more about my language studies, and also his past work in research and teaching Chemistry. It was a wonderful conversation, a wonderful meal, and an honor to have that time to spend with him.

2. Food is universal.

A really fun thing to learn about, no matter what culture interests you, is food. Food is something easy to talk about, it’s a way to explore different places very easily, and it gives insight into history and traditions like nothing else. Among other things, one thing that Gun and I were first able to talk about most was comparing Korean, American, and even Japanese food. There are a lot of small, but distinct differences.

One of the most fun nights we had was with Krysta and Dong Jin. After a day of exploring downtown Staunton and Gypsy Hill Park (and Gun beating all of us his first time bowling), we went back to Krysta’s house and Gun and Dong Jin prepared a wonderful Korean meal.

Kuchoelpan- This is pickled radish that you wrap around various vegetables of our choice (the wrap can look like a taco)

Pulgogi- meat prepared in a sauce of many flavors (pear included)

Chabche- noodles with vegetables mixed in- it tastes similar to lo mein at Chinese restaurants

Rice

Kimchi- pickled cabbage with peppers and other spices

3. People will always surprise you.

After spending a week with Gun, I thought I knew him pretty well. I know he lives in Seoul, studies in Busan, loves Chemistry and Biology and Computer programming (especially with Java). I know he doesn’t like cheese, but definitely likes noodles with soy sauce, and prefers to eat with chopsticks at every opportunity he gets. He’s nervous about his English speaking at times, but is very excited to talk whenever he can, and loves to watch all sorts of British and Korean sit-coms (we watched some together). I had no idea that he had traveled around the world as much as he has. He went to Italy, France, and Switzerland with his sisters, and went to Nepal with his school for volunteer work. I couldn’t believe all the stories he could tell about working in Nepal and trying to order food in France while not speaking any French. As a want-to-be world traveler, I couldn’t help but enjoy the stories, but I was also always surprised. I never knew that he had been so many places. It just goes to show that nothing is always as it seems. No matter how well you could know a person, there’s always something that will surprise you.

4. Common ground is not so hard to find.

Krysta had to warn the Korean students about me before they met me. In the weeks leading up to the arrival of the Korean students, I had been practicing my Korean language skills, reading up on Korea, and helping Krysta prepare “Welcome KSA (Korea Science Academy)” posters. I was my normal self- jumpy and excited (maybe a little overwhelmingly so). Krysta told the Korean students that I would try to speak Korean with them, and would always be interested in what they had to teach me.

I have to admit, it has been worth it- reading long books about Korean culture and understanding the intricacies of the language. I have a better understanding of where they’re coming from, and it’s helped me to show them a little more about this area, and maybe relate it to what they’re used to. Gun and I could talk about Seoul and malls and style and even sit-coms that we both enjoy. My understanding of Korea gave us something to talk about, and helped to start more conversations about comparing American and Korean life.

5. Teenagers are teenagers, no matter where you go.

Anywhere in the world, teenagers are all the same. Dong Jin (another Korean student), Gun, Megan (a senior at Shenandoah Valley Governor's School), Krysta (Dong Jin's host, and a senior) and I all went to Gypsy Hill Park to enjoy an afternoon. There’s no better way to see how similar people are than to bring everyone to a playground and then to walk around the duck pond. Dong Jin told us stories about ducks that he despised because they ate his hot dogs when he was little, and he even joined in when Krysta and Megan were throwing small snowballs at each other.  He joins in with sarcasm and laughter, and we all enjoyed our bowling game. It was Gun’s first game and he beat all of us!

The world is a huge place, with all different kinds of people and all different kinds of languages and customs and religions. We’re not as different as politicians make us out to be. We always have differences, but the world is always a better place when people come together.

Shenandoah Valley Governor’s School was honored by the presence of the Korean students and teacher, Mr. Hahn, over the past week and a half. Their contributions to our school and their kindness will never be forgotten. We hope to have shown them a little bit of our life, just as they have shown so much to us.

캄사합니다. Thank you.

STEM Program at Shenandoah Valley Governor's School = (Math x Science + Computers) + (Fun x Hard Work)

Wilson Memorial High School Junior Grace Day describes Shenandoah Valley Governor's School as "not a cakewalk, but if you can do the work, it's the greatest place to be."

She's not the only one that feels this way. "I would be a fool not to teach at this place," says Mr. Irons, who teaches Technology and Dual-Enrollment Calculus (through Blue Ridge Community College). "I've taught here for 13 years, and I've loved every minute."

According to the Virginia Department of Education, there are currently 19 year-long governor's schools across the state. At the Shenandoah Valley Governor's School, located in Fishersville, students come from all local high schools in Augusta County and the city schools of Staunton and Waynesboro. 200 students attend SVGS and are part of one of two programs- Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM, for short) or Arts and Humanities (with a focus on Visual Arts or Theater). Students normally apply during their sophomore year in high school, and are encouraged to visit the school during a Spend-a-Day. The prospective student is partnered with a junior that is currently taking classes at the Governor's School, and they spend their time in that student's classes- meeting faculty and students and getting an atmosphere for the school.

Students have opportunities at the Governor's School that go beyond those offered anywhere else. “The technology allows explorations not easily done elsewhere,” says Mr. Klein, environmental chemistry teacher. Opportunities include the electric vehicle team, the FIRST Robotics team, research projects that are submitted to the Virginia Junior Academy of Science (if a student chooses to take the research class), taking college level classes including Dual-Enrollment Physics through James Madison University, hosting students from Romania and South Korea (with also the opportunity to visit schools in these countries), and many more.

But what sets Governor's School apart from local high schools? Ms. Jensen, a graduate from Stuarts Draft High School and SVGS and now current AP Calculus and Pre-Calculus teacher, explained her views.

"From an administrative standpoint, it doesn't seem different, but when you put the students together, it makes something special happen. They flourish in a way they can't otherwise. (...) Students go way beyond what they learn at their other high schools, and [when I was a student] I liked being around people who cared about school. (...) [Students here] are like flowers under a big forest (normal school conditions). When you take away the trees, they can bloom."

What do current students say?

“I like how I can go to track meets and I know kids from other schools there, not just the kids from Gap. (…) We’re independent, but they [the teachers] will help a lot.” –Lauren Sheriden, Buffalo Gap High School

“Enjoyable…The place for future presidents and the people who will find the cure for cancer.” –Ashley Gartin, Riverheads High School

“People told me it was hard and I didn’t believe them. Be prepared. Soldier on.” –Kathleen Veer, Stuarts Draft High School

What do the teachers want you to know about SVGS?

“Put bright people under pressure, and creative things happen. (…) Creative things happen all the time. That’s what this place is all about- bright, passionate people coming together.” -Mr. O’Neill, Physics teacher

“It’s an awesome opportunity, even for me as a teacher. The students that come are focused and interested.” -Mr. Mustachio, Engineering, AP Computer Science teacher and Network administrator

For more information about Shenandoah Valley Governor's School, visit their website.

Issue Focus: Darfur

Genocide is a word that gets thrown around a lot in history classes and the news, and sometimes literature classes if you're reading The Diary of Anne Frank. Simply defined, it is "the deliberate and systematic killing of a racial, political, or cultural group." (Merriam-Webster Online)

Darfur is a region located in Southern Sudan, which is located in Africa. It is home to 6 million people and 100 tribes. In 1989, a military coup overthrew the government, led by the National Islamic Front. The fight over land has become a fight between Arab tribes and African farmers. Even though all of them are Muslim (practicing the religion of Islam), the tribes declare that the farmers cannot possibly be true Muslims because they have much darker skin. The group that goes in to villages and attacks is called the Janjaweed, a word that means "devils on horseback". They go through towns killing and then burning, but also raping women and selling children as slaves.

The astounding numbers speak for themselves. The United Nations reports that as of 2008, 300,000 people have been killed, and 2.5 million people are displaced from their homeland.

An interesting new development has occurred in trying to help the situation. Actor George Clooney co-founded an organization called Not On My Watch (along with Matt Damon, Brad Pitt, and others), which is helping to promote an effort using Google Imaging and UN Satellites to monitor Darfur and look at areas that have frequent violence to see all that they can, in an effort to help prevent violence in the region.

As teenagers, we're about to go into a world that has a lot of different problems: problems with health (such as HIV/AIDS), international issues (such as the North and South Korean conflict), and human issues (such as the violence associated with drug trafficking and genocide). It's our job to stay informed with what is happening in the world, and to find what we care about, then make a difference. This is one major situation that needs the world's attention.



For more information:
www.satsentinel.org
www.savedarfur.org
www.notonmywatchproject.org
http://unamid.unmissions.org/

For what you can do to help:
www.savedarfur.org
http://www.satsentinel.org/take_action
http://notonourwatchproject.org/what_you_can_do

References for this article:
"Darfur Now", a film by Warner Independent Pictures and Participant Productions
www.savedarfur.org
www.merriamwebster.org
http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/africa/12/29/sudan.vote.satellite/index.html?iref=allsearch

See George Clooney on CNN discussing Darfur:
http://www.cnn.com/video/?/video/bestoftv/2011/01/04/exp.situationroom.video.clooney.cnn

A note from your writer and editor

I deeply apologize for not following through on my duty to keep you updated the last few months. I'm working on some new stories (yes- stories, as in plural) for my readers. I hope you will forgive my absense, and let's get ready for the new year.

Happy New Year, everyone!

~staunTEENS