For Nathan Woerdman, one of the first surprises about coming to Kansas was discovering just how much of American life is exactly like the movies.
The 16-year-old junior from the Netherlands arrived in Iola on Aug. 11 as a foreign exchange student. He is learning what it is like to live in a small community, make new friends, participate in school activities and experience a culture he had previously learned about from a distance.
Woerdman is participating in the exchange program through International Cultural Exchange Services. Karie White and Jason Ellis are serving as his host parents.
His first impression of Iola High School is that it looks like a movie set. “They tell us that American high schools look like the ones from the movies. It’s actually true.”
But it’s inside the classroom that the differences really stand out.
BACK HOME, the classrooms tend to be uniform and relatively impersonal.
“They are just blank, all organized the same way,” he said.
At Iola High, Woerdman has found a more individualized environment.
At his school in the Netherlands, teachers are more likely to simply tell students what needs to be done. In Iola, he said, teachers are more willing to find additional ways to help students understand the material.
“The teachers here are way more supportive, saying, ‘If you can’t do this, then we can take the long way around,’” he said. “In my old school, they were more straightforward — like you need to do this, you need to have that. Here, they are working to make sure you know your stuff.”
He has also noticed a more personal relationship between students and teachers. “They are your friends and not just your teachers,” Woerdman said.
That welcoming atmosphere has made meeting people the easiest part of adjusting to life in a new country.
He was surprised by how enthusiastic students were when he first arrived. Rather than having to work hard to introduce himself and find his place, he has found classmates eager to meet him. “I don’t say it to be rude, but it surprised me how nice and fun people actually are,” he said. “The first time I walked in, people were just excited to meet me.”
The amount of homework has been another difference, although not necessarily in the way he expected. Woerdman anticipated American schools would assign more work. Instead, he has found that teachers often use class time to help students complete assignments and understand the material.
THAT FLEXIBILITY extends to extracurricular activities. Woerdman said he was surprised by how willing teachers are to work around students’ involvement in sports and other activities.
In the Netherlands, school and sports are more separate. At Iola High School, he has found that the school actively supports athletics and gives students time to participate.
