Exchange Student is just like any other teenager

by Maureen Latta, Journal Editor

Katharina Anderwald is sometimes asked whether people in her country wear dresses like the characters in The Sound of Music or Sissi, a movie about an Austrian princess.

"But they're fun questions," said the exchange student from Graz, Austria. "I think they're really interested in my culture."

Anderwald, 16, has been a Grade 11 student at Humboldt Collegiate Institute since March. She came here after spending August to March at a French immersion school in Regina.

"When you're from a different culture, they expect you to be really different."

But once people get to know her, except for her accent they would never know she's a foreigner, she said.

She listens to the same music and watches the same movies as her Canadian classmates. Bruce Willis and Meg Ryan are her favourite actors and Matchbox 20 is her favourite band.

"They're all the same, teenagers. No matter where," she said.

She noted that American movies take longer to appear in Austria because they have to be dubbed first.

"The way people teach is a bit different," she said. "I think students are really independent here. They do lots of work on their own. At home (the teachers) give lots of lectures."

Students here study five subjects, while in Austria they study 12. And the Austrian school day starts at 8 a.m. and ends at 1:30 p.m..

Sports are another difference, she said. There is no rugby or baseball where she's from. European handball is popular, a game like soccer but played with the hands.

She also noticed the young age of drivers here. In Austria the minimum driving age is 18.

Anderwald was placed in Humboldt by AFS (American Field Services). Although the community was chosen for her, she's glad she came to Humboldt.

She said the community is friendly and older people are eager to speak German with her.

The exchange student lived with the Oosman family while in Humboldt. Joan Oosman is program assistant for AFS, also know as Interculture Canada.

Oosman said Anderwald, her seventh exchange student in about 10 years, was a delight to have in her home.

She is trying to find more host families in the area and has had only positive experiences with the students.

"It's been an incredible experience," said Oosman. "The students were wonderful ambassadors for their countries."

A former exchange student from the Faroe Islands who stayed with Oosman in 1990 recently visited her again, this time with her new baby. Oosman said it was like seeing a grandchild.

Oosman's daughter Sarah went to Europe after Grade 12 and she was able to stay all over Europe with families she'd met through the exchanges.

"It's enriched our lives tremendously because the exchange is with a culture and we've had all sorts of cultures into our home and we've shared our culture with them."

Students become part of the family, participating in household chores. They bring their own pocket money and the host family is responsible for feeding them.

"They (host families) don't have to buy them gifts or anything like that. They just have to look after them like their own," Oosman said.

AFS has so far arranged for one student to come in August. A boy from Finland will stay at the home of Doug and Donelda Still.

The exchange organisation also needs volunteers to help out in other ways and Oosman invites anyone itnerested to contact her.

"They don't have to host. There's lots of volunteer positions open. If they're interested in other cultures and young people, it's a wonderful volunteer job to have."

Now that school is over, Anderwald plans to travel with her family in western Canada until August 12. Her sister, Maria, arrived two weeks ago and her brother, mother and father will join them.