BY JENNIFER KOHLHEPP
Staff Writer
ALLENTOWN – Everything in America is bigger, from the food portions to the vehicles to the houses.
That’s the impression 20 students from Lycée du Noordover, a school in Grande-Synthe near Dunkirk in northern France, got when they came to America for the first time during a weeklong stay with host families in and around Allentown.
Allentown High School (AHS) partnered with Lycée du Noordover in a student-exchange program in 1988 when a student from Grande-Synthe came to America. According to AHS French teacher Barbara Lehman, Philipe Bourden, the student from France, finished his senior year in Allentown. His father, Lycée du Noordover, was the director of Grande-Synthe at that time and decided to establish an exchange between the two schools.
Since then, approximately 20 AHS students visit Grande-Synthe every other year, and during the alternate years, French students come to the United States and visit AHS. The students in the exchange program not only attend school in their chosen foreign country, but they also go sightseeing and live with host families.
When the AHS students returned from France last year, they told the Examiner that people do everyday things differently on the other side of the world. They specifically noted differences in meals, saying that French mothers cook all the family meals, which could feature up to nine courses. They also said French families always eat together and that the food in France is less greasy.
AHS students said French schools seem to take academics more seriously than do American schools and also place less emphasis on sports. They considered the French more efficient in terms of the way they live and noted that cars, homes and appliances are all smaller in France.
Before departing for home on March 23, the French students spoke about their experiences in America. Although they shared similarities with the American students – including the same tastes in music and fashion – they noted many differences between the two cultures as well.
Whereas both schools are similar in size – with AHS’ student population of about 1,200 students and Lycée du Noordover’s at about 1,400 – the French school is physically smaller and has fewer supplies. French classrooms do not have storage space, and all materials must be brought to class. Instructors, who have a teaching table rather than a desk, actually purchase the books for themselves and their pupils. Students are required to buy their own supplies, which even includes paper of all kinds. In France, counties, not boards of education, are in charge of budgeting funding for the schools, according to Corine Jacqueline, one of the teachers who accompanied the students to America.
Pauline Vandeworstyne, 18, said students in her school are not allowed to eat or drink in class, nor are they permitted to enter or exit lessons at their leisure.
Antoine Leberger, 18, said students in his school have one to two hours for lunch and can go home to eat, whereas AHS students have to scarf down their lunch in a cafeteria in less than an hour.
Clementine Bonnaillie, 17, said that in France, students attend school from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., while AHS’ school hours are from 7:20 a.m. to 2 p.m. Due to this type of scheduling, Jacqueline added that French students do not have time for the after-school jobs that many American students have.
Marie-Lise Choteau, 17, spoke about the difference in teacher-student relationships.
“Here [in America] the students joke and play around with their teachers, but in France we can’t,” she said. “It is a kind of respect, and we are in the place only to work, not to joke.”
French students get a two-week vacation every seven weeks and also have a summer vacation that is comparable to that of American students. However, French students fall subject to four-hour Saturday exams at the whims of their teachers, according to Leberger.
Johan Carnel, 17, explained that the French students were surprised to see so many American students wearing summer clothes in the spring.
“In school in France in March, we’re all wearing scarves and layers, but in America it’s flip-flops, shorts and miniskirts,” he said.
The French are famous for their chic. However, Vandeworstyne does not think that French students have a better sense of style than their American counterparts.
“I think we have the same sense of style, but there are little differences because we don’t live on the same continent,” she said.
The Meggitt family hosted Vandeworstyne. According to Jane Meggitt, mother of AHS student Diana Meggitt, shopaholics know no language barriers.
“She [Vandeworstyne] and Diana managed to visit every mall in central New Jersey. No joke – Pauline wanted a pair of Converse sneakers that are much cheaper here than in Europe, and they went all over to find them in her size.”
Vandeworstyne legally became an adult during her visit to America, as she celebrated her 18th birthday the day after she arrived. That means when she returns to France, she will be able to drive a car by herself.
“In France, we can drive at 16 years old but only with parents,” she said. “At 18, we can drive alone or with friends.”
Justine Lamer, 17, noted that the younger driving age in America could be why American students seem more independent from their families.
Choteau explained, “American families are very nice, but they are not as together as families in France. In America, family members eat separately and watch TV separately. In France, we eat with our parents and watch TV with them.”
Whereas the American students found French food to be less greasy, Lamer said, “Here they have lots of fast food and take-away [take-out] meals, but in France we are not used to that every day.”
Leberger said, “I liked the food here but not too much. It is too fast to eat and maybe too greasy.”
Bonnaillie added that people in France are accustomed to eating dinner at 7 p.m. or 8 p.m. while people in America eat dinner at 5 p.m. or 6 p.m.
Many of the students said they would like to return to America to visit and discover more about its people and culture, but none of them said they would ultimately like to live in the United States because they would not want to permanently leave their families.
“We have always lived in France, and we have our habits,” Carnel said. “We would adapt, but it would not be easy. The French have a way of life that is very different.”
Lycée du Noordover teacher Laurent Dalmasso said that during the trip French students got to learn more about America than what is portrayed by the media in France.
“Their vision of America has been limited, but they got to see that America is a bit more diverse than the foreign policy of the United States. They got to consider more parts of America and see that the government is only one part and that they do not hear about the other half of the country.”
Leberger said the most memorable experience of his trip was their visit to Times Square in New York City.
“When we were in the bus, we didn’t see the buildings that were very big,” Leberger said. “When we got out of the bus, we saw that they were very great, very enormous.”
Carnel called Manhattan “a beautiful city.” He also said he enjoyed the many farms in the Allentown area as well as their visit to Washington, D.C., where students remarked at how impressive the White House is.
Before he came to the United States, Carnel said he thought it would be a beautiful country.
“Now I know it’s more beautiful than I thought,” he said.
Carnel said the students are very sad to have to leave their American host families but happy to be returning to their own families.
Lehman said the exchange program has been successful for both schools. She noted that many students who have participated in the program keep in touch with their host families. Some have even traveled back and forth between countries to see each other again, she said.
“We’ve had children of former exchange students named after their host students,” she said. “Some students are the godmothers and godfathers of children of former exchange students. We even had one couple marry.”
Vandeworstyne may see the AHS student she stayed with again as soon as the summer.
Meggitt said her daughter wants to go to France this summer as a graduation present, so the two may very well hook up again.