Hearing what other people do during the holidays is always great to hear. Hearing what people from other countries do is even more interesting. Talking with students from Germany was no exception to this belief of mine. After hearing what they hd to say on the activities they do for fun during the winter time I can't say I wasn't surprised; in a good way. No matter where you go in the world children and teens of modern societies all have the same essence or root that make them what they are. It is actually quite ironic how even 6,380 kilometers away teens are still teens.
More Serious Section
The European schooling system has always fascinated me; growing up a first generation Cypriot American and continuously going to Cyprus during the summer time, I have always understood the difference between the schooling our countries have. America is an English speaking country that has become the universal best language for tourism, making the ability to speak English an asset. For countries that do not have English as a native language, it is very common for students take English classes. In Cyprus they start learning English in the first-second grade and continue up until college; I expected it to be similar in Germany for this reason as well. This also applies to many other languages, as the German students, schools there have a high focus on languages. Their teacher who knew upward of five languages is evident of how the schooling system is conducted in Europe, including Germany.
The video conference was light hearted and very fun; however I personally wanted to know more about how they feel about the political conflict that goes on around them. I believe that young Americans have become politically opinionated earlier than most generations have so far. Though we discussed it briefly, I wondered if they currently feel stressed about by current politics or feel somewhat involved. However I'm happy I didn't get to ask these questions since it allows me to be more excited for our next Video Conference with the students Germany.
Future Question Section (Serious and Fun):
Do you believe Germany is somewhat becoming the melting pot of Europe?
Do you feel stressed or affected by current political strife around you?
When do you believe you started forming your own political opinions, unaffected by your family?
Do you believe German society is more quiet about their problems or more open than most European nations?
Do they call the German Shepards, German Shepards in Germany?
Do you follow meme culture of America, and if not what is German meme culture like?
How many films that you watch are in German; are there big movies frequently released in the German language? (In reference to sub-tiled/dubbed films)
Is K-Pop and Korean culture big in German youth as it America, or at all?
How often do you guys drink or go to clubs?
Side Notes: The teacher's greek was pretty good; I have never heard a German speak Greek and his accent was was also satisfactory. He probably speaks it better than me.