Yes it is Week 7

Here at LSE, all dates and assignments are discussed in terms of what week they are due. As it is now nearing the end of week 7, there are only 3 weeks left until Christmas vacation. For me, this will mean the end of the seemingly constant work and an opportunity to travel and relax.

Last week, I began tutoring at a local school as part of a volunteer scheme at LSE. What I find most interesting in the difference between the US and UK school system. In the US, school is only compulsory until the age of 16, but everyone is expected to complete high school and at least from my experience, attend college or what they would call here university. Regardless of your ability, high schools work hard to encourage everyone to at least apply to college. In the UK the situation is quite different. like in the US, school attendance is compulsory until 16, but for those deemed “incapable” formal schooling ends at 16. After 16, students will either attend a technical college or pursue their A levels for an additional two years. In technical colleges, students are taught practical trades while A levels provide students with preparation necessary to attend university. In the US, each child is told that if they work hard enough, university is within their reach. In the UK, lower achieving students are told that if they are lucky they will gain admittance into a good technical college. For the students that I tutor, a university education is not an achievable option. Already at the age of 14 or 15, these kids are told that they are not smart or motivated enough to have a professional career. In the two classes that I tutor in, both teachers basically explained to me that the students are destined for menial labor. Despite this expectation, many of the students I work with are in fact quite intelligent and motivated. Their only downfall lies in the fact that all of their parents were new immigrants to England at the time of their birth and few speak English at home. In the English class that I assist in, you can clearly tell that these students seldom hear English spoken outside of the classroom, even among friends, they converse in various languages. Interestingly enough, my second class, a math class, there is actually a teacher’s aide in the room who is responsible for providing Arabic translation to the students of the class. I am extremely fortunate to have been placed in this class seeing as I studied Arabic for two years at Hunter. I was even able to confuse them by answering a a question one asked in Arabic about the lesson.

Some trips I have gone on in the past few weeks:

Wales:

Tintun Abbey?

Castle

Paris:

Last weekend, when my parents came to visit we took the train to Paris for the weekend. We saw the Louvre, Notre Dame, Eiffel Tower, and even the Jewish neighborhood and museum in Paris.