World as Classroom

交換教育起源于12世紀(jì)初，歐洲國家為促進(jìn)國與國之間的文化交流，互派學(xué)生到對方國家進(jìn)行學(xué)習(xí)，學(xué)生不僅可以學(xué)習(xí)當(dāng)?shù)卣Z言、了解文化、擷取當(dāng)?shù)亟逃A，更重要的是可以養(yǎng)成獨(dú)立、成熟、有國際觀的領(lǐng)袖特質(zhì)。國際交換學(xué)生計劃的盛行，是在二戰(zhàn)結(jié)束后，當(dāng)時的歐洲面臨恢復(fù)社會秩序、重振經(jīng)濟(jì)和重塑各國關(guān)系的要求，互相派遣學(xué)生進(jìn)入他國學(xué)習(xí)和生活就成為一種最佳的交流渠道。特別是美國，美國國會允許國際學(xué)生入讀美國中學(xué)學(xué)習(xí)與體驗(yàn)優(yōu)質(zhì)生活，加強(qiáng)相互了解與溝通，把美國教育的優(yōu)點(diǎn)及社區(qū)觀念的價值帶給國際學(xué)生。

世界頭號外交官、現(xiàn)任聯(lián)合國秘書長潘基文，就是最早的美國高中交換生之一。潘基文1962年前往美國舊金山地區(qū)參加了為期1學(xué)年的交換生活，并在當(dāng)年國際學(xué)生交流活動中受到美國總統(tǒng)肯尼迪接見。這次美國之行徹底改變了潘基文的人生， 肯尼迪的瀟灑身影給他留下了深刻印象，令他下定決心投身外交界。

Story 1

When Sid Mathur first arrived in Budapest for a study abroad program in 2009， he was shocked by the empty streets， which called to mind old stereotypes he had of Eastern and Central Europe.

“It was crazy， because we were walking and it was empty， like dead，” he said， remembering his first Sunday afternoon wandering the Hungarian capital. “I was like， ‘Where am I， what did I do?”’

Within a few days， however， Mr. Mathur and his newfound friends discovered a “thrilling nightlife” and the perks of living in the spacious apartments offered to students enrolled in his course， a Budapest Semester in Mathematics.

“What I loved about Budapest at first was the art and bar scene， but of course also academics，” he said， over a local beer at a new bar. “The math grabbed me. It was great， it really was.”

Mr. Mathur， 25， is no stranger to travel. A native of India， he grew up in the Philippines and spent three years at college in Ohio before arriving in the European city.

While in Budapest， he enjoyed meeting people from all over Europe. “I made friends with a lot of Germans who are very out of their element here—maybe not as much as I am， but almost.”

Mr. Mathur felt restricted by language. “I was very insulated from the outside world，” he said about his first two semesters there.

“I don’t like living in a place and shielding myself from it entirely，” he said. “It was fine for at least some of the time， but very quickly it started to get to me， just how small my world was here.”

Mr. Mathur， who decided to stay in Hungary to complete his master’s degree， started to branch out and befriended local residents， with whom he “got to see a different side of Budapest.”

Story 2

Paul Vadé， 18， a medical student， decided to start his studies in the small university town of Cluj， Romania.

Like many others， he left a highly selective system in his native France， where a numerus clausus， or a set limit of the number of admitted students， exists for medical studies.

“It was the first time I left my family，” Mr. Vadé said. “It was difficult， but once I plunged in local student life， it was easier to cope with the distance.”

Students like Mr. Vadé have found an ideal place in Cluj. Some classes are held in French， there are several hundred fellow French students and the low cost of living means that Western European students can afford to live very well.

“I can allow myself things I would never do in France， like eating out practically every day，” he said.

But the language barrier prevented him from socializing with local residents， and he said that he hoped to learn to speak Romanian soon.

Story 3 一位21歲的荷蘭交換生

Trust is like a paper. Once it’s crumpled， it can’'t be perfect again. 人與人間的信任，就像紙片，一旦破損，就不會再回到原來的樣子。

There are many ways to fix a broken heart， but only time can heal all wounds. 修復(fù)一顆破碎的心有很多方式，但是只有時間才能撫平一切創(chuàng)傷。

如果讓我說，這一年我究竟交換到了什么。答案就是：獨(dú)特的經(jīng)歷，成熟的心智，獨(dú)立的生活能力。

交換生一年，感謝它給與我時間去思考。如今，浮躁的理由太多，思考的時間太少，我們不停地走走走，追追追。我們不能安靜下來，總有人在你身邊影響你的步伐，總有人讓你不知道自己想走的軌道到底是哪條。

可是，親愛的，你為什么不能為自己活一次？去放肆地，去熱血地過你的青春歲月？

交換生一年，感謝它給予我不同的感受。我學(xué)會沉下心來，去閱讀，去經(jīng)歷。不害怕走彎路，不害怕失敗，不害怕成功可能還很遙遠(yuǎn)。我只想按照自己的腳步向前走，不是因?yàn)閯e人休學(xué)了去旅行所以你也要去旅行，不是因?yàn)榇蠹叶荚诔鰢阅阋卜且鲎邍T。不去管別人的看法，用力去生活，用心去經(jīng)歷，才能有豐富而有厚度的人生。

Maya Frost， the author of “The New Global Student，” helps students find affordable ways to study abroad， which she sees as a way to develop “a clearer sense of the world as bigger than their own community and country and recognizing that there’s more than one way to do or view things.”

According to Ms. Frost， there is increased pressure on students to succeed， and many fear a setback if they go overseas. “But students who go abroad in high school tend to have a big advantage in that they have shown a real commitment to an often challenging experience and are definitely more mature and ready for the independence of college life than their peers who have never left home，” she said.

Ms. Frost， who prompted her own children to go abroad， said that students should be encouraged to immerse themselves in the local culture by living with a host family.

Socializing with fellow students from home “can be really fun， no doubt about it， but it prevents them from practicing the language with locals or being exposed to different ways of seeing the world，” Ms. Frost said.