- Tên Giang Thanh
- Quốc gia United States
- Home country Iowa
- School year 2007-2008
Student from Vietnam likes safety of Clarion-Goldfield High School
This articles is extracted from clarionnewsonline.com dated on January 31, 2008Thang Giang is an exchange student from Vietnam and is spending her senior year at Clarion-Goldfield High School. She has always wanted to come to this country to study.
"It will be good for my future to visit and learn about other countries and cultures," said Giang. Russ and Kathy Wendel are serving as her host family. "They are very cool, and I like traveling around with them," said Giang.
Vietnam is located in Southeast Asia and lies along the coast of the South China Sea and borders China, Cambodia and Laos. The north is quite mountainous, while the southern part of the country is dominated by lowlands. The climate is tropical to subtropical. It's capital is Hanoi, and it has a Socialist Republic form of government.
Giang likes both Clarion and this school. "It's a small school, but it's neat," said Giang. "It's safe here, not like in a city. There are no bombs or guns here."
Giang explained that, in her country, all the high school students (grades 10 through 12) are in the same classes. There are only five subjects and students must take them and have no choice of other subjects.
"It's stricter there," said Giang. "You can't talk to your friends, even in the hallway between classes. There are no extras, like art class. P.E. class is just exercises. We don't have football, but we do have soccer." Giang is enjoying her new found freedom here. "There are more choices here and you can talk to teachers and friends," said Giang. "The math is easier. People here are very friendly."
Giang feels that the reason for the difference is that the schools in Vietnam stick to very traditional ways and customs. "The teachers can't accept new ways of studying and they consider it disrespectful to have the students talking," said Giang. "There are things I like better there. I think they stay more on top of illegal drugs in the school."
When asked what she likes to do with her free time in her country, Giang responded that she hangs out with friends, goes to the bookstore or maybe out for ice cream. "My mom is strict, so I can't go to too many places," said Giang. "I'm the only child in the family, so I think she's more protective of me. If a guy calls me, I get questioned."
While Giang definitely plans on college, she is not sure if it will be in this country. "Future education is important to getting a successful job," said Giang. Then after that I can think about other things like marriage." She would like to have a career in business, possibly as a fashion designer.
