Conversation with My Sister
by Dr. Pants on Feb.24, 2007, under Life and the Universe, Norway
(updated) Welcome redditers…
Big Hello to the bigger lebowski. Ben it’s good to hear from you.
I talked to my sister last Sunday. She’s a High School math/computer teacher on Long Island, New York. From what I understand it is a pretty nice school with decent technology, decent students and other wonderful things that make a High School worthy of our children.
As we got to talking the conversation quickly turned to life/schools here versus life/schools there. I asked her if she wanted one of her classes to correspond with one of mine. Turns out it is not so easy.
I thought I would post some of the differences:
Here (Norway) vs. There (Long Island)
1. Here- At school, nothing is blocked on the Internet. (haven’t found anything yet)
1. There -Tons of websites, email blocked. (limited for teachers too. My sister can’t e-mail her husband. ).
2. Here- Students come and go as they please. Like college. If they have a class they are there, if not they can leave. The same goes for me. If I don’t have a class I don’t need to be there.
2. There- Students need hall passes to do anything. Halls and other areas are monitored always. Students must be in school from beginning to end.
3. Here: After a certain age, students here can decide a career path, if they so desire, in which they can study. If you want to be a carpenter, you can go to school for it.
3. There: All students take pretty much the same thing.
4. Here: The drinking age for beer is 18, 21 for hard liquor. Students at 16 drink every weekend because no one really worries about it. Most parents prefer to be around when they drink. Consequently kids don’t look at alcohol as a big deal.
4. There: 21. That’s it that’s all. Any parent allowing people under 21 to drink could get there asses handed to them. Consequently everyone has to hide it from everyone and tend to drink too much often. I speak from experience.
5. Here: Sure there are problems, but students tend to be rather cool about everything.
5. There: Many many problems because there are so many damn rules.
6. Would you see this in an American text book? I doubt it… I scanned this right out of one of the textbooks I use in class. This would cause a national debate in the US. Here, no biggie…
Now, let me make this clear, kids are kids. I realized that a long time ago. We have kids who don’t do homework or seem motivated at all, just like back in the US. We have the occasional fight, theft etc. But there is just a maturity here that is lacking in the US. The kids are given responsibility for themselves. They have been raised that way. They are treated more as adults rather than criminals. Why is it so different? I can’t give you an answer. Why do you think?
February 24th, 2007 on 9:11 pm
The evolution of education in Europe (including Norway) is cetainly different than in the US. You seem to imply that it is more liberal in Norway for the better. You also imply that the US is burdened by more rules. It’s debatable whose end result (satisfied adults) is more fruitful. I do know that all the adventerous Europeans who weren’t satisfied with the state of affairs in Europe emigrated to the US. We are the decendents of those that weren’t satisfied with the system you inhabit.
February 27th, 2007 on 5:16 pm
Yeah, but you Norweegies didn’t have to put up with 9/11. Over here, we need to pay more attention to keeping the terrorists from doing it again and messing up everything. I mean, we’ve had 9/11, 3/11, 7/11, 6/11, and I’d be looking out to interrogate anyone who has any connection to any kind of /11, and especially those who would try to find information in the system of tubes about whatever it is they shouldn’t be looking for about /11.
You Europeans are pussies, but ou already know that. You think the Holocaust was big time? You ain’t seen nothing yet.
There’s a reason we’re cracking down on everything, and we can’t tell anyone what it is. Just make sure to carry some soap with you at all times.
Anna Nicole
March 5th, 2007 on 1:10 am
You are both homos.
May 22nd, 2007 on 9:47 am
The Norwegians who emigrated to the U.S.A. didn’t so because our welfare and today’s benefits of the Norwegian society, which became a fact mostly after WWII. They left because og poverty. The poverty was a result of bad years with small crops, the Danes withdrawal of any Danish clerk, priest and scholar etc. (Whitch brought N backwards in development) when the Swedes took over. (Mostly in the 19.th century, but also the first half of the 20.th.)When the industrial revolution began, Norwegians slowly started to build up. But it took a long while. Theese days Norwegians are not emigrating because of the rules of the society, but rather for education and to broaden their minds. There are indeed a lot of things to question about today’s America. But, of course, that doesn’t meen Norway is flawless.
-And Anna N, You have but one sensible comment: Bring soap. I’ll add: Use sunscreen.
February 7th, 2008 on 1:56 am
You pulled the pic that would give Americans hot chills, you pussy!
February 7th, 2008 on 3:40 am
Americans are incapable of feeling except in groups. The terrorists are counting on that herding instinct to wipe them out in malls and at sporting events.
February 7th, 2008 on 3:42 am
Somebody pulled my pic? That explains it. Thanks. I needed that.