It is not easy for me to write assignments properly in English because for me it is a second language. In Korea we don’t write journals. In the United States writing journals is done by students for classes of English for example Ms. Rodale has us writing journals. It is a way to write down what a person think.
In this journal I am writing about the students in Kennedy High School. That is the name of the High School that I am attending. I am a student on a year abroad program for enrichment and academic advancement.
It is very different in United States schools than in Korea schools, one of the ways that it is difference is that in Korea making boyfriends is not easy. In Korea many peoples have friends, but girls do not have boyfriends so much in schools.
In United States schools girls very much talk about boys, this is the same as in Korea schools. In United States schools, however, girls also talk about having physical relationship with boys that is not permitted in Korea at such a young age.
In United States girls talk very fast and also make small groups. In small groups mostly go girls who are popular and are friends. It is very difficult for a girl who is not from United States to go in group that is for girls that have small groups.
In United States Kennedy High School I have not many friends. This is making me sad and sometimes homesick but it is the purpose of year abroad program to try to make new friends. I have been going to party once and sometime at lunch also spend time with friends. However, many time girls are not noticing that they are talking too rapidly for me. This is making it more difficult for me to have conversations with them.
The names of girls in a group is Andrea, Maya, Rachel, Sabrina. These are girls that are trying to be nice a little bit to girls from other country but do not remember to slow down from speaking rapidly. Also, I know two girls that are called Karen and Naeli. They are also friends but they do not talk much. We enjoy to spend time together.
In small group with girls are also boys that are friends with girls. There names are Jerry, Tim, Mike, Cole, Malik. This is an African-American name, African-Americans are very unusual in Korea. Also is Naeli African-American. It is also unusual in Korea that boys and girls go to parties and dance with no adult in the house and sometime they do more things that are usually private thing that married people do. This is not right but it is not okay to say things like that about other cultures when you are a visitor in there country, a person should not judge another person culture.
I would like to be more friends with the girls whose names are Andrea, Maya, Rachel, Sabrina. However, they are oftenmost talking to each other and to boys that are in there group. This is not easy to join this group because they speak rapidly and because they believe that they are very important and that other people are not so important as them. I think that in world many peoples think that they are the most important but it is not so comfortable for people that are not in the group to be allowed in the group.
These girls talk about many things: fashion, clothing, dating, and schoolwork. This to me can be very fun because I like fashion and I would enjoy to speak with them more about fashion and to go shopping. Many times girls go shopping but they do not invite someone who does not speak rapidly and this is unfortunate for me.
The girls do not try very hard in schoolwork, this is surprising. In Korea everybody try very hard to succeed, in United States girls and boys do not seem to be trying to succeed, it is very important to study to succeed in having a career and a family. There is one girl that her name is Rachel and she is having success, but she does not speak to me about it so I am not sure if she is working hard for her success. The other girls say that she is very smart, but she seems to me sometimes foolish because she wishes to talk to boys about certain things but does not do this, even though in United States it is considered okay to do this.
Andrea is a girl who talks to boys all of the time. In Korea a name for this kind of girl is not very nice. Many times a bad thing can happen to a girl who does these things. Another girl is called Sabrina and she is very sad and not as much happy as the other girls. I think that she has been sad for very many years but this is not what she is saying to me. She does not speak to me very much. The girl whose name is Maya speaks to me sometimes. She has been with a boy at a beach party. Many people saw them doing things that are private. Year abroad program is an academic and cultural enrichment experience and I don’t have the job to say if the private things that Maya does is right or wrong, that is the job for her parents.
I do not want the teacher to read this journal to the other students. I do not want to trade this journals with another student. It is very hard for me to be myself in United States, to be another person it would be impossible!