Please note that is giveaway has ended. Congratulations to “Maria,” whose comment was randomly chosen as a winner!
Today is day six of Giveaway Week, and I’m giving away a copy of Maya Frost’s The New Global Student: Skip the SAT, Save Thousands on Tuition and Get a Truly International Education. I was first sent this book when it came out in 2009, but somehow haven’t worked it into any of my blog posts. (Although I did read it!) That is, until now.
This book is the story of how author Maya Frost found wonderful international learning opportunities for her daughters, while also moving her family to Mexico and Chile. Many other students are profiled in this inspiring book, and even though I read it two years ago, I remember it well.
For those who may not know, I chose a non-traditional eduction for my 12 and 15-year-old sons, when I placed them in a public school Japanese immersion program. Although neither my husband nor I have a Japanese background, we thought it would greatly broaden the boys’ world view to be exposed to such a different language and culture. My older son has now been studying Japanese for ten years, is close to fluent and has been able to travel to Japan twice. We’ve welcomed Japanese exchange students and teachers into our home six different times, and my lucky husband even got to chaperone one of the class trips. It was one of the highlights of his life.
My older son will hopefully spend summer of 2012 in Sapporo, which is Portland’s sister city, and I am planning for a family visit afterwards.
To enter to win this book, write something in the comments section about your exposure to other cultures.
I will randomly choose a winner this Tuesday, March 29 at 9:00 P.M., west coast time.
Click HERE to enter Monday’s giveaway of Annie Leonard’s The Story of Stuff.
Click HERE to enter Tuesday’s giveaway of Dave Wann’s The New Normal: An Agenda for Responsible Living.
Click HERE to enter Wednesday’s giveaway of Natalie McNeal’s The Frugalista Files: How One Woman Got Out of Debt Without Giving Up the Fabulous Life.
Click HERE to enter Thursday’s giveaway of Gretchen Rubin’s The Happiness Project: Or, Why I Spent a Year Trying to Sing in the Morning, Clean my Closets, Fight Right, Read Aristotle, and Generally Have More Fun.
Click HERE to enter Friday’s giveaway of Homemade Living: Keeping Bees with Ashley English: All You Need to Know to Tend Hives, Harvest Honey and More.
Katy Wolk-Stanley
“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”
{ 38 comments… read them below or add one }
I have never seen this book before but now I want it!!! My husband is from Ireland (still a citizen there), and we are investigating ways for our kids to possibly attend university in Dublin. This books reminds me of one of my favorite books on education – “The Teenage Liberation Handbook” by Grace Llewellyn. That book is about “unschooling” for teens – but the overall message is that a real education can be achieved in many ways if teenagers (and their parents) “think outside the box.”
I was lucky enough to go to Australia and New Zealand when I was in high school through People to People Student Ambassadors. It was fairly inexpensive as well ($5k total for a 3 week trip). Being able to travel frequently was one reason I went to grad school (still in it). I’m glad that international travel is being more and more emphasized in the US.
My husband and I took a belated honeymoon to Spain and Italy last year and were fortunate to stay with nuns and priests who lived there. That short experience made us create the goal to have an extended vacation in Europe (6-12 months), in 20 years when my husband retires from the public sector. Hopefully we’ll have a gaggle of kids by then that we can share the world with!
I grew up in a very Italian household and was lucky enough to travel to Italy for 6 months during my junior year of college. Learning the language has been one of the most rewarding experiences in my life so far. That and all the great cooking skills I’ve picked up!
My son and I are learning Arabic. Well, a tiny bit, because it’s very difficult, but it does open the mind!
BTW — I second The Teenage Liberation Handbook. Great book!
I was lucky enough to be a Peace Corps volunteer in Honduras. Those years forever changed the way I see the world.
I really hope my kids will join also.
I’m Vietnamese American, so growing up I experienced the best (and worst) of both cultures. Thanks for posting about the language immersion program, I had always assumed they were only available in the private schools.
I lived and worked in England for two years and had the chance to travel throughout Europe in this time; it was a truly amazing experience and I hope to return to teaching in an international school within the near future.
I always tell anyone who wants to travel to definitely take the oppurtunity and if they can save the money to go on a gap year between high school and college like the students in the UK do spending some time travelling, some volunteering, but always broadening their horizons.
This book sounds amazing, I love travelouges!
I was born in Poland and left at age 3, moved to Italy, Sweden and Canada by the age of 5. I have travelled to Europe several times since and it is a vastly different culture than North America. In some parts of Europe, for example, the Netherlands, university is free!
I like the U.S. very much and wish I could pursue a master’s degree there. Alas, the tuitions are way too high for me, as I have only finished paying off a 7-year student loan. Perhaps this book could offer some insight!
I traveled to Japan back in the 70s as an overseas study student, then lived there twice while my husband served in the navy. I studied Japanese for 7 years (in college and while living overseas) and still know enough not to get into trouble. Our son lives and works there now; his wife is Japanese (so we got to participate in a Japanese wedding ceremony and all that entailed).
Our three girls were adopted from China, so we have made three trips there to meet our daughters. They are all in our public school’s Mandarin Immersion program (the oldest for 10 years) and are fluent, and our oldest has been back to China twice. Our middle daughter has been once and will go again next year. So, over time, many aspects of both Japanese and Chinese culture have been incorporated into our daily lives. We have also hosted countless Chinese and Japanese students and visitors to the U.S.
I think about my parents, who probably never imagined that they would have a Japanese granddaughter-in-law, three ethnically Chinese granddaughters, a son-in-law from Mexico, and another daughter-in-law from China!
I lived in Jamaica about 15 years ago. I will always remember the kindness and the joy of the people.
That is soo cool that you sent your children to a Japanese Immersion Program. I took Japanese in grade 10 and 11 plus a class in university to brush up. It is so, so hard to learn when you are older and I didn’t have the money to take the school trip. We too have hosted Japanese students in our home and would love to travel there one day. We haven’t been able to contact one of the students since the quake and am getting nervous.
We also moved our family from Ontario to Quebec. We are still able to send our daughter to the English school, but the French immersion is far better than on the Quebec side of the National Capital Region than the Ontario side. She now participates in with French Gymnasts and has a Russian coach. Ware immersed into the French language in stores, the library, with your neighbours and have to practice it everyday. I would love send our children and volunteer through the Girl Guides of Canada, to visit and work at the four world Centers in India, Mexico, England and Switzerland. Plus we sponsor a child in Haiti, so we encourage our daughter to write to her in French as well.
I’m a member of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, or Mormon as most call us. My now husband served a mission for the church, for 2 years in Brazil. He also has a Latin background, and his family has many Spanish friends. I’ve really enjoyed experiencing their culture, and wished I had grown up in a more cultured town. I have always wanted to travel, and want our future children to be exposed to all the different cultures in the world. I would LOVE to win this book!
I studied in Guadalajara, Mexico for one summer when I was in college and I learned so much about so many different things.
This book is really great and so is the author Maya. My family spent a year in Central America when our kids were in 4th and 7th grade and it was a difficult and fabulous experience for all of us. I knew Maya before she wrote the book and then was delighted to get her book when I was wondering if the public high school was all there was for my son who is very smart but not in the ways this society values. A combo of Maya’s book and entrance into our local alternative high school (public) and my son will graduate in June!! Woo hoo! PS I already have the book, so don’t want to be in the drawing just wanted to endorse the book!
I was a Peace Corps volunteer in Swaziland in Southern Africa from 1989 to 1992. I met my husband there (we went over in the same group). What a life changing/shaping experience! Both my husband and I wish we could take our son back there and escape the trappings of U.S. consumer life now that he’s a teenager. We certainly would like to take him to visit, at least, just to expand his (now, very limited) world. If it works out financially and health-wise, we will – someday!
I always wanted to go on an exchange and live in a foreign country but during high school things got busy (as they tend to get) and I never really got around to looking into it, same thing with university. I’m finishing up my degree this year and it’s my goal to live and work abroad within the next five years. I’ve traveled a fair bit internationally but I’ve never had the opportunity to actually live in another country for an extended period of time and really absorb the culture.
Having had a very “traditional” education: public school, direct to a four-year college (Cal State undergrad and graduate school), I learned the value of an alternate education after-the-fact. I have taken advantage of the opportunities to work and travel nationally and internationally, and hope to instill a love travel, of different things and people into my toddler. I’d love the opportunity to win this book!
p.s. Came across your blog from a link Gretchen Rubin’s The Happiness Project blog. I’m looking forward to reading more of your posts!
When I was a Junior in college I spent 7 weeks in Italy, which was amazing. And we were in a little tiny town where no one spoke english so we were really immersed in the language/lifestyle.
I really don’t have a story to tell of exposure to other cultures like everyone so far. But, I want to enter to win. My intentions when I was in high school was to go to Mexico or Central America as a missionary. To that end I studied Spanish in hs and college. I also studied Latin and Greek. When I studied Japanese, I came closer to learning something about the culture from a Japanese man who actually taught about the culture instead of just teaching Japanese. This entry is more about the lack of exposure, I suppose, except for a trip to Mexico and a trip to Canada. Thanks for the opportunity to win this book.
Last year I taught English at a middle school in Seoul, South Korea. Being a rookie teacher is itself an overwhelming challenge, so to have that coupled with being a foreigner I learned a lot about myself as a teacher, a woman, and an American. As I tried to navigate through and assimilate to Korea, I realized how difficult it must be for those immigrating to the U.S. I definitely know what the shock feels like in “culture shock.”
I’m an Australian living in the US, and I’m looking forward to my daughter learning about both cultures (she is one and a half, and says “banana” like me!).
I have a 3 year old and a 9 month old and my husband and I have already decided to take a year off when they are older to travel and learn new things as yet to be determined. This book would help!
My love of travel began when I spent a summer studying at the University of Madrid when I was in high school. From there I traveled to Europe and the Caribbean in college. I’ve continued traveling to the Caribbean, Central American and through out the US. I sent one of my children to Australia as an exchange student, and two of my children have made 4 trips each with the Student Ambassadors. My preschoolers have been to Aruba 3 times, on a Caribbean cruise and to Canada. We’ll be taking them to Finland, near the Arctic Circle the end of this year to visit with Santa. We’re obviously smitten with the travel bug.
Hi! I’d love to read this book! I spent some months studying in England and some in Brussels and it was the best experience of my life. Now, I hope my son can travel in a few years and learn and enjoy other cultures. We have friends in different countries, so, I hope we can organize some nice get togethers with them. Best regards from Barcelona,
Marta
I would love to gift this to my sister in law who is supporting herself with student loans, and just spent $5,000 on a 3 week trip to Italy this summer. I am all about travel, and encourage her to see the world, but she could use some tips for doing it cheaper!
I was in Japan last August, and marveled less at how much was different than how much was actually the same – which saddened me. Tokyo could have been New York (or Paris, with the Tokyo Tower) for all its energy and bustle. I loved being there, however.
Kyoto was an entirely different world. Slower-paced, it made me feel like I was finally in another country. Temples on every street; the culture there was more steeped in its millenium-plus-long history. I loved being there. Hope I get to go back sometime – I’d like to live there for awhile.
I was fortunate enough to have parents that agreed to let me travel to Europe when I was 15. Yay! Best experience. Now I want to take my daughter on an European adventure for her spring break. Luckily I’ve instilled the travel bug in her and she also wants to do a semester or year aboard, college style. Personally, I would love to take the plunge and teach English aboard for a year. Someday…
Other cultures? The closest to another culture is Saturday Market in Eugene haha! Anyway, I’d love to travel and my sister and I were just talking about how neat it would be for her to go visit her room mate’s family in Korea. I read about other cultures and stuff but had a baby before I was able to even leave my hometown, so it could be a little while :]
Living in the Mid-Atlantic region we have a huge Asian culture as well as Hispanics, Arabs, and Eastern-Europeans. There are places I go where I am in the minority.
Although I’m not sure exactly what to expect in this book, I do know that I can relate. University education in Europe is less expensive than North America (seriously!) and in some cases free! When I was first in college I did an exchange to Finland for 6 months (and had the chance to visit Santa Clause in the North Pole – note to reader Kimberley!). It was such an incredible experience I would love to go back and live abroad for grad school and travel through Europe! I’m sure this book would give me some good ideas. Thanks, fingers crossed!
I would love to learn about different ways to expand my children’s learning opportunities.
I have a daughter finishing up high school next year. She is planning on going to med school for dermatology. She has talked about going away to Australia for a year of college. We will see. This will be an interesting read. If I don’t win it, I will get it from the library.
Living in France for a year taught me so much more than the (beautiful!) language. And now I appreciate wine, and good cheese, so much!
Would love to have this book! We have hosted Japanese students every Fall as they attend university for a month progam for 7 years now. It is a terrific experience for our entire family and we maintain relationships with most of the young ladies and I am fondly refered to as “My Canadian Mom”. My extended family also participates and we enjoy seeing our world from the perspective of others which makes us appreciate our blessings even more!
“The Teenage Liberation Handbook” is one of MY all-time favorite books, too. I also love anything by the late, great John Holt, who wrote “How Children Fail” and “How Children Learn”. He was so wise when he wrote about education.
What an awesome sounding book! My husband and I went to Paris last October and that really opened my eyes. I would love to travel more!
I just started researching this idea for my 10 year-old. She was born in China and is now getting to the age where she can travel back and appreciate her birthland. We travel overseas quite a bit anyway for my husband’s job and I’ve begun to think about the kind of education that comes from immersing ourselves in the world and its peoples. Would love to read this book!