Having lived overseas my entire life, I’ve grown accustom to the strange ways of the international school systems, whether they were the French, British or American system. While each and every educational system has their own differences, all International Schools are the same deep down. Looking back on my high school days, I wouldn’t trade my experiences or the friends I made for the world because luckily, they became my world.
Kids who attended International Schools will always have that special bond with their friends, teachers, and schools forever, because to them, that was largely what they considered to be their homes rather than just their temporary houses.
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From the quirky accents to the questionable school events, these are the signs that you attended an International School, even if it was just for a week, a month, or several years.
1. You hear a multitude of languages just by simply walking from one end of a hallway to the other
"What...Is going on?"
2. You introduce yourself with where you’re from before you even say your name
Hi, I’m half American, half Lebanese, where are you from? OhandmynameisKatrina. That’s typically how your best friendships began.3. School would be cancelled because of some typically normal weather incident that just happened to destroy the entire city you lived in
I wish I were joking about this one (no I don’t because VACATION), but we would be sent home in the middle of the day just because it was raining outside and there wasn’t a proper sewage system to keep the city from flooding. Although we were trapped in our homes for about 1-2 days, it still felt like sweet, sweet freedom from the prisons we called school (I’m kidding, I miss you school).
4. Weather is a weird concept in general
I don’t care where you live in the world, it just is.
5. Your friends are from more countries than you can count on both hands
Kuwait, Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, England, New Zealand, France, Spain, Ethiopia, South Korea, Turkey, South Africa...I’ve lost count.
6. Every year, there’d be that new teacher people would be obsessed with
You’re all thinking of someone, admit it.
7. You’re used to meeting kids with parents who have interesting jobs
“Your mom works for the United Nations? Cool...My mom knows how to make a mean grilled cheese sandwich.."
8. School trips are the best experiences
Instead of going to your local zoo, you’re going to the zoo in Amsterdam, unless you live in Amsterdam, in which case, you’d go to some zoo in a different country- anyways, you get the point. School field trips involve a plain ticket and a dent in your college savings.
9. You’d question your school if there wasn’t at least one new person every semester
The more the merrier is always the motto at International Schools, mainly because you need new people to fill the holes in your heart from all the people who left the previous years, which brings me to the final sign.
10. Goodbyes have become a heartbreaking routine
Chances are, either you or someone else moved away every several years, making saying goodbye one of the hardest, yet most frequent events of your days at an international school. You can’t prepare for them, but in the back of your mind, you know they’re coming- kind of like when your grandparents randomly visit in the middle of the year- Yes teta, I’d love to drink tea with you and talk about obscure family members I don’t remember, but I have 5 exams tomorrow.
International Schools, no matter how different they've all been during my years of elementary, middle, and high school, hold some of my dearest memories with some of my greatest friends. It doesn't matter if you aren't friends with everyone, because you know that you are all in the same boat, sailing on the seas of foreign adventures, funny accents, and unforgettable school days, making you all one big family at heart.
