Doing School in a Foreign Country

by Aaron Cady

I moved overseas when I was nine years old. My family and I first lived in Oman. We stayed there for six months, but then we moved to the United Arab Emirates. We have lived here for the past six and a half years. Both Oman and the United Arab Emirates are located on the Arabian Peninsula. The majority of people here are Arabs, which means they speak Arabic. English is my first language, and I’ve always done my schooling in it. However, just because I do my school in English doesn’t mean that living in an Arabic-speaking country hasn’t come with some challenges and funny moments. 

While the dominant language where I live is Arabic, there are still many different languages spoken and nationalities represented. English is common, and there are many American or European businesses and stores. There are a lot of schools in the city I live, and some are English-based, and some are Arabic-based. Every student learns both English and Arabic. This means that kids and teenagers can easily communicate, but talking to adults is a bit trickier. Most of the time, I can get by with using English. For some occasions, though, Arabic is needed. Over the years, I have learned a good amount of Arabic, and if needed, I can speak it. Trying to describe what kind of school I do is confusing for some people. Most of them do not understand what I mean when I say online school, so instead, I say homeschool. A lot of students are homeschooled, so this makes sense to most people. 

However, on the occasions where I can't use English, things can get a little complicated. Lots of men and women come to this country looking for work. Sometimes they can't speak English. When I go to the mall or a restaurant or the store we’ll have to converse in Arabic. Usually, Arabic isn’t the first language of either of us. Talking about simple things can be an ordeal. Sometimes I’ll make a mistake or misunderstand something, and that can create problems. Doing a different type of schooling also means that getting school supplies or finding a location for a test may be a challenge. Fortunately, there are some English-speaking schools where I can take tests like the SAT or an AP exam. Even still, the teachers and officials at these schools are Arabs. There’s always a chance that there may be some miscommunication or confusion. The schools that teach in Arabic also have a different system and structure than American schools. If I have a conversation with a friend who goes to an Arabic-speaking school, then we are often talking about completely different things. Discussing classes is also a challenge. 

Overall, doing my schooling in English while living in an Arabic-speaking country has not been a major issue. Arabic may be the primary language, but English is probably the second most common. There have been some small issues and problems, but on the whole, it has gone smoothly. It has been interesting to see multiple types of schooling systems and how they're similar and how they're different. Having the option of NorthStar has been a blessing. Doing school in English while living in an Arabic-speaking country has been interesting, but not a major challenge. 

Aaron Cady is a junior at NorthStar and has been part of the school for five years. He has written for the Navigator for two years. Aaron loves writing, sports, and any mixtures of the two. Aaron hopes to pursue a career in writing or journalism when he graduates.



👤NSA PeopleEIC NSAMarch Issue, 2019-2020