Chioggia, ITALY – As a Ukrainian refugee in Italy, I was looking for advice when I just started attending school here, and I could not find it. I hope this article offers some useful insights for teens who are about to start high school in a foreign country.
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When I first started attending school in Italy, I felt like a baby again, unable to put a sentence together, except I was almost a teenager, whose thoughts were trapped behind a seemingly insurmountable language barrier.
In the first couple of weeks, the school did not provide me with an institutional device to translate the textbooks in class, and the usage of phones was prohibited for all students.
I therefore could not get involved in the classes. My only way of communication was English, which most of my teachers and peers did not speak.
My lack of participation was misinterpreted by the teachers as indifference to their subject and unwillingness to learn. And, I could not form any friendships with my classmates because of the language barrier.
When I was finally given a school tablet, I came up with a strategy that turned out to be quite effective in acquiring a language base.
I took a photo of a page and translated it to Ukrainian with Google Translate. I read a paragraph in my native language, then in Italian, trying to figure out which word stood for what.
After I grasped the basics, I slowly started reading in Italian without translation, and after a couple of months, I could read many of the texts.
At the same time, I took two Italian classes per week outside school to catch up on grammar. I also practiced speaking and writing.
When I reached approximately A1 level of Italian, being surrounded by native speakers, I heard words I knew and learned others from context, eventually reaching an advanced level.
But there were other difficulties.
When I started high school two years ago, I had mastered my Italian enough to graduate from middle school with honors. But after a few weeks, I realized the cultural differences in education go far beyond just how we speak.
It turned out that the overwhelming majority of teachers in Italy, especially in high school, tend to keep the grades low on purpose, especially during the first semester.
Some teachers will give an eight out of 10 for impeccable work or explicitly state that they are giving higher grades only in the second semester to allegedly keep students’ motivation higher.
This practice is facilitated by the frequent use of oral tests that allow for subjective grading. It was a huge contrast to the Ukrainian educational system, which prefers written examinations and where it is therefore not uncommon to obtain the highest possible grade.
If oral tests are not common where you are from, here is some advice.
If the students get to choose who goes first, do not jump ahead of everyone, even if you think you are prepared.
I avoid countless mistakes by waiting for at least a couple of people to take the exam before me. This way, I can listen to what the teacher asks and what they say.
If you are lucky enough to take the exam after the questions start repeating, your chances of getting a high mark will increase significantly.
Talking about testing strategies, here is some general advice that can be especially handy if you are an international student trying to thrive in high school.
First of all, just paying attention in class and then studying right before the exam will not get you anywhere. Instead, go the extra mile and revise what you learned in class before your next lesson. This will help you consolidate what you learned and make the test preparation far less overwhelming.
When in class, especially as you just begin high school, make the effort to answer the teacher’s questions. It will create a better image of you in their eyes, and, believe me, this can take you miles. It is best if you manage to answer a question that no one else knows the answer to, as it makes you stand out.
And what is even more important, do not be shy about asking questions if you do not understand something, to make sure you have a full picture of the topic in your head.
Before putting these strategies into practice, though, you have to set your priorities. If you want to become a top student, this is the way to go, but it might prevent you from becoming widely popular among your peers.
Italy, for example, is a country where asking questions is not particularly encouraged by peers, nor by teachers at times. Students see it as a way to show off, while teachers see it as an attempt to undermine their authority.
But no matter which way you choose for yourself, you will still be able to find some friends at high school. The students are somewhat more mature, and being a studious pupil will not prevent you from building lasting connections, even if you probably won’t have a huge friend group.
Being surrounded by foreigners most of the time as a teenager is a peculiar experience.
Sometimes I feel like I finally managed to fit in, and then my friends start talking about a famous Italian singer I have never heard of, and I suddenly feel I am left out.
Or perhaps I am telling them about my vacation and forget a basic word. The silence that falls as I try to remember it takes me right back to when I was just starting out in Italy.
In these moments, I take a deep breath and look back on my path, trying to remember where I started out.
If I squint my eyes, I can make out a figure far away. It is the 12-year-old Sofiia on my first day in Italy, eagerly waving. She is proud of me. And so am I.
Sofiia Yakymenko is a Junior Reporter with Youth Journalism International.
