CopenHELEN: Field Trip to School

Today I got to go visit my Danish brother Sebastian’s school and it was probably the coolest experience I’ve had so far in Denmark. The Ruderdal Lilleskol located outside Copenhagen in a town called Holte is very different from any schooling experience I’ve ever heard of in America. Both Danish tradition and the mission statement of Ruderdal hope to foster independence, creativity, and a unique learning experience for their students. 9 teachers and 55 students make up this small schooling community. With a little kitchen where the kids at any point can go make themselves a sandwich or a cup of tea, intimate classroom settings, and familial type relationships between the teachers and students make Ruderdal a really cool learning environment. My friend Ezra joined me to spend the afternoon with Sebastian’s class talking with them about everything from American incarceration, to our drinking age, and the upcoming election. I have never met a group of 14 year olds so inquisitive and eager to learn about a country. Some students were very knowledgeable about different aspects of American life such as the NBA or the presidential candidates. But even the things they were unsure of they certainly weren’t afraid to ask about. We fielded questions such as, “Why does it matter that Mitt Romney is a Mormon?” “Do Americans really argue over abortion?” “What is it like when people go on dates in America?” “Do people really wait until they’re 21 to drink?”

Some of these questions really stumped us. First of all, considering our Danish is a little sub par and these students haven’t been studying English for very long, the teachers were kind enough to translate a few key points. But really the most difficult part of the whole experience was attempting to defend a culture that is so foreign to these young people. Growing up in a secular, welfare state-system, and extremely tolerant country, our young Danish friends were shocked to hear that our friend Mitt would dare to assert that citizens aren’t entitled to food, housing, and healthcare. (all things Danes enjoy free of charge)

Let me just say discussing the election in Denmark is a breeze for this liberal gal as practically no one in this country supports the conservative stance in America. Even the conservative parties in Denmark parallel Moderate Americans at best (conservative Danes would most certainly be considered liberal by American standards). With religion on the bottom tier of priorities, and an average tax of 50% of your total income, most Danes have zero sympathy for the American republican party…and that’s putting it nicely.

It was so cool to meet these young Danes, hear the questions they had about America, and leave with all of them shaking our hands and thanking us for coming to their school, despite the fact that we tried repeatedly to explain the reasoning behind the electoral college to no avail….c’est la vie?

Despite some extremely negative connotations the Danes have with American politics, in general most Danes are very interested and positive towards meeting Americans and American culture. It is very common for Danes to visit the United States and their lack off sympathy towards our religious values and capitalist tendencies stems far more from a disjunction of fundamental beliefs far more than any feelings of distaste or superiority to America. We had a lovely afternoon with extremely interesting conversations, no ill will from anyone, truly. Our cultures are just so different it is impossible to discuss without getting looks of total confusion from our Danish counterparts.

Words cannot describe how cool this experience was. Ezra and I left the school a little speechless as to the tact and interest of these youngsters. But also quite flattered they thought two American sociology students were cool enough to spend an afternoon with.

As always, the day ended with food. Coffee and dinner with my Danish mommy (who I’ve actually started calling Mommy, no lie). Being able to really sit down and compare fundamental cultural differences with her has been the coolest experience. I’m always left questioning my cultural norms and contrasting ways in which each of our respective countries has perhaps done something better than the other. I’m definitely going to take home some Danish customs although I think letting my children nap outside on the street will not be one of them J