Cultural Differences In America

There are many cultural differences when coming to a new country, especially when being only fifteen. Arriving in a new country by yourself is scary, mostly when you do not know the culture, and more importantly, the language. In my first weeks of being here, I really did not notice the differences, but as the time goes on, I notice more and more. One of the major differences noticeable is the Danish school systems, is in the U.S. you will not have a first-name relationship with your teacher. If you call a teacher by their first name, even if you have a close relationship with them outside of school, you will get yourself into trouble. You would address them as “Mr. Mrs. or Ms.” Another thing about American school, is we have a set schedule
for everyday, from about eight in the morning to three in the afternoon.
In Denmark, the school hours and schedule resemble that of a college schedule. If the teacher happens to be sick, of not able to make the class, you would have a substitute teacher, instead of having the class cancelled. In most schools, you would have gym one day, and a science lab the other day. This does not occur in Denmark because of the four period day, and having each class for an hour and a half instead of forty minutes. Computer usage in Denmark is substantially larger than in the U.S. Usually, computers are only used for projects that computers are absolutely needed for. If you bring your computer to class, have it out, and it is not requested that you bring it, that is also another way of getting into trouble. This also applies to cellphones. Cellphones are prohibited in my school except during the lunch break. In the U.S. cursing in the classroom is not acceptable. Occasionally if the teacher is using it as an example it is okay to then use it only if it applies to the lesson. I have noticed more
and more throughout my elementary, middle, and high school years, cursing in the school setting has not been so looked down upon, but is still very disrespectful. I have noticed in Denmark that the students and teachers are very open about what is discussed in the classroom. Personally, I think people are better educated when they have open conversations. Before my arrival in Denmark, I have heard and read many things about everyone wearing black, gray, white, the occasional baby pink, AND more black. I never realized how true this was until I got here. In many places in the United States, there is much more color worn, especially bright and flashy colors. These colors are said to “express your style,” but where I come from, dark colors are mainly worn, possibly because of the extremely long winters. Where I live, in upstate New York, basically in the middle of nowhere, we have a very European, and to be more specific Scandinavian style, to go along with the fair amount of cowboy boots, plaid shirts, and camouflage hats. Immigration rate is also a big difference.
In the United States, 12.8% of the population is foreign-born. In Denmark, 10.1% of the people are immigrants, and included in that number, are descendants of the immigrants. I don’t really have the opportunity to interact with the foreign population other than exchange students and nurses obtaining parts of their degrees at the local hospital, because I live in rural New York, where 95% of the population is white. Living in Cooperstown has a sort of “blinding” effect on young people who don’t get out to do much in larger cites, because they believe they are the only people who matter, which is definitely not true in the
least. In the United States, drinking and smoking at a young age are common, but illegal. The legal drinking age in New York is 21. That includes buying, and ingesting. It is in fact legal to drink alcohol if you are in the presence of your parent. To buy cigarettes, the legal age is 18, but it is legal to smoke them if under that age. You will not see many teenagers smoking cigarettes in public, but in the privacy of their own home, a few amount do. Here, in Denmark, I have noticed it is not uncommon to see fifteen year-olds walking around the city drunk at night on the weekends, but that is perfectly acceptable. Danish teenagers are very smart about their decisions, especially with alcohol. It is the culture here. American teenagers are not as smart. The driving age is also much higher in Denmark. To get your full license (permission to drive after 9 PM (21:00) during autumn, winter, spring, and summer), in some states it is usually 16 or 17. In the state of Florida and some parts of New York, it is 15. In Denmark, the cars have some slight differences. Everyone here drives stick shift. There is no manual, which most of the newer cars in the U.S. are manual. The temperature is also in Celsius, (as it is in every other part of the world) but it still threw me off in my first few weeks of living here. For living in the second largest city in a country, I was expecting there to be many more cars, but then soon realized how expensive cars are, and how much Danes rely on public transport. In larger cities in the U.S. there are busses and trains. In small towns, there are only such things as school busses, and the occasional bus that goes to the next larger city about an hour and a half away. In Denmark, busses and trains go almost everywhere. Which is amazing. Bikes are also used on a daily basis, EVERYWHERE. I did not realize bikes are as big as they are. It is mind blowing.