The Similarities And Differences Between Malawi And The US
Fourteen year olds all around the world live different but sometimes similar lives. Two examples would be 14 year olds from Malawi and the US.
One example of a Malawian 14 year old is William Kamkwamba. William, who is no longer 14, grew up in Malawi during a famine. With little education, William created a windmill to power lights in his house. Though William did later receive a college education not all Malawians do. One main difference between Malawians and Americans is the shortage of food in Malawi. William went through two famines, one worse than the other, but those famines are surely not the only famines to have struck Malawi. Another difference is the types of food that malawians eat. Foods like Nsima, pumpkin leaves, and fried goat
are common foods throughout Malawi. Another food related difference is the price of food in Malawi with one pail of flour costing around a hundred Kwacha, the Malawian currency. Free education in Malawi only goes up to around 8th grade with anything above costing thousands of Khawcha. The education that children in Malawi receive is lacking anyway. For a child in Malawi turning 14 or 15 might mark the last year of free education. Some of activities of 14 year olds in Malawi are similar to some activities that American 14 year olds participate in. One is hunting. William loved to hunt for small birds with his dog by setting traps for the birds. Another less fun activity that is common in many parts of Malawi is farming. Williams father was a farmer so William had to help tend the crops. Though farming is a common “activity” in Malawi games are also another common activity. With William having gone to the market almost every day to play a game similar to Mancala.
One example of a 14 year old from the United States is myself having been born and raised here. Food in America is plentiful and relatively cheap. Because of America’s large size there is more land for growing fruits and vegetables and raising animals for meat and other byproducts. Meaning that it would be rare that there would be a famine. Because America is full of people from all cultures, there is no one type of food that everybody eats. Though, most 14 year olds in America like Pizza. Food in America doesn’t take as large of a bite out of one’s income because of the lower price of food. Education in America is good compared to other countries. Though it can differ depending on the school one attends. Because of higher standards for schools in America children have a higher Chance of college graduation than in Malawi. Because public school in America is free, until college, there is also higher chance of completing high school. Because most 14 year olds are in seventh or eighth grade then it won’t be the last year of school. Though everyone has their own activities that they enjoy these are a few that I personally enjoy. Reading is one of my favorite past times and I enjoy seeing which books my friends are reading and hinting that they should read a certain book. Playing video games is one of my favorite activities with friends or alone. I enjoy FPS and strategy games. Running runs in my family, my parents and my uncle, so it’s no surprise that I enjoy running. I run cross country and track.
One example of a Malawian 14 year old is William Kamkwamba. William, who is no longer 14, grew up in Malawi during a famine. With little education, William created a windmill to power lights in his house. Though William did later receive a college education not all Malawians do. One main difference between Malawians and Americans is the shortage of food in Malawi. William went through two famines, one worse than the other, but those famines are surely not the only famines to have struck Malawi. Another difference is the types of food that malawians eat. Foods like Nsima, pumpkin leaves, and fried goat
are common foods throughout Malawi. Another food related difference is the price of food in Malawi with one pail of flour costing around a hundred Kwacha, the Malawian currency. Free education in Malawi only goes up to around 8th grade with anything above costing thousands of Khawcha. The education that children in Malawi receive is lacking anyway. For a child in Malawi turning 14 or 15 might mark the last year of free education. Some of activities of 14 year olds in Malawi are similar to some activities that American 14 year olds participate in. One is hunting. William loved to hunt for small birds with his dog by setting traps for the birds. Another less fun activity that is common in many parts of Malawi is farming. Williams father was a farmer so William had to help tend the crops. Though farming is a common “activity” in Malawi games are also another common activity. With William having gone to the market almost every day to play a game similar to Mancala.
One example of a 14 year old from the United States is myself having been born and raised here. Food in America is plentiful and relatively cheap. Because of America’s large size there is more land for growing fruits and vegetables and raising animals for meat and other byproducts. Meaning that it would be rare that there would be a famine. Because America is full of people from all cultures, there is no one type of food that everybody eats. Though, most 14 year olds in America like Pizza. Food in America doesn’t take as large of a bite out of one’s income because of the lower price of food. Education in America is good compared to other countries. Though it can differ depending on the school one attends. Because of higher standards for schools in America children have a higher Chance of college graduation than in Malawi. Because public school in America is free, until college, there is also higher chance of completing high school. Because most 14 year olds are in seventh or eighth grade then it won’t be the last year of school. Though everyone has their own activities that they enjoy these are a few that I personally enjoy. Reading is one of my favorite past times and I enjoy seeing which books my friends are reading and hinting that they should read a certain book. Playing video games is one of my favorite activities with friends or alone. I enjoy FPS and strategy games. Running runs in my family, my parents and my uncle, so it’s no surprise that I enjoy running. I run cross country and track.