Newspaper Page Text
Page 14. THE.SOUTHERN I&RAEUXE .October.31. W
Comparing notesi
Israeli teens tell likes, dislikes about America
■ , in -iH'iin: '.tnH havi'
by Richard Bono
TSI staff writer
American’s preoccupation with
drugs, the large numbers of sin
gle family houses, the vast shop
ping malls and the low level of
instruction in poorly disciplined
classrooms. These are among the
likes and dislikes a group of 16
Israeli teenagers described in
Atlanta during their first visit to
America.
The group is part of a larger
contingent of 90 foreign students
in America this month as part of
an international student exchange
coordinated by the Council of
Great City Schools.
Attending classes through the
Center for International Studies
at North Fulton High School,
Zvika Moretsky, a 16-year-old
from Tel Aviv, said, “The level of
subjects is really higher in Israel.
In math lessons, the seniors here
learn things that we learned in
ninth grade.”
Zvika said she was also sur
prised when she saw someone
eating during class. “In Israel,”
she said, “no one would dare do
it.”
Another student was critical
that the schedule of classes fol
lowed in Atlanta schools does
not change from day to day. “It’s
very boring,” the girl said. “In
Israel we learn every day on a
different schedule.”
The young students, mostly
from Tel Aviv, had to compete
for the opportunity to visit
America. Ann Goellner, instruc
tional coordinator of the Inter
national Studies Program at
North Fulton High School, des
cribed the criteria by which they
were selected.
“They look for youngsters who
have a great deal of interest in
international affairs and who have
the ability to relate pretty quickly
with people,” Goellner said, add
ing that any student selected for
the exchange program must pos
sess a natural and demonstrated
level of curiosity, intelligence and
energy.
North Fulton High School’s
750-member student body re
ceived the Israeli youngsters
warmly, as did the 16 host fami
lies with whom the students are
stayingduringtheir visit, accord
ing to Goellner.
“We don’t want to leave,” said
one of the Israeli girls, drawing a
chorus of agreement from the
group gathered in the library of
the school. “The host families are
so warm and all the people in
school are friendly. We were
afraid that they were anti-Semitic
people,” she said, “but they are
not—absolutely not.”
While attending the high school
during their ten-day stay in At
lanta, the students led the discus
sion in several classes, talking
about life in Israel and about
their perspectives on global events.
During their discussions with
Atlanta students, the Israelis felt
obliged, they said, to counter the
persistent media impression of
Israel as a land of bombs, terror
ism and violence.
“We do have security prob
lems,” said Zvi. “But not every
thing is Filled with tension. We
don’t feel it everyday. We don’t
wake up and say ‘Oh gosh, these
Arabs, they drive me nuts.’”
Goellner said the Atlanta stu
dents enjoyed the discussions
thoroughly. “Somehow world
history and current events is more
enjoyable when you have a stu
dent lecturer,” she said.
The Israeli students stayed in
Israeli visitors gather in classroom at North Fulton High School.
homes situated all over Atlanta,
from the northwest to the south
west. And only about a third of
the host families were Jewish,
which Goellner speculated was
even more interesting for the
young Israelis.
In Atlanta the Israelis visited a
variety of places, including a high
school football game, the Carter
Presidential Library, the Martin
Luther King Jr. Center and Six
Flags amusement park.
But, according to their chap
eron, Yael Lapushin, it was At
lanta’s major shopping malls that
sparked the awe of the youngs
ters. “They really enjoyed going
to the shopping centers,” she
said. “They are very different
from what we have in Israel.”
The students were also awed
by the many houses in Atlanta,
noting particularly that in each
one there is but a single family.
“Everyone has houses here,” said
Zvi Moretzky. “In Israel we live
in apartments.”
She also remarked about the
size of Atlanta. “Everything is so
big,” she said. “I live in the
southern part of Tel Aviv. My
school is in North Tel Aviv. It
takes me 20 minutes in the morn
ing. But, here when you talk
about going from north to south,
it takes an hour. Everything is so
far away.”
Zvi noted that Israel is but a
fifth the size of the state of
Georgia.
Jaffa resident Dagit Weisman,
44
44
LOVE” AND
UNDERSTANDING
55
• •
TWO WORDS THAT ARE OUR
FOUNDATION AND OUR PLEDGE
While undoubtedly KING SPRINGS VILLAGE Health Care Center provides the finest
nursing facilities in the South, our goal is to make our residents comfortable, happy, and secure
by providing the ultimate in professional care and a wide range of social and recreational
programs.
That s why KING SPRINGS VILLAGE Health Care Center provides the
little “extras” that assure a feeling of privacy, dignity, and independence.
Gur emphasis is always on the quality of life. Extra care . . . Extra service . . .
Extra interest.
Let us show you "love" and “understanding” in action. You are warmly invited
to visit and observe firsthand our wide range of social and recreational
programs, and to meet our dedicated staff.
We are confident that you will like what you see.
Kosher Meals upon Request
Approved l«»r .ire
Admi^ions s»-vvn day*.« w< « k
I’U ..St-1 .ill lot imin- iiiff >iin<itKiti
KING SPRINGS VILLAGE
HEALTH CARE CENTER
404 King Springs Village Pkwy.
Smyrna, Georgia 30080
(404) 432-4444
Dave Morgan,
Administrator
Owned By: Henry f, Barbara Grossberg
Israel & Yetra Goldberg
16, said that while lie liked the
fact that Americans “live their
own life,” he nonetheless be
moaned their apparent isolation.
“What bothers me is that peo
ple sometimes don’t know what
happens besides with them,” he
said. “People here close them
selves in to what’s happening in
the world.”
Neither Dagit nor Zvika said
they would want to attend an
American university even if they
could convince their parents to
let them do so. They said they
both want to study chemistry
and physics in an Israeli univer
sity following their mandatory
training in the Israeli army.
There was agreement among
the Israeli teenagers that drug
use in America was cause for
concern.
“We hear about the problems
of drugs here in Israel, too,” said
one of the girls. “It’s really fright
ening. If you want drugs in Israel,
you can find them, but here, you
can see them. People come up to
you and talk to you about it.”
The Israeli youngsters are now
in Denver, and from there they
head to Washington, D.C., to
round out their month’s stay in
America.
A similar group of American
youngsters will join them in Israel
next month as part of the student
exchange program.
New Samples
have Arrived
Dressy Beaded Dresses
Dresses
Sportswear
The
Sampler
Open Mon.-Sat. 10-6
2105 N. DECATUR RD.
(at Clairmont)
325-4147