The Cold Hard Truth

My first week of teaching is officially over. Because I have so many different classes (12 hrs. a week, 1 hour per class, never the same students), I've pretty much done the same thing with all of them. I've asked them to tell me, without reservations, what their true image of America is. We then would discuss the stereotypes and determine whether there was truth to any of them or if they had a skewed view of us. Here's what they thought:

1. Americans are fat. Everyone only eats McDonald's.
2. America is dangerous and there are gangs everywhere.
3. All Americans encounter celebrities on a regular basis.
4. America is a rich country, but there's a lot of rich people and a lot of poor people.
5. Tony Parker is famous in America too, isn't he?
6. High school is just like the movie "High School Musical" and pom-pom girls (what they call cheerleaders) rule the school.

As far as Miami is concerned, here is their image of my city:

1. Everyone walks around in bikinis.
2. Miami is a surfer town.
3. There are alligators everywhere.
4. The only thing to do in Miami is go to the beach.
5. Miami and Malibu are the same thing, or at least on the same coast.

Their image of the US is either really negative or really glamorous. They either hate us or think we're cool because a large part of their entertainment (movies, music, TV shows, etc.) comes from America. I broke down each stereotype down for them and explained how things really are. I think they learned a lot and maybe even have a bit more respect for Americans, maybe.

And the french Tony Parker is only famous in the states because he married Eva Longoria.