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What do think of School Swap: UK to USA?

Posted by randymysteries@reddit | AskUK | View on Reddit | 142 comments

Watched part of this show last evening. I was surprised by the Americans. Are they really like that?

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142 Comments

OctopusIntellect@reddit

Millions of Americans are like that (for example most of those living in places like Mena, Arkansas). Millions of Americans are not like that (for example most of those living in New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Seattle and so on). Just like most British kids from Somerset or Orkney aren't much like British kids from Brixton. One of the American kids featured most prominently in last night's episode, said that the most different thing about the UK, for him, was that it was so densely populated and he didn't like it. He would've experienced just the same emotions about most parts of big American cities too.
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Internal_Muffin_8665@reddit

Im a black person that currently lives in Mena. Never have I ever had a racist person show up in my life.
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OctopusIntellect@reddit

Did you watch the TV show? What was your opinion?
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Internal_Muffin_8665@reddit

Yea it was a big deal here, and we had no idea it was painting a bad picture on us at all. A little over exaggerating. While some things are true, the whole “racist” element was just kinda forced in there 😭. Like I’m being genuine Im born and raised here, 19 years of age and no one has treated me different because of my skin and I’ve been pulled over twice for speeding.
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Too_much_Colour@reddit

It’s a pity you got the impression it painted the whole state in a bad picture. I watched the whole show, even the black kids were sad to go. And tbh, there were hiccups with the Brit kids disrespectfully using there phones in class. It definetly showed Mena in an overall good light imo. I think we should just accept nowhere is perfect.
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OctopusIntellect@reddit

So it was a big thing **but** no-one told you that it gave a bad picture at all? In what respect was the racism forced in there? How did that work?
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HibiscusWanderer@reddit

Honestly didn’t like that they took the black British kids to such a racist state. Yes, everyone is aware of how ignorant the below belt states are. So why make these children face such unnecessary trauma, very unfair.
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Too_much_Colour@reddit

Apart from the N word incident, the Americans came off very well
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Slight_Spell2648@reddit

Well they all loved it?
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Narcissa_Nyx@reddit

a child got called the n word? betting they didn't love that
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RaffScallionn@reddit

Poor Jayla’s bf 🥲
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Youngfolk21@reddit

Who was her bf?
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RaffScallionn@reddit

Don’t remember but from memory, she was basically ‘cheating’ on him with that Brit
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Youngfolk21@reddit

Which Brit? If you can remember 
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OctopusIntellect@reddit

They didn't mention it in the series, but Jayla was gunned down by her jealous lover a few weeks after filming wrapped. The only mention of it is "In memory of" if you watch closely at the end.
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Acrobatic-Matter4644@reddit

Really? Couldn't find it
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RaffScallionn@reddit

Some London rudeboi
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No_Occasion_1780@reddit

they set these poor children up by sending them to ARKANSAS ik they are about to get racially bullied smh.... should had did them a better state
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Internal_Muffin_8665@reddit

I know I’m late. But I am actually one of the few black kids that attends the school in America, and just graduated from there this past May. A lot of what was shown in that show was not said exactly correctly. I lived here my entire 19 years and not once have I ever actually encountered someone racist. No one looks at me any different, and I’ve never felt threatened. I’ve been pulled over twice for speeding and treated fairly, there was no hesitation by an officer. Multiple things were exaggerated, but it’s still not a perfect town mostly because you’re not allowed to have a different political view. All what I’m saying is true btw I am genuinely black and live in this town.
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randymysteries@reddit (OP)

Thank you for the insight!
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Rough_Text3701@reddit

British kids need so much therapy. Need to sit with (as a very important part of next bit) and regulate emotion. Not say you'll start me off, I'm not crying, just a dry eye etc etc. Really sad and worrying to see.
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OctopusIntellect@reddit

tf you on about?
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Rough_Text3701@reddit

The prnts need to not say you'll start me off. CHildren I'm not crying etc etc.
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Ok-Advantage3180@reddit

I’m enjoying it and find it interesting. Especially the part where one of the American girls was saying that a lot of books are banned there and that her mum won’t let her read/watch Harry Potter because it contains witchcraft
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Rough_Text3701@reddit

I'm a Christian and 'banning' Harry Potter bcos of 'witchcraft' is AB-SOLUTELY LUDICROUS to me. if someone hadn't said that on the programme I wld never consider that.
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Rough_Text3701@reddit

(From Scotland, UK).
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MrAnderson69uk@reddit

Apparently The Entertainer chain won’t or didn’t stock any Harry Potter - themed owner’s a Christian, so I guess the same rules apply in most schools in the US!!!
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Successful_Fish4662@reddit

Not that doesn’t apply to most schools in the US. The school in the show is a private Christian school. Public schools allow Harry Potter.
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PetersMapProject@reddit

Mena High School is a public school.
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OctopusIntellect@reddit

Described in the documentary as a "Christian school", which I think would cause issues in the USA if it were a public school?
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MuttonDressedAsGoose@reddit

I think they said that everyone who attends the school is at least nominally Christian. It's definitely a public school. I also attended a school where everyone (except maybe a couple of kids) were Christian, but there was no prayers. In Ohio in the 80's the seperation of church and state was taken seriously
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Herman_E_Danger@reddit

Now they legally mandate the ten commandments in classrooms, don't they?
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MuttonDressedAsGoose@reddit

I don't know. I think maybe in some states.
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PetersMapProject@reddit

I don't remember them referring to it as a "Christian school" - but I have double checked and it's definitely not a private school. 
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miemcc@reddit

Though Harry had a LOT of monetary reserve. There was never an indication of student fees. Even the Weasleys were able to find fun.
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PetersMapProject@reddit

Are you lost?
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OctopusIntellect@reddit

Yes you are correct; the documentary makers seem to have been a little confused (perhaps understandably) on that point.
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Herman_E_Danger@reddit

Not in the south
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Illustrious-Tip-2282@reddit

It’s a public school. It’s the only public high school in Mena, Arkansas. Not a private school, not a charter school, it’s your good old public school in a Christian community
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miemcc@reddit

Wow, how to completely misunderstand the movies. Please provide any Christian references in any of the films.
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MrAnderson69uk@reddit

Thanks for the update and possibly upvote, seems someone didn’t like my informative comment about HP and The Entertainer chain! I only saw this thread because it was suggested by Reddit and the post mentioned HP and that reminded me of The Entertainer!. I’m a Christian but not through choice, I was baptised before I could speak or walk! I’d be an atheist or whatever, just not affiliated to any religion, considering religions are responsible for so much unrest around the world!
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Ysbrydion@reddit

It's why it's not open on Sundays
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MrAnderson69uk@reddit

I’d think so!
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RumJackson@reddit

So much for free speech
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Beneficial_Log443@reddit

I’m an American and I can say that free speech is very much a real thing. The one thing that I think was portrayed out of touch was that part about the banning of books. We don’t have books banned from libraries and such but there are certain books that they won’t have in public schools because of sexual content, cursing, etc. I think the thing about Harry Potter wasn’t that the book was banned but more so that it was something the parents didn’t want their child to read.
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Herman_E_Danger@reddit

Where do you live? I'm from georgia, and it is absolutely a dominant cultural opinion that Harry Potter is dangerous, contains witchcraft, and is not be allowed in libraries, especially School libraries.
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carmeldea@reddit

Not sure how old you are, but I’m a millennial (American) & Harry Potter was definitely banned in a lot of libraries & schools. The bans tended to happen in smaller towns or highly religious communities — a lot of evangelical Christians decided it was satanic because it was about “witchcraft.” Especially in the early 2000’s era. We definitely have book banning happen in America, it just tends to happen on more of a local level, not national.
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RumJackson@reddit

Sit down and behave you absolute weapon.
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setokaiba22@reddit

There’s a lot of ideals America portrays in film and pop culture media that they really just don’t seem live up too
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Ok-Advantage3180@reddit

That’s what I found most interesting. The ones that demand free speech are quick to ban the things that don’t align with their idea of free speech
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Gasblaster2000@reddit

They are a primitive people! Lol 
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Basteir@reddit

Is that a joke?
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Advanced-Fig6699@reddit

No, because of his beliefs that’s why the stores don’t open on any Sundays because he gives his staff the day off with pay which is pretty decent for retail.
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CONKERMANIAC@reddit

LOL
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Entire-Anywhere-7318@reddit

I’m just now watching, I would hope they would’ve tried other areas outside of just a small white rural town. As I feel it’s the stereotype for America. I’m not saying it’s a bad choice, but they should’ve tried to at least do an intercity public school too. Those experiences are very different, I would know…lived it 😂
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Revolutionary-Mode75@reddit

May be a sequel, kids from Outer Hebrides and kids and swap with kids from New York.
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Entire-Anywhere-7318@reddit

I had to go educate myself on outer hebrides. It looks beyond beautiful, and definitely would be a cool watch !
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BoxOfNothing@reddit

I think the point was specifically to get as different as possible backgrounds though wasn't it? If they'd done a multicultural inner city public school in the US they would've changed the British school to either be a super fancy private school, or some bumfuck nowhere rural white as snow school
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Entire-Anywhere-7318@reddit

I have to say that’s a limited way of thinking. I also think the extreme for America isn’t just a racist white town. My own father immigrated here, I personally draw from that perspective. He went from UK schooling straight to inner city, and it was a complete culture shock. So o feel more extremes as you had implied, can be explored, other than racist rural white America 😂
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BoxOfNothing@reddit

There are plenty of ways to go about it, sure, but multicultural city to homogeneous rural area is the biggest leap. I guess they specifically wanted the racial aspect to force people as far out of their comfort zones as possible for drama for a TV show. Multicultural inner city school in one country to another isn't going to have nearly the same level of culture shock.
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Entire-Anywhere-7318@reddit

I get what you’re saying, but I think that view overlooks the wide range of experiences international students or visitors have when coming to cities in the states. Especially when the multicultural cities they come from, don’t exactly replicate the multitude of multicultural cities we have in the states. Culture shock isn't just about race or urban vs. rural—it’s also about language barriers, social norms, regional attitudes, and even things like food or daily routines. So even going from one multicultural city to another can be a big shock, depending on the context. Personally, that’s what I said I wanted to see explored. That’s my personal opinion respectfully. As a multicultural city like New York , is different from a city like Los Angeles, or Huston. Just like all three of those cities, are profoundly different from multicultural cities like London or Birmingham. Let alone the difference in schooling. The schooling I saw was very limited in comparison to a multicultural city school, that is properly funded, as sadly many aren’t. That experience is even drastically different in itself. An equipped American city school, versus a one that isn’t as funded. From the classes offered, to programs, etc. If we are talking about “TV” we shouldn’t limit America to the rural “buttf*ck” towns 😂. As there’s ALOT to be explored imo.
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TheOilQuant@reddit

They should now do a comparison between California/NY and Blackpool/Clacton
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IntrepidBluebird56@reddit

Have eli and magda stayed in touch I do hope so
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Sirramblealot@reddit

Late to the party here but yes! In the YouTube video posted 5 days ago from Channel 4, Eli and Magda reply to each other in the comments section a few times. It seems from their comments they might still be together as they're replying positively to comments encouraging their relationship.
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No-Employment-8438@reddit

do u mind posting the link
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Sirramblealot@reddit

https://youtube.com/watch?v=NWcaIQUXIVA&lc=Ugw1YCka0Gk3OEcSyOp4AaABAg&si=4wkMZzizy2z4sMRk Here is Eli's comment with Magda's reply underneath
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buffyhowcouldyouu@reddit

i’m magda’s best friend irl & go to the school where the show was filmed, i can confirm they have stayed in touch and still text a lot lol
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Disastrous_Bat_8368@reddit

I've just finished the episode and now need to know this!!
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GuyOnTheInterweb@reddit

"Frequently" he promised..
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IntelligentMann@reddit

How would one go about joining a possible season 2
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Sea_Lab_9251@reddit

The show was so lovely, definitely made me cry multiple times! I was in the same boat once, did an exchange and spent a month in the US when I was 14. I can truly tell you all that experiences like this are absolutely life-changing. It made me so emotional watching these kids go through the same, learn about different ways of life, and find their own values. Super cool, we need more of this on TV! P.S. Magda and Eli made me literally sob like crazy. Nothing like this pure first love, I do sincerely hope these kids found their way
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Potential-Ordinary-5@reddit

This is amazing, where in the US did you stay during your exchange and what was it like? Also where are you from in the UK?
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Successful_Fish4662@reddit

Okay I’m american and I was intrigued so I looked this up…they chose to send the British kids to a private Christian school in ARKANSAS?!!!! that’s a culture shock for even a regular American kid….public schools are so, so different,
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Loud_Performer6584@reddit

Brit here & I totally agree, I understand it was made for TV, but it would have been a better comparison to see them sent to a school in New York (or equivalent) or equally, have them go to/come from a rural school in the UK. They really ramped up the drama over American racism, the racism may not be quite so on the nose here but it is definitely still a major issue - coming from someone who went to a secondary/high school in a predominantly white rural area, with only 3 mixed race kids in my year. There would still be some major cultural differences (guns, religion, etc.) for the TV drama if they did that, but it would be a more fair comparison. And I think it'd be more interesting (at least for me) to watch. A good example is if you swapped Waylon with me when I was 14 you could see the more nuanced differences between hunting and gun culture. My family own a farm which has guns - kept locked away outside, the animals we hunt are inevitably a bit different (rabbits for pest control or pheasants and other game for food/fun). Most different is that it's not displayed or spoken about anywhere near as much as in his family and typically happens less; aside from pest control, my uncle goes out shooting maybe 2-3 times a year. I also just so happen to live right by a military base, so there's occasionally soldiers with guns driving through town and military training going on. Similarly to Arkansas, British city kids would have a culture shock getting dumped with my family, although in comparison to America (despite where I live) I barely see guns and we pretty much never talk about them. You can definitely tell this show was made for British TV. They threw some average English city kids in the most stereotypical (rural south) state they could think of and pretended it was an accurate rep of America as a whole. It sometimes feels as if negative US stereotypes and positive UK stereotypes had a baby in the form of reality TV. But I can't complain too much because I am enjoying it anyway lol
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Sad-Opportunity-4604@reddit

American here, and it's was disgusting to watch. I only watched the 1st episode. There are so many more diverse states to choose from but still can have that American country feel. Arkansas is definitely a culture shock to me, but I am from a northern and more urban area.
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MasterConclusion9509@reddit

No I think it was the local public high school
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ChampagneandAlpacas@reddit

Agreed! East coaster here in a former Union state, and Arkansas would absolutely be a major culture shock to the kids around here - London would probably be significantly less so. My partner was from Oklahoma, and we had vastly different experiences growing up. Apart from small differences, mostly the history/more European feel of London compared to US cities, my visit to the UK was the least culture shock I've experienced traveling. The urban experiences seemed very, very similar.
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RevolutionaryWrap710@reddit

You said it there? Travelling , these are teens who’s never left the suburbs of London to some all white town in America . Even rural England has more black people . Anyways I’d imagine from your comment you’re not a school girl /boy so your experience will be vastly different. To be on inner city Estate in London is like no other . You prob did the shit sight seeying crap that yes all city’s have . Can’t imagne you went to far off the beaten track in London ? Or any other UK city for that matter . A lot have an awful lot of culture that you obviously missed which is a shame : 
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Illustrious-Tip-2282@reddit

And it's not a private school actually. The producers make it sound so when they say white Christian high school at the beginning, but Mena high is a public shool in a white Christian community
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popsy13@reddit

I think they chose Arkansas because it’s so rural, coming from a big city, that’s one heck of a culture shock to all of the kids being swapped, in episode two, one of the British girls (sorry I don’t know their names) was sat on a balcony and quipped ‘we don’t have this at home’ It’s interesting, I’m enjoying the watch
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Sad-Opportunity-4604@reddit

American here - I think its garbage. Arkansas is one of the most sheltered and uncultured areas in the US. The UK producers definitely picked a "white"state to exchange with, but they wanted that American hillbilly stereotype. I guess racial slurs towards the students bring the ratings for you guys in the UK. I only watched the first episode. I really felt terrible for the UK students and their experience. There are other states that have a more diverse population but still could have given that "American Country" experience.
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randymysteries@reddit (OP)

The US students were shown the opposite extreme in the UK. It probably wouldn't've made good telly to put the students in more representative settings.
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FishermanFrequent705@reddit

I loved this!! That UK teacher was lovely. The families and kids beautiful ❤❤
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toe_beans_in_my_gob@reddit

Ignore me. Just seen the USA one has gone to the uk too
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toe_beans_in_my_gob@reddit

I missed the part explaining why he was in America? Do you know?
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Embarrassed-Emu-6446@reddit

Does anyone remember a similar programme in the 90s or 00s where uk kids went on an exchange to a US highschool? I remember watching it when i was young but cannot remember the name or find the programme.
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luna1uvgood@reddit

[Was it this one? ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWP9UbVUTeg) The only other one I remember was Switched on MTV, but I think that was mostly American teens swapping lives with one another.
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Embarrassed-Emu-6446@reddit

No it was specifically UK kids going to US for one semester
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sagen11@reddit

I remember watching something like this I remember a Scottish guy being one of the kids and they all went to Texas? Maybe?
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GuyOnTheInterweb@reddit

Is that the one that was mostly shouting and walking around empty floors? Or am I thinking of the Osbournes now..
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Slight_Spell2648@reddit

Worlds strictest parents
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idontlikemondays321@reddit

I’ve only seen the first episode. It surprised me how the American school brushed racism under the carpet. I expected there to be more racism over there obviously but thought schools would be on it. On the positive side, it was nice to see how wholesome the cowboy kid was, just clambering up a tree
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MuttonDressedAsGoose@reddit

They don't have many black students and most bullying flies under the radar, not visible to adults. But there's also a desire to feel like you're not bad people. People don't want to look at themselves in a critical light. That's normal. In fact, I find that British people like to think that they're not racist like those Americans. Racist America is something that British people seem to be fascinated by, perhaps because it makes them feel better about themselves. But there is plenty of racism here. I noticed that the British students weren't as rattled by the taunts as their white pals and teachers were. They were already accustomed to hearing it.
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elephants-are-cool-8@reddit

Yeah, I live up North in a more diverse area, and white/indian kids with black friends say the n word in front of them. Not *to* them, but the word is definitely thrown around. When I lived in London though, I never heard it. And when I lived in a pretty much all-white small village as a kid, there weren't any black people for me to hear the n-word directed at, but there was a fair bit of racism from kids.
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Educational_Score389@reddit

I think the network juiced the program by placing the kids in rural Arkansas. Most households in America don't own guns (but many of the people that do own \*a lot\* of guns), most people in America live in cities or suburbs. It would have been way more realistic to send them someplace like suburban Chicago.
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Regular-Cod-4312@reddit

i think its done purposely to show a complete, stark contrast. entertainment and shock value
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Wednesdayspirit@reddit

Ngl, the American families seemed way more connected with each other. Hilighted how introverted and smart phone addicted uk kids are.
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sgst@reddit

To be fair, it's really comparing apples and oranges. One lot come from a place where there's lots of space to enjoy nature together, land is cheap and probably only one parent works, so someone (probably the mom) is able to focus on family unity and stuff. Vs inner city London kids who's single parents are probably working two jobs just to get by. Just saying that it's not necessarily anything that the kids or parents are doing, culturally, that's different. Just that they're all products of their respective environments, and those environments are really different! I kind of wish they'd done an urban New York & London swap, or something. All that said I've only watched the first episode so far, so I might be talking crap.
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MasterConclusion9509@reddit

Yeah it was more about an urban vs rural comparison, the pros and cons to each, which was cool in itself. Urban has the advantages of diversity and intellectualism and disadvantage of crowding and overworked parents. And so much more obvs
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OctopusIntellect@reddit

Yes they deliberately chose two areas that were as unlike each other as possible, so it's not in fact a comparison of the UK and USA at all really. Similar format to "Wife Swap", for similar reasons.
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AonghusMacKilkenny@reddit

Definitely, which is interesting considering smart phones aren't banned in the American school
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OctopusIntellect@reddit

Controversially for the prevailing narrative, it made it appear that the UK kids' having a total ban on phones in school, made them *less* able to control and regulate their phone addiction. The U.S. kids by contrast, were used to having their phones available to them all the time, so they knew to put them down when they needed to concentrate and pay attention to lessons.
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Successful_Fish4662@reddit

That’s entirely up to each school district, and there are thousands in the US. In my state, most schools ban them.
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complacencyfirst@reddit

I just got back from a trip out there to national parks and you always see big families out camping together, it's really sweet and sometimes I wish I'd had that sort of childhood tbh. I think they are a lot more family orientated than we are.
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Wednesdayspirit@reddit

Yeah it made me think I’d be a lot happier over there… apart from the political situation and no NHS. They people just seemed nicer to each other.
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complacencyfirst@reddit

I hate the political situation over there and yet I still think about living there every single day, I miss it all the time that I am here. We go out there for two weeks twice a year and I always feel so happy, and actually healthier too. We usually hike every single day of the trip, the climate forces me to drink more water, the air is cleaner, the climate out west seems to generally be good for my health except hayfever... then I have to come home :/.
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Successful_Fish4662@reddit

This is so interesting to read as an American…as many problems as we have , outdoor recreation has always been a core part of our culture. Hell, it’s a rite of passage for young boys to bike around town with their fishing gear and go find a fishing hole. Even just basic stuff like that!
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OctopusIntellect@reddit

For some people in the UK it's like that too. Within a few miles of our house you see kids on their own or in small groups fishing.
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complacencyfirst@reddit

It makes a huge difference tbh, we generally go on shoulder season trips out there, say May and October or this year we did March and will go again in Sept, and the winter between trips I get super unfit and have to get into shape again on the trails. Weather is the biggest issue, but also nature is less accessible here. I can't choose a park to visit that is like your national and state parks and national monuments and know it will have parking avaliable, water fill up places, vault toilets at trailheads for free, free maps... infact I can almost guarantee it won't. Nobody I know fishes or hunts, you can't really camp anywhere nice. I hope Agent Orange Dumbass doesn't ruin it with these cuts to the Department of the Interior.
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MasterConclusion9509@reddit

I thought it was interesting because I'm from CA and so much of what they experienced in Arkansas was as foreign to me as it was to the UK kids. In fact I thought, how strange that the US cities have more in common with the EU cities than their own country in some ways
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lickyagyalcuz@reddit

Lucky the UK kids managed to get back still alive.
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GuyOnTheInterweb@reddit

Probably some US parents thought so too, one of the British boys had been threatened with a knife just for going to basketball practice..
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randymysteries@reddit (OP)

Two UK girls were shown how to shoot a revolver and a shotgun with a scope. Their instructor said people carry guns to protect themselves. One of the girls remarked that they carry guns to protect themselves against people who carry guns. The Mobius strip of gun logic.
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randymysteries@reddit (OP)

! answer Thanks
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Missing-Caffeine@reddit

I was about to say "No bloody way I would let my daughter go to a school in the US" 😅
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martzgregpaul@reddit

This was my thought too. I wonder if they had Vietnam War style PTSD 😄
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Suspicious-Life7739@reddit

I used to go to this school guy who dated american girl called my mum racist for no reason
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Lonehorns@reddit

I’ve just seen this now after I watched the last episode on catch-up. As someone who’s half-British and half-American, it was a really interesting watch. It was quite telling to me that at the end of it, all the British kids loved their time in the US while only one American kid felt the same about their time in the UK. I went to a British high school so I don’t have an American point of reference for comparison, but the American school seemed to me as being much better in actually creating well-rounded human beings rather than just education factories pushing rote memorisation for the sole purpose of passing exams. To be honest, that programme made me wish I’d gone to high school in the US. I had a god awful time in high school in the UK and was left with a very negative opinion of the UK education system in general. I think the UK puts heaps of pressure on students to pass their exams, and the entire school experience is centred around that while the US system allows more freedom and scope for kids to be kids and develop both personally and academically while not putting nearly as much pressure on their overall mental health and wellbeing.
View on Reddit #52132816

luna1uvgood@reddit

I did like the emphasis on sports and school community. I feel like in the UK, thats not as much of a thing. I know when I was at school, they had clubs you could join, but it was rare that people would get involved as much as everyone was desperate to go home, where as there it seems as though most students are doing some sort of extracurricular activities.
View on Reddit #52307901

Longjumping_Buy1329@reddit

Absolutely agree with your comment 100%. 💯💯💯💯💯👍👍👍👍👍
View on Reddit #52134915

ClarifyingMe@reddit

I'll give it a watch and get back to you but I won't be able to answer your question about if students from the US are really like that as I've never schooled or worked there.
View on Reddit #51567734

HibiscusWanderer@reddit

I agree completely, so many other States in the US that are different to inner city London which aren’t racist. Black trauma porn is so tired and played out🥱
View on Reddit #52235207

Deep_Body6445@reddit

Just finished the show. What an incredibly moving piece of television. And an amazing group of teenagers - I cried and cried and cried.
View on Reddit #52206246

Longjumping_Buy1329@reddit

The chemistry between American Exchange Student Waylon and UK student Magda was absolutely brilliant especially when going to the homecoming party together.
View on Reddit #52184886

WinglessArchangel@reddit

It was Eli who got together with Magda, not Waylon. Waylon was the loner cowboy kid who didn’t really make that many connections with anyone but whose family back home were super welcoming and hospitable to DJ. Eli was the kid whose parents hosted Magda.
View on Reddit #52189440

robrt382@reddit

What's quite mad is that I have the subtitles on for the UK kids and teachers, it's not just me either, my own children are leaning in in order to understand them. The Americans less so.
View on Reddit #51576047

WinglessArchangel@reddit

I had zero problem understand any of the kids, including the British ones…
View on Reddit #52188971

Longjumping_Buy1329@reddit

It was very interesting when the American Exchange Students had a opportunity to explore London outside of school like when they all went to Oxford, Waylon went to Brixton Market, Waylon's host family taking him to Folkestone in Kent and the 2 British male students taking the 2 Female American exchange students to a takeaway for a meal whilst in school uniform.
View on Reddit #52185306

Longjumping_Buy1329@reddit

The teachers at Mena high school were so lovely and very friendly towards the UK Exchange Students.
View on Reddit #52184987

suckmy79inchpp@reddit

Why they putting black kids in a racist ahh town bro 💀
View on Reddit #52183708

Longjumping_Buy1329@reddit

Brilliant 3 part documentary by Channel 4.
View on Reddit #52134683

Sympathy-Putrid@reddit

Nice that they chose good kids to take part which allows the focus to be on the culture differences, rather than creating unnecessary drama
View on Reddit #51678725

PinkPeach___@reddit

it was sad seeing the black british kid getting called the n word
View on Reddit #51589247

Appropriate-Bad-9379@reddit

It made me cry…
View on Reddit #51579637

Acceptable_Candle580@reddit

I don't watch trash on tv, but I imagine it was scripted in such a way to make your surprised.
View on Reddit #51578049

AonghusMacKilkenny@reddit

Found it really interesting, looking forward to the 3rd episode
View on Reddit #51570588

PetersMapProject@reddit

It's an interesting little watch for what it is - better than I thought it was going to be.  It's a nice cultural exchange, and certainly getting some kids out of their comfort zones. If they had picked children who were better travelled then I'm sure it wouldn't have made quite such good TV - but the kids stay picked are the ones who stand to gain most from having their horizons widened.  Even some of the American adults seem to have had their horizons widened a little - like the teacher who was amazed to hear that our police don't routinely carry guns because there's no need. 
View on Reddit #51568354

LooselyBasedOnGod@reddit

Watched first ep with my daughter, enjoyed it. Of course they aren’t “all like that” lol
View on Reddit #51567983

lee6870@reddit

I enjoyed it, they were spot on about the girl always being on her phone and not taking in the experience.
View on Reddit #51567793

cyclingisthecure@reddit

Like what
View on Reddit #51567609

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AutoModerator@reddit

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View on Reddit #51567361