Questions: And lots of them from my friends that were living overseas. One of the most memorable ones being those such as ‘Do you have supermarkets down there?’ and of course, my personal favorite, ‘Do you ride to school on elephants?’
I have to admit that I myself was greatly uneducated about this beautiful country full of potential until I moved here and coming here was a revelation. It really made me think about how uneducated people (including myself) generally are of other countries and cultures.
Growing up, while going to school, we are taught to think a certain way. We establish our own notions of how certain people, groups and countries are meant to be. These stereotypes often stay with us throughout our lifetime until we meet these alleged stereotypes face-to-face and find that these illusive images are shattered before our very eyes.
Now it must be kept in mind: How can we help groups of people in foreign countries if we’re not even intimate with what their needs are? When most people think of Africa they think of HIV positive babies, and people living in huts, not realizing that the problems run so much deeper than that and are in fact, with simpler solutions than is believed. What’s to say that the same situation can’t apply to other countries?
The solution to all these problems can be found in education. Educating the children of the world-the future of the world- and people in positions of power to be fully aware of issues surrounding people like them in other countries. Education, although a wonderful thing that opens many doors and windows, can also limit us because it can teach us to think in a rigid way. We must be careful as to how people are educated when it comes to learning about other countries and cultures.
For me, the best education has been the exposure of other countries and cultures giving me the ultimate experiences that no high school classroom could ever give me. It teaches one to be open-minded and the same can be achieved for future generations because if we’re not prepared to lose sight of the shore and be exposed to the unknown, how can we reach and explore new oceans?
It is only when we understand others fully that we can be in the position to reach out a helping hand. It is only when we become educated in every sense of the word that we be in the position to make sure that money is funded in the right way for the right causes, that people who need to most help are reached quickly and, when trying to infiltrate our idealisms into different cultures that we don’t impose ourselves and instead relating to other people on a level that both sides can understand.
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