Guest family’s accommodation is a solution many people prefer when choosing a traveling and educating option for their children. This has led to educational industry’s increase in the number of people traveling to foreign countries for study. Usually parents cannot afford to pay for expensive accommodations and, at the same time, they want someone to look after their child. Some people choose to live in a guest family and get opportunity to obtain additional conversational practice in a foreign language and to experience living in another culture while getting some training. In this article, you will learn everything you need to know about guest families as well as pros and cons of living with people of another culture.
Guest families and their pecularities
As a rule, these are ordinary people of average income who are driven by a desire to expand their horizons, to get acquaintance with a new culture, to find foreign friends, as well as to obtain an opportunity to make some extra money. An occupation of the members of a guest family can be different ranging from teachers and lawyers to policemen, and nurses.
In general, full families with children are selected for the role of hosts but incomplete families with pensioners and childless couples may also take this role. The native language of hosts is factored in order to avoid hosting persons speaking the same language. This is needed to ensure the maximum immersion into a foreign language environment.
Residence period
The length of stay of students in a guest family is affected by a duration of the student’s education. However, most common is a month; this period is quite enough to accommodate fully into the other cultural environment.
Advantages
1) This type of accommodation is suitable primarily for those students who want to practice or improve the language skills acquired in school. Here we are talking not only about acquiring the conversational skills but also the possibilities to better understand foreign non-verbal ways of communication (gestures, acceptable personal space distances between the interlocutors, permissible tactile contact, etc.).
2) Living in a guest family also allows learning the peculiarities of the culture where a person has chosen to study.
3) Upon arrival at the host’s place, a student will be introduced to all the family members, shown the room, told about the living conditions, the area, transport, and the rules that are accepted in that particular house.
4) There are certain requirements for a student’s room for a hosting family: it must be in good condition having heating and lighting, a wardrobe, a mirror, a table, a chair, a good bed, and blankets. Bed linen and towels must be changed every week with laundry being provided once a week. All this is needed to ensure that a person can do their homework with no problem. However, if they are faced with some difficulties, they can try out this custom homework writing service.
For more information regarding guest families’ rooms, you can do some basic research on the Internet to see what the rooms are like in a chosen country. If the accommodation is offered in a house as opposed to an apartment, there is a chance that the student’s room will be located on the uppermost floor – the former attic converted into a bedroom. In this case, the walls of the room may be tilted.
5) A student gets access to a common bathroom and toilet room, as well as other amenities, including a common recreation area, a veranda (if available) and a kitchen. Some families even allow using their garage. In addition, a student can be provided with some breakfast or breakfast + lunch option with the lunch being packed in a special container by one of the host members so that the student can take it to school. On weekends, as a rule, three meals a day are served in all families.
Disadvantages
1) When traveling abroad, it must be borne in mind that hosts can belong to different cultures and religions, have their own ways of life, to which a student will need to adjust. This can become quite a challenge for an ordinary person.s
2) For the period of residence, the student becomes a full member of the family with their own rights and responsibilities. They should be ready to clean the dishes after the meal, as well as their own room, wash their laundry, etc. One should not forget also to lock the entrance door as they go to school or elsewhere.
3) When living in a guest family, it is also necessary to be prepared for the fact that the food offered may differ from what a student is used to eating at home. However, they should not get upset but take it as a new experience. In addition, they can teach the hosts to cook their favorite dishes.
4) Since a student is going to live in a host’s house but not in a hotel, they should behave properly and follow the established rules. It is about the daily routine. Of course, the owners of the house give the house key to their guest, but this does not mean that the student can come at night and disturb the family members with noise. If a student is going to stay late in the library, they should warn the hosts in advance to avoid a misunderstanding.
What should one do in case of problems?
Being in a new family and having no one who understands their native language, students may have some questions they need to get answers to. The smartest thing to do would be to sit down with the guest family and discuss the issues.
Conclusion
Living abroad will provide a student with plenty of experience and fun adventures. They will be able to sample a new culture and learn how people live there, what their traditions are and much more. It is a life-changing experience that can teach you a lot.
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