South African Schools vs. American Schools: What Surprised Us

Yellow school buses were the part we had seen in movies. The everyday differences were the surprise.

Nothing makes you realize how many things you consider “normal” quite like putting your child into school in another country.

First: the yellow school bus is real

I know Americans aren’t going to understand why this is exciting. But come on. The yellow school bus. We’ve seen them in American movies and television our entire lives, and suddenly our own child was going to school on one.

Then there was the uniform situation

For years, sending a child to school meant uniform, school shoes, neat hair and no makeup. Then suddenly our oldest was going to American middle school wearing ordinary clothes, hair loose, a little mascara and lip gloss.

The expectations here are simply more relaxed than what we were accustomed to. Different country, different norms. I’m learning too.

Guidance counselors and cafeterias

Before she started, we toured the school with her guidance counselor. That role itself felt unfamiliar, as did the range of subjects and choices available.

Then there was the cafeteria—another thing from the movies. In my South African school experience, we had a tuck shop. The American cafeteria system was another “Oh, so THAT’S actually a thing” moment.

School hours were the part I wasn’t prepared for

This became more than cultural curiosity. At one point I needed to be at work in Idaho at 7:30 in the morning while school started much later. The maths simply didn’t maths.

Later, our kindergartener’s school was close enough to be inside the walk zone—but she’s five. Before-and-after-school care with transportation was an option, but expensive. That was one of several factors that eventually made us rethink whether me working outside the home still made sense for our family.

Six months later

School doesn’t feel quite so foreign anymore. The girls are settled, we know the routines, and I’ve learned considerably more about American school schedules than I ever intended to know.