By Faryal Fatima (YES 2019-20, Pakistan, hosted by AIFS/AYA in Veneta, OR)

My experience during international education week was awesome. The best thing was that people showed a lot of respect and interest in learning about my country.

In my U.S. history class, I got the chance to tell the students about the history of Pakistan. Most people here cannot differentiate between Pakistan and India. Whenever they see Pakistani stuff, they think that it’s Indian. I explained to my peers how Pakistan and India are related and how Indians and Pakistanis used to live together in the past.

In my Crafts class, I told the students about henna and its importance in our culture. I told them about my national language "Urdu" and then wrote their names on their hands with henna in Urdu.

In my World Literature class, I asked the students if they wanted me to tell them about something about my country or choose one topic for discussion. Majority of them wanted me to talk about Kashmir issue. The conversation between me and my fellows went really well. I was surprised by how much they knew about Kashmir issue. My teacher was also proud of us for having such an enriching and informative conversation.

I also gave a presentation at a local library for my community. The best part was talking to mothers and students individually about the YES program and answering their questions about my home country. IEW is a great opportunity to immerse yourself into your American community and teach them about your country and I am glad I was able to take advantage of it.