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Children on own in foreign country

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  • 27-09-2012 10:40pm
    #1
    SureYWouldntYa
    Registered Users Posts: 7,724 ✭✭✭


    A brother of mine went to France as part of a school trip this week

    Long story short the 20+ children of ages 13/14 are staying in families on their own, not 2/3 to a house, on your own with strange people.

    The parents association were only notified that the children would be staying alone the week before departing with money for trip paid.

    They were also assured that at least 1 person in each house would be fluent in English. This is certainly not the case where my brother is stayin with the only real form of communication Google Translate.

    Several children wanted to come home but were told it would cost in excess of €1100 to bring them home early.

    Surely its not right or legal for children to have to stay on their own in a foreigh country like this ?


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    #2
    ResearchWill
    Closed Accounts Posts: 4,111 ✭✭✭ResearchWill


    Great way to learn French.


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    #3
    Bannasidhe
    Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 19,219 Mod ✭✭✭✭Bannasidhe


    I've known Swiss kids of the same age who have come here and found themselves in the same situation.


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    #4
    ResearchWill
    Closed Accounts Posts: 4,111 ✭✭✭ResearchWill


    Youth today, when I was that age you counted yourself lucky if you went to the Gaeltacht for a couple of weeks, the rain pissing on ya and 20 kids per room.


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    #5
    Thoie
    Registered Users Posts: 6,344 ✭✭✭Thoie


    That's how all school exchanges worked when I was that age. You went there, stayed with a family who had a kid around your age, went to school with them during the day, and some evenings there'd be organised activities. Then some time later, "your" kid would come stay with your family in Ireland for a week or so, going to school with you.

    Some people were homesick (pre internet and mobile phone days), some people hated the families they were with, no-one died.

    A teacher from your school (who spoke the language) would travel with the party and help out if needed.

    Last minute flights are expensive, and Ryanair and AerLingus don't take unaccompanied minors, so options for coming home early are limited, unless a parent can fly/ferry over to collect them.


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    #6
    MagicSean
    Closed Accounts Posts: 9,897 ✭✭✭MagicSean


    So you knew they'd be on their own before they but still consented? What's the problem?


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    #7
    krd
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 3,455 ✭✭✭krd


    SureYWouldntYa wrote: »
    Surely its not right or legal for children to have to stay on their own in a foreigh country like this ?

    Sounds like Lord of the Flies to me.


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    #8
    coylemj
    Registered Users Posts: 25,345 ✭✭✭✭coylemj


    SureYWouldntYa wrote: »
    Long story short the 20+ children of ages 13/14 are staying in families on their own, not 2/3 to a house, on your own with strange people.

    Were you explicitly told that there would be 2 or 3 Irish pupils in each house? There aren't that many families anywhere that can take in that many students and still have their own children hanging around the place.

    Surely if two or three Irish kids were placed in each house, they wouldn't learn any French because they'd be talking (in English) to each other all the time?

    And your thread title is misleading, they are not 'on their own', they're placed with families as you've stated, presumably in a house with a mother, father and at least one child of their own who is of the same age and gender as the visiting Irish student.


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