Source: BBC News >> Read Full Article and Comment
Would you send your young child abroad to live with another family for six months?
Katy Salmon and her young son talked to BBC Radio 5 live’s Victoria Derbyshire about the “extreme exchange” scheme.
In six weeks’ time, Jonathan Salmon will travel to France – where for six months he’ll stay with a French family he’s barely met.
Jonathan will be calling his new “parents” mummy and daddy, he will attend a French school and be forced to speak in French – despite knowing little of the language.
Contact with his family will be limited to letters and one telephone call a week.
Jonathan is nine years old.
“Anxious”
“We are really strongly discouraged from actually seeing him,” says Katy Salmon.
“The only circumstance in which I would see him is if there is a problem that I feel I need to get out there and talk to him face-to-face.”
Ms Salmon, who used to teach languages in a secondary school, admits that she is concerned about the “extreme exchange” trip, which has been organised by French firm En Famille International.
“I’m very, very anxious about it”, she told BBC Radio 5 live’s Victoria Derbyshire.
“We actually home educate, so I’m used to having all the children around all the time, and sort of knowing as soon as there’s any problem and being able to deal with it straightaway, and obviously that’s not going to be the case when he’s in France.”
But while his mother may be worried, Jonathan says that he’s “very excited” about living abroad and chose to go so that he can “learn good French and know other people”.
Jonathan and his family, who are based in Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, heard about the scheme from friends who also home educated their children.
They found out more after attending a national meeting… Continue Reading
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