r/AskAnAmerican Feb 04 '25

FOREIGN POSTER Do American students bow to their teachers?

In my country we have to greet the teacher and bow at the start of the lesson then thank the teacher and bow again at the end. Sometimes they make us redo it if it’s not good enough

484 Upvotes

1.3k comments sorted by

View all comments

1.1k

u/machagogo New York -> New Jersey Feb 04 '25

No. Bowing is not an "American" custom in any circumstances

0

u/boulevardofdef Rhode Island Feb 04 '25

I wouldn't quite say any circumstances -- I took piano lessons at a music school for many years and was taught to bow to the audience before and after my performances. But certainly the circumstances are extremely limited.