Conversation Partner Part 2

            I had my second meeting with Terrence last Thursday in Union Grounds. I was running a couple minutes late so when I got there, he had just eaten Chic Fil A for the first time and he loved it! He said the biggest difference between China and America is the food. He told me that he—along with every other student at TCU—is already sick of the BLUU food. He keeps telling me about a Chinese restaurant that is nearby that he loves so I’m glad he’s found something nearby that reminds him of home.

            Terrence was excited to tell me about his best friend who is transferring to TCU next semester. He goes to a school in Missouri and he came to visit Terrence last weekend to see if he liked TCU. He said they walked around TCU and then went to Dallas to shop for gifts to bring back to his family over Christmas break. I asked him why his friend was transferring and he said that the school in Missouri has very few students from China so he felt lonely and out of place. I asked Terrence if TCU had a lot of Chinese students and he laughed and shook his head no. He said that we have more than his friend did though. I asked if Terrence ever gets lonely and he said that he doesn’t. He misses his family a lot, but he talks to all his friends from home and has made lots of new friends here already. I think that going off to college is scary and overwhelming enough—I can’t imagine going to a college in a new country!! Terrence seems very independent though and I’m sure he’s had to become even more self-sufficient since he’s been here.

            I was happy that Terrence took more of an interest in getting to know me this time we met. I was wearing my purple scrubs because I had just come from the hospital so he started asking me lots of questions about the nursing program and what I want to do. I love talking about nursing so I was glad that he was interested in hearing about it. This also led him to talk about his mom for the first time. He didn’t have the words to really describe what she did but from what I could tell she is the equivalent of a dermatologist here but she mainly performs cosmetic procedures. He was very proud when he talked about both of his parents and it was obvious that he admired them very much.

            Terrence and I spent most of our time talking about school. I asked him about how his classes were going and he made a comment about having to do so many projects. He has group projects, presentations, class discussions, and other activities that I think are very commonplace in the typical college classroom. He said that he has never had to do anything like that before when he was in China. I asked him what his classes were like and he told me that the teachers just lectured and the students weren’t supposed to participate at all. They never had active discussions, definitely no presentations or group projects, and questions weren’t even encouraged. In Chinese schools it is expected that you take notes and listen and there is no importance placed on active participation. This is the opposite of most college classes in America—at least the ones I’ve been. Teachers here usually include participation as part of their students’ grades and there are almost always presentations and group projects in the class as well.

            I learned that similar to America national pride was very important in China as well. Every Monday at Terrence’s school, they would wear their uniforms and all the students and teachers would come together in the morning and say something similar to our pledge of allegiance. This was an important way they show their loyalty to their country.

            I am excited to meet with Terrence again this week and continue to learn more about him and his culture!