Foreign student" is a state of mind
by Shelly Kalkowski
Ravi's footsteps echo as he walks
down the broad corridors of the Lincoln
Municipal Airport. For Ravi, a foreign
student from India, and many like him, it
is the first introduction to a new way of
life.
As a student at the University of
Nebraska-Lincoln, he will face a new and
sometimes insensitive educational system
complete with a difficult new system and
language. As a new resident of Lincoln,
he will face an unfamiliar economic and
legal system. And socially he will face a
different etiquette and sense of humor.
Ravi has left everything familiar to
him, entered a totally new environment,
and is about to become a victim of
cultural shock. He is liable to feel
depressed, irritable and annoyed with the
seeming lack of attention people around
him pay to his problems.
According to Dr. Robert K. Jones, a
Lincoln psychiatrist, this is caused mainly
by communication problems and, to a
lesser degree, by feelings of inadequacy
when the foreign student realizes he may
not be able to live up to the high goals he
usually sets for himself.
Cultural shock can be, and usually is,
conquered. Although many foreign
students refuse to talk about the
problem, one of the biggest aids in a
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student's recovery is knowing he's not
alone.
According to Rowena Boykin, UNL
foreign student advisor, all foreign
students suffer varying degrees of culture
shock. The seriousness of the condition
depends on how well the student knows
English and how sociable he is. The better
he can speak English and the more at ease
he is with new acquaintances, the easier it
is for him to adapt to the changes.
"And there is a relationship between
the seriousness of cultural shock and how
westernized their own country is,"
Boykin added.
She said foreign students tend to be
too ambitious when they first come to
the states. They usually want to carry 16
or 17 hours, not realizing the system may
be different.
In many foreign educational systems,
the final exam is the only thing that's
important.
Boykin tells how students with down
slips will say, 'They can't flunk me. I
didn't take the final." The students
assumed they would get an incomplete
if they didn't come for the exam.
Often, foreigners are not used to snap
quizzes, hour exams, and mandatory class
attendance. Because they do not have a
complete command of English, objective
tests tend to confuse foreign students.
Jorge Baca is a man with a mission.
"Since there are so many people
without an education in my country
(Peru), and I have the privilege of one,
I have to pay my people back. I have
an obligation to complete to help and
teach them."
So Jorge is on the plains of
Nebraska taking graduate courses in
food science, studying under the Latin
American Scholarship Program at
American Universities. When he
returns to Peru he not only plans to
teach, but also to advise local food
industries, set up experimental
programs in food science and even
do market research.
If all this sounds a little too
ambitious, you just don't know Jorge.
His life has always centered around
studying. At 15, he finished high
school. At 16, he left his father's ranch
to live alone and study in Lima, the
capital of Peru. He became involved in
politics as a delegate for the university
in the government. At 21, he
graduated near the top of his class.
Now, at 23, he has had one
semester of practice teaching, is
working in the UNL food sicnece lab
and owns his own ranch and 50 head
of cattlfl in Peru
Often, they have problems understanding
professors who speak rapidly or in
American idioms.
Although faculty prejudice cannot be
proven, Boykin also said she occasionally
notices something in a teacher's attitude
or tone of voice which might indicate an
anger or lack of understanding toward a
foreign student. She added that, in a few
cases, she's talked with faculty members
to prevent further misunderstandings.
The students themselves have little to
say about their academics. Most list
language difficulties and term papers as
their biggest problems.
One Nigerian undergraduate noted
that American educational programs
cover a wider variety of areas. He said this
liberal arts education makes it easier for
him to discuss numerous subjects.
The foreign student is then faced with
the problem of housing. Given UNL's
chronic shortage of housing, especially
for married students, well over 60 per
cent of the foreign students have to seek
off-campus housing. This compounds the
problem.
The students usually are struggling
financially and can't afford a car. Often
they are afraid of Nebraska weather, and
hesitate to buy a bike. So they are forced
into the tight market for apartments close
to campus.
But Jorge has his problems, chief
among them the English language.
While he has no problems with
technical or classroom English, he does
with every day English. This creates
problems of its own.
"When you don't know a language
well, you like to answer questions
rather than ask them," Jorge says. "In
other words, on most occasions you
are afraid of starting a conversation."
Jorge watches TV to practice his
English.
But even without the language
barrier, Jorge finds it hard to
communicate with Americans.
"You always have to put your hand
out first, before they will shake it," he
says. "Nothing comes from them. Our
backgrounds are so different, we
should try to understand and talk to
each other, rather than just a 'hello, a
smile, and a good-bye.' It seems that
you have to act some weird way, even
childish and foolish, in order to be
accepted by the Americans."
And it's not that he doesn't want to
communicate with Americans.
"It doesn't matter what country
you come from, love and
understanding are the most important
things to come along with people."