ERIC Number: ED231227
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 1983-May
Pages: 9
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Redirecting Student Interests: Africa and Asia.
Blake, Lincoln C.
Suggestions for students preparing for foreign study in Asia and Africa are presented. It is noted that cooperation and peace may be linked to developing successful programs in the non-Western world. The brief time that students spend in the host country enables the student to describe what the foreign values seem to be, but probably without penetrating deeply into why those structures operate as they do. The students are more likely to gain new perspectives on their own ideas and behavior. It is necessary to travel, experience, and study in these parts of the world in order to gain awareness of the people and life. To make the encounter as insightful as possible an orientation is very important. In addition to the obvious topics such as passports, clothing, and health needs, other matters are more subtle, such as the appropriate gifts to take, information about travel on site, receiving/sending mail or phone messages, and warnings peculiar to each country. Orientation should also make students more fully aware of themselves as Americans, since they will stand out as Americans and probably as whites, and will discover a host of stereotypes attached to them. Finally, appropriate coursework in preparation for foreign study is important. The student should be familiar with the history and current politics of the host nation, and the daily habit of reading a newspaper from the host coutnry is valuable. The difficulties of encountering the Kenya culture and constraints felt by American students studying in China are briefly addressed. (SW)
Publication Type: Speeches/Meeting Papers; Guides - Non-Classroom
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Africa; Asia
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A