Hi friends!
The first Skype exchange was something really amazing! First of all this new tool seems to be a sort of bridge to the U.S. students in Pennsylvania…they are so far from us but so willing to share with us their experiences!
I spent an hour talking with Anne, a very nice girl. Managing the conversation was easier for me than for her because Anne’s smiling face was on the screen so that I read her lips while she was talking (a considerable advantage!).
We had a quite long talk in English about our lives as students: we both tried to point out the similarities and the differences between the American and Italian educational systems. As I wrote on wiki, what struck me was an intelligent question she asked me when we switched into Italian: “Does meritocracy is important in Italy?” I answered that it should be; actually it isn’t. Arguing about this topic took me ten minutes: finding the proper words to express my opinion clearly using simple Italian vocabulary wasn’t such an easy thing! At the end she simply said: “Do you mean that in Italy people often take advantage from other people?” …well, I think she’s very acute!
And what about students and professors relationship? I definitely think that here in Italy professors often tend to emphasize their superiority which is closely related to their background, while in the U.S. students consider professors like parents or friends: according to Anne professors are always there when students need a help or even just when they need to confide in someone.(not only during their classes!)
I perfectly know that this chat was probably full of stupid mistakes and the greatest thing is that I felt there was no need to worry: for the first time the most important thing was communicating making my partner understand all my thoughts and opinions. I must admit that this virtual exchange was truly significant both because I was directly connected with the U.S. and because my partner wasn't acting as a judge but she was (and she'll be) simply an attentive and helpful interlocutor making me meditate on my pronunciation and oral fluency.
The first Skype exchange was something really amazing! First of all this new tool seems to be a sort of bridge to the U.S. students in Pennsylvania…they are so far from us but so willing to share with us their experiences!
I spent an hour talking with Anne, a very nice girl. Managing the conversation was easier for me than for her because Anne’s smiling face was on the screen so that I read her lips while she was talking (a considerable advantage!).
We had a quite long talk in English about our lives as students: we both tried to point out the similarities and the differences between the American and Italian educational systems. As I wrote on wiki, what struck me was an intelligent question she asked me when we switched into Italian: “Does meritocracy is important in Italy?” I answered that it should be; actually it isn’t. Arguing about this topic took me ten minutes: finding the proper words to express my opinion clearly using simple Italian vocabulary wasn’t such an easy thing! At the end she simply said: “Do you mean that in Italy people often take advantage from other people?” …well, I think she’s very acute!
And what about students and professors relationship? I definitely think that here in Italy professors often tend to emphasize their superiority which is closely related to their background, while in the U.S. students consider professors like parents or friends: according to Anne professors are always there when students need a help or even just when they need to confide in someone.(not only during their classes!)
I perfectly know that this chat was probably full of stupid mistakes and the greatest thing is that I felt there was no need to worry: for the first time the most important thing was communicating making my partner understand all my thoughts and opinions. I must admit that this virtual exchange was truly significant both because I was directly connected with the U.S. and because my partner wasn't acting as a judge but she was (and she'll be) simply an attentive and helpful interlocutor making me meditate on my pronunciation and oral fluency.
