COIL–Collaborative Online International Learning
I am really grateful to have had the opportunity to speak with students at the American University in Cairo. During the initial meeting, it was a little difficult to have a conversation in our breakout rooms because we didn’t have much time after everyone shared their background. However, two students from AUC, Marina and Maelle, reached out to me for an interview. It took us a while to schedule the meeting, as we had difficulty figuring out the timing, especially the time difference, but we were finally able to meet over zoom.
During the interview, Marina and Maelle each asked me a different set of questions related to my culture. They were amazed that I share multiple cultures, as it isn’t a normal experience for them. Marina is from Egypt, and said that before college, she had never met anybody who wasn’t from Egypt, and that I was the first American she’s ever met. Maelle is from Cameroon, and also shared that she had never met people of different backgrounds until she went to an international school. They were interested in cultural stereotypes and discrimination in the U.S., and in how connected I am to either of my parents’ cultures, and to American culture. It was clear that they weren’t fully aware of the diversity within the U.S. I explained how American culture affects my life, but also how New Jersey culture, and Indian and Jewish culture do. They also had questions about racism in the U.S., and the American emphasis on success and climbing a socioeconomic ladder. We discussed how different ones’ life can be based on where they live. It was interesting to highlight these differences between our lives, but we also discussed some of our shared experiences. At one point, I showed them my henna, since I had just been to an Indian wedding, and Marina was excited. She exclaimed, “We do that here too!” I learned a lot from talking with them, and we were able to have a really great informal conversation about culture after they finished interviewing me. Marina and Maelle each told me about their families, and their perceptions of American culture, and what it is like to go to school in Cairo. All in all, we had a really great conversation, and I hope to stay in touch with both of them!
