The U.S. Senate made 2006 the “Year of Study Abroad” by unanimous vote. With the Iraq war raging and anti-American sentiment abroad blazing, it was a bold move. And a necessary one.
Staying at home makes it easy for people to misunderstand the world outside our borders ? and for citizens of other countries to misunderstand the culture and politics of the United States. Those misunderstandings can pave the way to serious and petty conflicts alike.
Thousands of U.S. students learning another language and culture may not prevent another war, but today?s college students will be some of America?s future leaders. It follows that those who have spent time abroad will be better equipped to work in the increasingly global business world and influence public opinion about foreign affairs, not to mention craft economic and foreign policy.
Thankfully more students, including myself, have experienced life abroad than ever before. The number of students earning credit abroad has more than doubled since 1991-2, from 71,154 to 174,629, according to a report by the Institute of International Education.
Last summer, I sat next to an elderly man at a hostel in Nice, France, who gave me an unsolicited lesson in French.
“So what do you think of [Jacques] Chirac?” he asked me in between an explanation of French verbs. My mouth hung open. What in the world did I think of Chirac?
Suddenly, French current affairs were interesting. I still keep up on news throughout Europe, and I know that I am not alone. Studying abroad, be it academically, seriously or at a countries-long pub crawl, means talking politics. Students can?t afford the American traveling island, with its worldwide hotel chains, menus in English and souvenir strips. The result is a healthy dose of cultural contact.
Elizabeth Nutting, a recent graduate from the University of Maryland with degrees in history and Spanish, studied abroad in Spain and Beirut, Lebanon, in the spring and summer of 2005.
“I got into some really interesting conversations,” she said. In Beirut “people were kind of afraid to talk about [politics],” she said. But once they opened up, she said, they would talk about “how they felt about U.S. foreign policy and that was really interesting. In general,I never met a single person who wasn?t against the [Iraq] war.”
Nutting?s experience in the Middle East got her “really interested” in its political history, prompting her to do the research all Americans should be doing for a better understanding of foreign policy.
At the very least, studying abroad reminds us of our shared humanity. I remember telling a Pole that I had recently come from a conference on the European Union. His eyes widened with curiosity, and the conversation went something like this: “You are an American, so you aren?t as invested in the success of the EU itself,” he said. “You are more objective. Tell me what you think of a united Europe.”
In response, I mentioned the tension between the economic and political roles of the EU, and the confusion that spells for any kind of policy agreements in the future.
“It doesn?t seem like anyone is sure what it should be,” I said lamely.
To my surprise, my Polish friend burst out laughing, nodding in agreement.
Kristin Deasy, a Baltimore Examiner intern, is a senior at Gonzaga University, where she is pursuing a degree in journalism with minors in philosophy and music. Contact her at [email protected].
