David:

　　In 1989 I studied Chinese for one semester at Peking University. At the time I was an undergrad at Georgetown University studying international relations. I wanted to learn a foreign language, and because I had an intense interest in China, I chose Chinese. It happened that Georgetown had an international student exchange program, so I came to study at Beida.

　　That was the first time I'd ever lived in China. My understanding of the country was still rather superficial, based as it was on reading rather than experience. As soon as I set foot on the Beida campus, I wanted to make the fullest possible use of my time to get to know China. I arrived one evening in January, just before the Spring Festival, and was put up in the Shaoyuan, the residential area for foreign students. From the very first minute I was eager to brave the bitter cold and walk around outside a bit. But, man①, was it cold! That was actually my first impression of Beijing.

　　The next morning I went out to explore the campus by daylight. At the library I started talking to some Chinese students. From that first full day in China, I started exchanging views with Chinese students and getting to know more about their lives.

　　I feel that that period in my life was extremely valuable. When you're studying abroad, you ought to learn as much as you can about the language and the culture in which you're operating. Of course, you can learn a lot in class, but extracurricular activities are also very important for one's understanding of a society and culture, not to mention one's grasp of the colloquial form of a language.

　　In those days, I used my bike or rode buses every day, and I sought out opportunities to speak Chinese with my Chinese classmates. Back then, Chinese students regarded American students very warmly; you could strike up a conversation with just about anyone you ran into.

　　By chatting with people and circulating in society I learned a lot of things. For instance, I learned how important food and cooking are in Chinese culture. I would often eat jiaozi and other kinds of Chinese food with my Chinese classmates, and then we'd go off to see famous sites together. This experience was very precious to me.

　　But I've observed that the experiences of Chinese exchange students in the US are somewhat different from what mine were in China. Although there are some 200,000 Chinese exchange students in America, the majority of them hardworking and accomplished, many of these students fail to seize the opportunity to gain experience of mainstream American social life. Most spend the bulk of their time with other Chinese students. After class, they speak Chinese and watch Chinese videos, and they also spend the New Year's, Spring Festival, and Christmas holidays with Chinese, not American, classmates.

　　Sure, these students do well in class, but they end up with a very spotty understanding of American society, culture, politics, music and the like. When I meet a young Chinese who is about to go to the US to study, this is always my advice: "Do your best to engage American society. Try to understand how Americans think about issues. Use this time to make a real contribution to the cause of US-China cultural exchange."

　　Victor:

　　From 2000 to 2001, I studied at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government. In the course of my year there, we did a lot of work communicating and interacting with other foreign students. For example, we did a "Foods of the World Day" where had delicacies from Europe, Africa, Asia and elsewhere. We also held an "Experience China" lecture series. We used these opportunities to strengthen our contacts with international students.

　　One of the changes I underwent was coming to understand that in a lot of areas of the humanities, there aren't set "rights" and "wrongs", but instead a mass of cultural differences. You have to give people "living space". You need to transcend your own cultural constraints and try to mesh well into other cultures; no one person is necessarily right. At Harvard, as long as you were able to defend your position cogently, with good logical arguments, you could get an A.

　　I experienced a second change with regard to my methods of interpersonal communication. Chinese students tend to excel at doing homework and taking tests, but they don't perform as well when they discuss issues or explain their views in front of large groups, or even in ordinary conversation. This causes them to lose a lot of points, and also credibility. In the past, interpersonal communication skills were not emphasized in China, so studying abroad is an extremely important experience for Chinese.(to be continued)(听英文51176,文章注释511761,作者简介511762)

　　相关链接：每个留学生都是大使