Hosting international students from China will teach you a lot about their country and culture. Before you do this, though, consider the following cultural differences that might otherwise get in the way.<\/p>\n
Chinese People Have Fewer Inappropriate Topics<\/p>\n
In America, we tend to say you should never bring up sex, politics or religion, at least not at the dinner table.<\/p>\n
Other topics we tend to avoid would include age and income level. You\u2019re simply not supposed to ask an adult about either.<\/p>\n
This isn\u2019t really the case in China. There are definitely limits to all of these topics, but Chinese international students come from a country where it\u2019s considered very acceptable to talk about these things.<\/p>\n
But They Are Also Less Direct<\/p>\n
In America, you\u2019re supposed to state your opinions and defend them when they\u2019re challenged. This doesn\u2019t mean you have to be rude, of course. It\u2019s just the expectation in our culture.<\/p>\n
Despite the fact that the Chinese will approach a wider range of topics, they\u2019re also more indirect. They do this as a sign of respect, though.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, this means international students may simply nod when you express your opinions, even though they don\u2019t actually agree. They\u2019re just trying to avoid a confrontation.<\/p>\n
Respect for Elders<\/p>\n
If you have a teenager, this might be a nice change of pace. In China, respecting one\u2019s elders is seen as every person\u2019s moral duty. \u201cPolite\u201d to us is a priority to them. Don\u2019t be surprised if your student treats you and other adults with a lot more deference than you\u2019re used to. At first, this might mean that they have a hard time assimilating with your family as they see you as being on a bit of a pedestal.<\/p>\n
With any luck, this trait and respect for elders will rub off on your own kids.<\/p>\n
The Meaning of \u201cFriends\u201d<\/p>\n
The Chinese have a very different \u2013 albeit wonderful \u2013 idea of what a \u201cfriend\u201d is. Here in America, we tend to describe just about anyone we know as a friend. This can include anyone from coworkers to neighbors to the parents of our children\u2019s friends.<\/p>\n
In China, \u201cfriend\u201d is almost a sacred title. It refers to a permanent relationship where one would always do whatever they could for the other.<\/p>\n
Therefore, you may need to provide some clarification or they\u2019ll be very confused when you ask if they made any friends after their first day of school.<\/p>\n
The Chinese Value Education a Lot<\/p>\n
In China, one\u2019s work ethic is a real point of pride. Getting bad grades in China would be a real source of embarrassment.<\/p>\n
This is important to understand when hosting Chinese international students. Even though they\u2019re here to learn about the United States, they still want to do well at school. If they\u2019re constantly hitting the books, know that this is probably their habit. They\u2019re not trying to avoid you or having fun with the family.<\/p>\n
Individualism Isn\u2019t Really a Thing<\/p>\n
We\u2019re not saying that international students don\u2019t understand they\u2019re individuals, but the concept of individuality doesn\u2019t nearly have the same reputation as it does here in the United States.<\/p>\n
In this country, individuality is sewn into its fabric. When you win or succeed, it\u2019s largely because you put in the time and worked hard at your goal.<\/p>\n
International students from China come from a culture where the credit would be shared with their country, community, team, family, etc.<\/p>\n
This may throw you at first when you try complimenting them for their grades, athletic performance, etc. It\u2019s not bad to do so, just know that they aren\u2019t used to the idea of individualism like we are.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Hosting international students from China will teach you a lot about their country and culture. Before you do this, though, consider the following cultural differences that might otherwise get in the way. Chinese People Have Fewer Inappropriate Topics In America, we tend to say you should never bring up sex, politics or religion, at least not at the dinner table. Other topics we tend to avoid would include age and income level. You\u2019re simply not supposed to ask an adult…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_s2mail":"yes"},"categories":[35,66],"tags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ushhost.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/999"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ushhost.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ushhost.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ushhost.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ushhost.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=999"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.ushhost.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/999\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1000,"href":"https:\/\/www.ushhost.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/999\/revisions\/1000"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ushhost.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=999"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ushhost.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=999"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ushhost.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=999"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}