By Masafumi Oe
Almost two months have passed since I arrived at Washington, the United States. I enjoy learning new things at Wenatchee Valley College as an international student.
I have three classes a day from Friday to Saturday. They are English 92, EAP075, and English 97. One period lasts 60 minutes. My first class starts at 9 o’clock, the second class at 10 o’clock and the third one at 12 o’clock.
English 92 is Reading. Almost all the students taking this course are not American students. The students learn how to read effectively. For example, we try to find the main idea of a paragraph.
EAP is for international students. There are five students. We learn about American culture, costumes, traditions and life style, American English pronunciation, listening and note-taking, conversation role playing and presentations. We practice conversation in easy English.
English 97 is Writing. Most of the students are native English speakers, so this class has only two international students. We learn how to write reader-centered paragraphs.
Although I have only three courses, I take classes every day and the teachers give the students a lot of assignments. So I am quite busy.
I have lunch time between the second class and the third class. Almost of all the time when I have lunch, I go back to the dorm and eat lunch like bread or chicken. Sometimes, I go to cafeteria and have lunch, but it is expensive.
After class, I have tutoring from 1 pm-5 pm every Tuesday and Thursday. This tutoring is for international students, and we can ask questions about classes or assignments. There are nine international students, and we have two teachers in this tutoring, so we can spend a meaningful time, and we can practice conversation in English as well. It is so helpful to study English.
On no tutoring day, I often go to gym and do exercise. There are various machines for workout, so I can do workout effectively. In addition, I always play basketball after workout. It is a good chance to make friends. In fact, I played basketball with strangers and then we became friends. When I study alone, I usually go to library. It is a good place to study because it is so quiet, and teacher helps me if I want. Also, there are many computers and printers that students can use. A study room can be reserved if a student wants to do group work.
The dorm where I live is so close to the campus. It takes just one minute to go to the dorm from the campus. I share one room with another student who is Japanese. I share a kitchen with 24 people and a shower room and bath room with six people. At first there were a bed and a cupboard for each person in the dorm room, so my roommate and I bought a refrigerator and bedding. There is a share room in the dorm. There I can talk with many students.
On weekends, I often go shopping. I can get on a bus for free because I am a student, so I go shopping by bus. It takes about five minutes to go to a small store. This store has grocery mainly. When I want to get more things, I go to a bigger store by taking a bus for 20 minutes. I also have a good time with my friends on weekends such as watching movies or shopping.
