The opportunity to come to the United States and spend a year here was something that I could not pass up. As an individual of Chinese background, I grew up on the opposite side of the world. We periodically learned of Chinese-American relations and the US but the last year that I have spent in the US has given me first hand experience of life in America. In this brief paper, we will discuss my experiences as an exchange student living within the United States.
Learning English is very difficult but I have worked hard and improved my writing skills. Again, there is only so much English that one can learn from a textbook or from a classroom about English (Romow Education Blog, n.d.). The last year has been a language immersion and I have learned a tremendous amount of information. Furthermore, I also picked up on some key differences between British English and the US English (Michigan Proficiency Exam, 2010). At school in China, we often learn British English so it was great to experience the subtle differences between the two.
Lastly, my experience with my host family has been excellent. They treated me with respect, gave a very comfortable place to stay, and included me in their family activities. In many ways, the experiences that I had with my host family solidified my understanding of American culture and English.