The Chinese are coming – and in some surprising ways.
My alma mater, Michigan State University, had a spectacular and unusual football halftime show with a novel theme: China.
Reminiscent of the amazing opening and closing ceremonies of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Michigan State University’s halftime show was produced by artist Jennifer Wen Ma, part of a core creative team that designed the Beijing Olympics ceremonies. “The Art of the March: Cues from Sun Tzu’s ‘The Art of War’” was by far the most elaborate show that has ever been performed at the home of the Michigan State Spartans.
Why China?
“Jennifer has worked with our students and our visual staff to help us influence the audience in an entirely new way,” said John Madden, director of the Spartan Marching Band. “The intercultural payoff is immense, as the music, rhythm and movement are derived from Chinese folk and classical scores. The show will be musically exciting, visually complex and colorful, all fueled by a spirit of cross-campus collaboration and partnership.”
The show included over 600 performers, lights, drums, and Chinese musical arrangements, including the theme song from the spectacular film “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.” It was an amazing extravaganza.
Why go to such heights for a halftime American football show? It is all part of MSU’s effort to promote a better understanding of the Chinese culture. Chinese students make up the largest number of international students on campus—a number that had grown almost tenfold over the past decade, now numbering nearly 5,000 Chinese students.
This year also marks the 10th anniversary of MSU’s China Initiative, designed to expand the university’s presence and outreach in China through academic programming, research, and economic development.
The Chinese wave of students, products, businesses, investments, and opportunity will continue to wash up on our shores. Wise leaders are finding ways to assure that China’s continued rise does not come at our demise.
Governor Snyder Sets the Stage
Michigan’s Governor Snyder has made the Chinese influx benefit Michigan. Unlike what is taking place on the national stage, he is not interested in using China for division and subtraction. Rather, Snyder continues to build “win-win” relationships with China, creating an increasing number of jobs and investment opportunities.
Gov. Snyder has been aggressively marketing Michigan as both an immigrant and business-friendly state and has been equally aggressive in courting Chinese investment.
Jerry Xu, President of the Detroit Chinese Business Association, speaks highly of Snyder’s leadership, saying, “Investment goes where it is welcome and stays where it is nurtured. Governor Snyder is creating an environment for foreign capital to breed and grow.”
Bridging the Cultural Divide
Building cross-cultural, academic, scientific, and economic bridges is not easy. Breaking new ground never is.
Engaging and integrating foreign students, and specifically Chinese students, has not been without its challenges at MSU and campuses across America.
Chinese students face a sizable struggle adapting to the American learning environment and culture. There are language barriers, cultural differences, and various teaching and learning styles—all main causes of Chinese students’ challenges on American campuses.
MSU Chinese student Jason Wang explains the challenge in the Michigan State News, describing, “I try my best to fit in the group, but somehow it still can be hard.” Wang continued, “[It’s] not quite language; [I] took the language test.”
For many Chinese students, conversing with and understanding the vernacular of domestic students can be a taxing experience — the slang, jokes and cultural references used are rarely understood unless explained by the speaker or later researched.
Awkwardness can turn ugly and lead to discrimination which can and has popped up on campus. At Michigan State University, Chinese students have found their cars spray-painted with the words reading, “Go back home.”
In Inside Higher Ed, author Elizabeth Redden comments,
Such incidents may seem isolated, but experts say they are reflective of a widespread but little-discussed problem of discrimination against international students. Jenny J. Lee, an associate professor at the University of Arizona’s Center for the Study of Higher Education, describes the phenomenon as “neo-racism,” meaning that culture or country of origin, rather than color, is used as a pretense for discrimination.
Yet, even on these tough issues, MSU’s leadership has stepped up, seeking ways to build bridges that help connect our students and state with the broad world beyond our borders.
King Knowledge
Dan Redford, 25, who lives in China and works at Sina Sports, is the president of the MSU Beijing Alumni Club and has experienced the challenges of a cross-cultural experience. Redford is proud of his University for building bridges with China and creating opportunities for students to travel abroad, saying: “MSU is a perfect place to learn how to compete in today’s global economy, possessing a diverse campus population and an exceptional study abroad program.
“The MSU alumni network in China has been essential to my career development in doing cross-border business. It’s amazing the footprint MSU has already made in China with thousands of alumni that have gone on to be movers and shakers in the Middle Kingdom.”
We live in an ever-shrinking world where knowledge is king. Knowledge of different languages and cultures are 21st century skills that citizens from both countries would be wise to obtain.
