Rain, Rain, GO AWAY!

So this last week it rained from Friday night till Wednesday. Pretty ridiculous for the south of France if you ask me! Last Saturday we were supposed to have a sleep over with a new American/Ukraine girl to think about her life’s plans. But because she forgot she had a dinner to go to, it was pushed back till ten at night. Not much time for life’s plans! So by the time ten rolled around, Kirsten and Marjolaine and I decided we would bring the party to Mariya. Even though none of us had any desire to go into town because we were tired and it was raining.

But we went anyway, walking in the rain and waiting by the fountain forever for Mariya to show up. But we made it into a fun night, entitled “Nuit de Merde”, where anything that was bad was actually GREAT! It ended up being an awesome time.

Saturday morning there was a meeting for all the ISEP coordinators of France on our campus and all the ISEP students were invited, so we went to meet all of the coordinators. It was kind of interesting, although I didn’t talk to any of the coordinators and pretty much just stuffed my face with free food. Best kind of food is free!

So in the US we have ground hog’s day to determine the weather for the next six weeks. In France they have Chandeleur, to make you fat on crepes. The tradition is that you hold a gold coin in your hand (traditionally a Louis) and flip a crepe. If you succeed, then you will have good luck for the year. If not, well, sorry! I should have pretty good luck for the year, along with everyone else who tried. But Chandeleur also has a weather aspect. If it rains on Chandeleur, it will continue to rain for two weeks. Of course, it was pouring outside.

Tuesday morning I went to class only to find a sign on the door that class was canceled and that our homework was in the library. My professor had sent out an email the night before stating she would be going on strike. Of course not having the best access to internet, I didn’t find out till I saw the sign. The teachers voted on Tuesday afternoon to go on strike but it’s only a few departments and not even all the professors in that department. So far, my French literature professor is on strike and that one English professor. Other than that, all my other professors are teaching still (I have eight this semester whereas a French student has about ten).

Why are they on strike? Well at first I didn’t know but after a few days both of my professors on strike sent out emails explaining the circumstances. Pretty much there are three reasons:

So as far as I’m concerned, yes the universities need to be improved. At least this one. I recently went to one of the others in town and their campus looks so much better, which is a pretty strong sign that they have more money. If research is the only way they can make money, science and business universities are going to have more money than humanities. It’s a given. So what is poor little Paul-Valery to do?

Raise tuition is the first step. Right now French students here pay about 200 Euros for each major per semester. Some have scholarships and some don’t. A few weeks ago the government stopped offering a lot of scholarships. I know to an American 200 euros is a tiny amount. But consider what we get and what they get. They get huge lectures filled with 500 other students. They don’t have any kind of relationship with their professors. Almost half of all students fail. They have libraries but other than that, there are no other resources. No gyms. None of the extras we get in the US. No after school activities funded by the university (except maybe theater because that’s a major but I’m really not sure on that).

How can French university be changed? Well sure, Americans can offer a lot of solutions. But they don’t fit into French culture. It’s a huge task to change a whole country’s education system and making broad generalizations about “those French” just don’t work. It doesn’t acknowledge their distinct culture. I couldn’t even tell you how to go about changing it.

I can only say the things that need to change. First off, the teaching style here is not very effective. They pretty much recite and the students copy down word for word what they say. That style doesn’t fit many types of learning and you have to be able to write pretty fast as well. Any kind of learning disability and you will probably be left behind. There is also no motivation to go to class when professor teach like that. I’ve seen students talk on their cell phones in class at times because they are bored.

Each lecture is paired with a smaller class that is supposed to be more homework and more intense study. Many times the topic is completely unrelated to the large lecture. In theory, the lecture is supposed to be guidance on how to work in the smaller class. For example in literature, it’s supposed to give you a general overview in which to place the texts you work on in the small class. But of course, it doesn’t always work that way.

The smaller lectures vary a lot by professor. But in general the grading is the same. One oral and one paper. That’s it. Each counts for half the grade for the small class, which in turn counts for usually 2/3 of the final grade. The large lecture is one final exam that counts for 1/3 of the final grade. You can flunk the lecture portion and still pass the class with a mid-range grade, which is all a French student shoots for. Getting a perfect grade, no matter how hard you work, is unheard of. So why work any harder than you need to get that mid-range grade? Yes, you do have to study to pass; it’s not quite as easy in the US, but getting an A NEVER HAPPENS. Pretty discouraging.

Also another interesting part is that students only have to pass the semester, not each class. The grades within their major are averaged and if they get at least a 10, they get to move on. But often, students are really close but not quite a ten. Then it’s taken to a review board who decides if you get to go to the next year. Although I’ve never heard about how it works, I’d imagine it’s pretty easy if you have at least a 9,5 since there is a vast majority of students who have an average of something around that. So say you’re really good at one thing and really stink at another? Why not focus all your energy on that one thing you’re good at, get an awesome grade, and flunk the other. It just evens out. So that leaves a lot of French students who know some things very very well and others they don’t know at all.

Remember, this is just an American talking about French education. There are obviously a lot of problems and also not all French students fit this stereotype. Marjolaine, for example, works really hard at everything she does and is a super smart girl. But her future is still really up in the air because of how the system works. Can she get a job after? Who knows? Only time will tell.

Strikes are part of French culture but apparently this strike is unusual as its wider spread than strikes in the past. Last Thursday it wasn’t just one group, it was many. That’s the weird part. Also universities that don’t normally join in are joining in. But that doesn’t always mean teaching stops completely. It just means that some professors aren’t teaching and some are. It’s a wait and see kind of deal. I just go to class and cross my fingers that the professor will be there.

As for the weekend, it was a pretty fun one. Friday night we had martinis. They are not the same as in the US. They come in one bottle and you just pour it out and drink it. And they’re super sweet. But be careful with them, you can’t taste the alcohol because they are so sweet but they are also only 14,4% compared to your average American cocktail, that’s a lot less (Don’t worry Mom, I only had two).

The next morning Kirsten and I took a bike ride to the outside of the city. It’s pretty sad to say that we have not seen very much in the surrounding area. So we got bikes and just went away from the city. We got a little lost and almost ended up on the highway but we made it back home safe and sound. Along the way we saw a 18th century aqueduct that I’m pretty sure a professor of mine talked about, comparing it with the Pont du Gard, the oldest and largest aqueduct in France built by the Romans.

The mistral started blowing yesterday while we were riding out bikes, pushing down on us so hard it felt like we were going up a huge hill when it was just flat. Gear one on flat, perfectly paved bike paths. Great…But it was an awesome time. And now I can say I can pull out my camera and take a picture while biking. I almost crashed a few times but never did :)

Saturday night Kirsten and I went to a Valentine’s dessert party hosted by a bunch of Mount Holyoke girls. I felt really weird at the party, not really sure what to talk about with the girls. Kirsten felt the same way. What do we say to them? Not really sure, nor really sure why we felt that way. I think it’s because those girls there and us lead pretty different lives and hold very different perspectives about things. One of them mentioned to me that the host was very good at acting sugary sweet to people she hated and then saying what she really meant later. It seemed to be a prized trait as other girls chipped in their praise for her talent. I was surprised and wondered what kind of things she said about me when my back was turned. But as I thought that I caught myself. Why does it matter? She’s a nice girl to my face and invited me to her home, so I figured that she is sincere in her words. But it really bugged me that those girls prize insincerity.

As for today, I slept in and have a lot of work to do. Because my professors went on strike, I now have homework I wouldn’t normally have. And on top of that, next Friday is the deadline for Odyssey Funding from Hendrix. Internship here I come!