Classes...oh yeah, I have them

So I've made it through more than halfway of my semester abroad without even mentioning school! I am "studying" here, aren't I?


Classes here are harder. Ok, wait. That's not true. Classes here are different, which makes them harder for me. 


First and most obvious: they're in French. Now, I've had my share of classes in French back home, but the professor knows we are all learning the language and treats us as such. I can actually understand her AND takes notes! Meanwhile, in France, my history professor says a date and I miss the next two sentences trying to write it down. My one literature professor gets really excited and talks so fast that even the French students have to ask him to repeat himself. Which means I'm in the back of the class putting my pencil to use by balancing it in the space between my upper lip and nose. This same professor made me read an excerpt out loud for the class this week after I begged him not to (also in front of the entire class). 


Secondly, the structure is just plain different. Most courses have a "CM" (cours magistral) and a "TD" (travaux dirigés). CMs are what we would call a large lecture class whereas the TD is the same course with the same material but can be taught by a different professor and tends to be smaller than the CM and more interactive for the students than just a lecture. Classes are only once a week instead of two or three times a week. There are neither projects nor homework even; your entire grade is based off one or two tests with no study guides. Maybe a paper or presentation is thrown in there at one point, too.


Then there's just a bunch of random stuff that's so different. I already told you about the paper. That should have been my warning message that sounded something like, "Things are different here and because you can't even figure out how to write on this piece of paper, you're going to struggle, kid." And just because your classes are at the same university it doesn't mean that they're all in the same campus. I live at campus Valrose but have to travel about 40 minutes to get to my classes in Carlone. And if I want to visit my program coordinator, I have to take a trip to St. Jean d'Angely. There aren't really any student clubs so I don't pass tables of people trying to talk to me into helping them change the world. Everyone brings their computers to class and types paragraphs of notes instead of bullets. When students give presentations, the professor analyzes it and points out all of the flaws right there in front of the whole class. I witnessed one girl get torn to shreds. It's interesting how the French learn history: it's all through literature. No, not text, through works of literature. So I'm essentially taking a bunch of lit classes.


I started freaking out because I missed class more than once and my Italian friend said, "Don't worry, you're in Europe." Europe or not, a failed semester is a failed semester. I guess we'll see. C'est la vie.