Wang Chenxin, School of Foreign Languages, East China University of Science and Technology

I stood at the front of the classroom, looking out at more than 130 faces I had never seen before. Right then, I knew this would be a journey like no other. My students came from over forty countries, each carrying their own culture and their own ideas about China, now all gathered in one room. As the teacher of "A Glimpse of China"—a culture course for the Joint Multi-Degree Program—I felt the weight of what lay ahead.

They were eager to learn. And I wanted to give them more than facts. I wanted them to see China the way I see it: not as words in a textbook, but as something real, something you can touch and taste and feel. So I built the course around things that matter in everyday life—mobile apps, food, cities, traditions. I wanted China to come alive for them.

I also brought Chinese students into the classroom. Together, they talked, shared, and learned from each other. In those moments, something quietly took root. The international students tried paper-cutting for the first time, learned to tie Chinese knots, and got a real sense of the warmth and energy of young people in China.

The assignments they turned out surprised me every time. They didn't just absorb what I taught—they talked back to it, connecting it to their own cultures. I learned as much from them as they did from me. Through their eyes, I discovered foods, cities, and traditions from places I had never been.

We were only together for one semester, but something stayed. When the course ended, many students told me they no longer felt like outsiders. They were ready to explore—not just the campus, but the streets of Shanghai, and beyond. Looking at the photos they took and the stories they shared, I realized that a bridge had already taken shape in their hearts. And that bridge, once built, will carry many more journeys to come.

Source: East China University of Science and Technology