Oskaloosa Welcomes Chinese Students

Nineteen Chinese Middle School visitors and their chaperones visited Drost Equipment on Tuesday afternoon.

Oskaloosa, Iowa – It was just another cold day in Oskaloosa for those who call it home, but an experience of a lifetime for a group of visitors from China.

“Help us make an American experience,” was one of those objectives given to Amanda Hoffman, Oskaloosa Middle School Guidance Counselor. Hoffman, using the things her own kids liked,worked out what she believed would be a good representation of Oskaloosa.

Bai Xiaofang is the groups English teacher. She explained that the flight was approximately 30 hours, “For us to get from home to get over here, but our kids are very excited.”

Xiaofang said that none of the kids slept on the flight because they were so excited.

“It was just an amazing feeling seeing the students coming off the plane,” said Andy Hotek, Oskaloosa Middle School Principle, of their first interaction with the group. By the time the group arrived back to Oskaloosa it was midnight, and they had yet to meet their host families and settle in for the night.

The group includes 19 students and their 2 chaperones, one is the students principle, the other is their English teacher. During their stay, they have adopted English/American names in order to help in communication.

By 7:30 Tuesday morning, they were greeted by the community and their American peers at the Oskaloosa Middle School for breakfast, having achieved maybe 4 or 5 hours of sleep.

The Chinese students took the opportunity to visit classrooms and interact with Oskaloosa student ambassadors.

In the afternoon, the first of many outings for our visitors took place when they unloaded the bus at Drost Equipment in Oskaloosa. There, they were given tractor rides by Carl Drost. The students found the vast John Deere collectables and toys to be of great interest.

Hotek said that, at that point, the first day had been a huge success. “So far it’s just been making those connections and building those friendships.”

“You know what’s fun to see, it’s just typical middle school kids,” Hotek said of the visiting group. “They act very similar to our own kids.”

During the visit, the Chinese students have continued to expand their English language capabilities. “English is their second language,” said Xiaofang.

There is some communication gaps, but Oskaloosa Middle School students and their Chinese visitors have been working through those communication differences.

Xiaofang explained that with those English difficulties, the Chinese students were finding the American classroom interesting, “cause it’s totally different.”

But since their arrival, both Xiaofang and Hotek have noticed the English capabilities of the Chinese students has gotten better. A side effect of that is that the students are also picking up our bad habits in the English language.

“We’re trying to experience as much as we possibly can in the short time that we have them,” Hoffman said.

Oskaloosa and Mahaska County residents will have an opportunity to meet and welcome the students this evening at Smokey Row, starting at 5:00 pm and going until 6:30 pm.