While the course material of classes here in Lima is similar to back home, just about everything else is different. As my host brother first told me upon my arrival in Peru, “the classes here are like high school.” Attendance is taken at the beginning of every class, and tardiness is not tolerated. In fact, if you arrive to class 10 minutes late, you are considered absent. If you are absent for 30% of your classes (20% for language courses), you automatically fail the course. A friend of mine here was in the hospital for one week with E. coli, and her absences were not excused. Exams and quizzes can also not be made up except for serious medical emergencies. If a student arrives after the professor has closed the door, they must knock and wait for the professor’s permission to enter. Should you need to use the restroom during the lecture, you need to raise your hand and ask the professor. I’m not sure if these customs are signs of respect, but these displays of deference sharply contrast students’ behavior in the classroom. Many Peruvian students are blatantly on their cellphones during class. It’s all very odd to me, because in the States, asking for the professor’s permission to use the restroom is disruptive, and using your phone in class is rude. Also unlike the States, all classes here are about 30 people or less, so the lectures are more participatory and interactive, which I prefer.
As I mentioned in my last post, I was only required to purchase textbooks for one class. This textbook cost me S./180 (about $55). All other reading material is either posted online by the professor as a PDF document, or available in the library for photocopying. For example, my politics professor encourages all his students to borrow the textbook from the library and photocopy the entire book. Seem strange? Inefficient? It’s actually not. Today, I had 90 pages photocopied. With two textbook pages per printed page (and double sided) it took about 5 minutes and S./4, or less than $1.50. A buck fifty! For a third of a textbook. Why don’t we do this in America. I’m so inspired to spend a day in Snell photocopying an entire textbook come Spring. Just off campus is a strip of copy shops all offering similar rates of about S./0.10 per copied page and S./0.30 per printed page.
Overall, my experiences in classes here have been positive. Professors really make an effort to get to know their students, and are very welcoming to international students. A few of my classes have group work, which—surprise, surprise—are just as universally unpleasant here as in the States. It’s been really interesting talking with Peruvian students to see what they consider a difficult course, or excessive readings or homework. My biggest take away is that classes here are basically the same as back home. All professors have a reputation (for better or for worse), everyone is cranky during quiz week, and nobody likes group projects (except, of course, the one student that does no work). Some things are just the same all over.
