Link: https://soundcloud.com/mark-morales-885394178/finalradioproject
Host Intro: On March 11th, Trump announced a Europe ban to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, giving everyone little time to make a big decision. Amongst those people, were students studying abroad. With little time to take action, they had to decide whether they should stay in a foreign country or go back home. As classes around the world transition from in-person classes to online classes, students have to adapt to a different style of learning.
AMBI1: Room Silence
AMBI2: It’s four in the morning and I have class in a few minutes. I did an all-nighter to finish a project and I’m really tired.
TRACK1: In the 2017-2018 academic year, over 340,000 (341,751) students participated in study abroad programs in the U.S\. I am speaking over the phone with Katherine Martinez-Valdez, a junior at Baruch College because of social distancing as her classes transition from in-person classes at Paris Dauphine University to online learning in New York. There is a six-hour time difference between France and New York.
ACT1: “I didn’t know about online class till the day before. I thought maybe that the time difference wouldn’t be that bad. Until I realized I had my first class at 5am in the morning. 5 am in the morning is not fun at all. I ended up taking a nap during class but thankfully the professor didn’t want to use video or microphone.”
TRACK2: The situation becomes even more challenging when you have to complete group projects. Between New York and Singapore, there is a 12 hour time difference.
ACT2: So I have to do a video project for my marketing class and it’s very interesting but my group members are in Singapore, which is not something I ever had to do a group project so far away. It’s way harder than I expected because when I’m sleeping, they’re awake, and there are no apps or websites to edit a video with more than one person.”
TRACK3: This impacts the quality of education and takes a mental toll as Katherine needs to stay awake to avoid being penalized. As an international business major, she is required to study abroad, but due to the virus instead of immersing herself in a new culture, she needs to spend her mornings in front of a computer.
ACT3: “When it’s really early in the morning and they don’t have any excitement in their voice and you’re listening to anything that interesting you just happen to fall asleep. Then your friend has to text you if she calls on you and you’re quiet and then she’ll be like ‘Oh she not here anymore, then she’ll mark you absent.’ That’s why you always have to be paying attention. It’s just so hard to wake up that early and be expected to stay awake for that amount of time.
TRACK4: However, not all students left. Jesselle Ramierez, junior at Baruch College decided to stay in Bangkok, Thailand despite the fact that the country is in lockdown. She is currently attending Chulalongkorn University taking four online classes pursuing her bachelor’s in Marketing.
ACT4: At first, we were in a residence with about 150 maybe 100 study abroad students and the majority of them left. So let’s say Like 20 remained.
TRACK5: Study abroad programs are meant to be a unique experience, but now the experience has become memorable for all the wrong reasons.
ACT5: It definitely completely changed the dynamic especially since the end of March everything has been quarantined, so all the malls shut down, the pool in our residence closed and things just got more depressing, to say the least. It was very difficult to say goodbye to your friends because you thought you’d get to see them and get to know them until May.
TRACK6: Despite the lockdown, Jesselle does not regret her decision.
ACT: I decided to stay here because I would rather be quarantined in Bangkok than back home. I guess it was a good decision since New York is one of the worst cities in the world when it comes to the virus.
OUTROTRACK: New York State currently has more confirmed cases than any other country in the world, with an estimated total of 190,000 compared to 2,500 cases in Thailand. With the semester coming to an end, students are still learning how to adapt and make the most out of their situation regardless of what country they are in. For Baruch College, this is Mark Morales in New York City.