DeRobbio CP#2

Alice and I met again for our "tea-time'" tuesday which was quite enjoyable. She got her undergraduate degree in journalism but is hoping to enter the communications program while pursuing her masters. Since I myself, am a communications major we discussed the different opportunities in the field. She told me that she was accepted into the FSU program with the exceptions that she; finish the CIES program, scores a 100 on her TOEFL, and re-applies by spring 2012. She also said she had an opportunity to go to Flagler immediately, but they were a school that emphasized in Business, and she wasn't ready to change location when she barely moved to Tallahassee. I explained to her the agreements in a lease, and how to obtain a sub-leaser. Alice said that she understood and her Aunt in China was encouraging her move but she felt hesitant. I told her that FSU has a great communications program and encouraged her to continue studying here. She said that she would like to but the last time she took her TOEFL-IB she scored a 95. She said that she did not do well because she speaks to slowly and there is a 45 second time limit on the speaking portion. I told her we could work on timing question answering, and asked her if she felt like she had improved any since she had been in the states. She laughed and explained that she was just recently emailing with a friend and they had discussed their English study in China. She said that they studied English for 10 years, and to enter both high school and the University you have to take a Standardized test in English, but still nobody spoke the language outside the classroom and rarely is English actually learned. Alice said that since she moved she has been forced to speak in English for 95% of her conversations and it has really pushed her to learn quickly. I told her I had the same experience when I had visited Mexico for a month and I feel that is when I learned the most.