THE ELC NEWS

A Publication by and for Students of the English Language Center, Old Dominion University
December 2009—Fall 2

Why did you There was a really terrible car accident 1 year ago. I drove my
come to the ELC car too fast. My friends and I got injured, one of my friends had
and how long his two legs broken and the other had surgery on his arms. We
have you been almost died. That accident changed my life in some parts, even
here? though I don’t know why and how that accident affected me.
There is my After the accident, I became much more careful about my
cousin here at friends.
ODU. He recom-
mended me to get Have you ever had cultural shock? If so, what do you think
a degree at ODU. is the cultural difference between America and Saudi Ara-
I have been here bia?
about 10 months. A lot. Ha ha, everything is different: food, gestures, communica-
tion, fashion, etc. I think Americans are generally more individu-
How’s your class alistic than Saudi Arabians. Sometimes it makes me feel free
at the ELC? and comfortable, but in Arabic culture, family comes before any-
What do you thing else. We highly
think is the most value the family and
difficult to learn caring about each other
From left: Advanced II students Jimmy (China), in English? much more.
Natallia (Belarus), Janice (South Korea), and Marat Everything’s good.
(Russia) pose with Mazin (UP, Saudi Arabia) for
Mazin’s interview.
Learning English To be specific, what’s
and making lots of the difference in the
different friends are always interesting things to me. Actually, it educational system
took a longer time to get used to the American English accent between America and
than I expected. Saudi Arabia?
You know, the most
Who do you want to be and what do your parents expect from difference is religion.
you? Education is also
I hold my father in high regard and want to be like him. He is work- based on strong Muslim ideas and beliefs.
ing at King Abdullah University, one of the most famous universi- From middle school to high school, we have to wear school
ties in Saudi Arabia. He has so good personality and is held in uniforms and boys and girls are totally separated. To enter uni-
great esteem by his colleagues. He is expecting me to be a pro- versity, we take 4 exams, which are Arabic Literature, Math,
fessor at King Abdullah University and I also want to be a profes- Science, and English.
sor someday.
What do you think is good or bad in Saudi Arabian educa-
If there is anything you hope the ELC could change or im- tion?
prove, what would it be? Um, I think English is important. So, English education is more
Absolutely, the TOEFL!! The ELC should let us enter the regular needed than now. The good thing is that you can invite your
university courses without the TOEFL test. And, I think it would be teachers to your house and learn more if you want to.
better for ELC students that the ELC had a kind of quota system.
Sometimes, there are too many students from one country in one What do you think is the best thing in America?
class. America is like a melting pot. You can meet many different peo-
ple from many other countries. Meeting different people and
Do you have any event in your life that changed you? talking about many things are very interesting to me.

Happy Winter Vacation!  We will see you in 2010!  Are you on Facebook?  Join the “Old Dominion University English Language 
TOEFL is January 5 at 10 a.m.  Center” group and help plan events, meet and talk with current and former 
Spring 1 classes begin January 12!  students, and see pictures from all of our events and adventures! 
 Two ways of teaching in the University Transportation Nowadays and in the 1950s in Kuwait
(Alberto Moreno, Spain) (Abdulrahman Al Qahtani, Kuwait)

There are a lot of differences between the Spanish and American university
teaching methods. Why!? Mainly, the university chiefs and professors of
these countries don't have a similar point of view. Both of them want to cre-
ate experts in different majors, and also offer almost the same degrees, but
they obtain a dissimilar final result.
On the one hand, in the US universities, teachers split the knowledge con-
cepts of the subjects in their classes, and they push their students using
daily homework. Thus, the students have a "simple" way of understanding
the complex ideas taught in these university degrees. They also examine
their students with a lot of midterm tests. Not only this factor, but also atten-
dance and participation are taken into account for the final grade.
On the other hand, in the Spanish universities it is common to have only one
exam for each subject in a semester, which accounts for almost 100 percent
of the student’s final grade. The attendance is not mandatory, but the profes-
sors make a special effort to give strong knowledge to their students. The
freedom in these universities is greater, but they use more demanding tests.
The Americans universities teach people in order to have better personal
skills like leadership or entrepreneurship. Instead of that, the Spanish ones
try to obtain the maximum knowledge capacity.
More than fifty years ago, people in Kuwait had no cars,
airplanes, or buses. However, they used camels, don-
keys, and ships as ways to travel or to go anywhere.
Camels and donkeys were the most popular means of
travel because they’re cheap, easy to raise, and easy to
find. Also, sailing by ships was one of the most common
ways to travel in Kuwait because Kuwait has a sea which
was the trading location between India and the Arabian
Gulf countries.
On the other hand, nowa-
days, Kuwaitis use cars,
airplanes, and buses as
transportation. They don’t
use the old means of trans-
portation anymore.

Consequently, the Spanish students have to be more mature because no-

body is pressing them and at the same time they need to reach a higher Gal‐bi, Grilled Beef Short Ribs – Korean Food 
level of knowledge by spending more of their "free" time. However, US stu- (Heesook Kim, South Korea) 
dents acquire more personnel skills that many Spanish students don't.
Probably, the good solution would be a mix between these two different con-  
cepts of teaching. Galbi is most popular Korean barbecue dish made with 
marinated short ribs. Some people soak the ribs in Sprite or 
Walt Disney World  Coke instead of water because it can improve the taste. Ko‐
(Taewoo Park, South Korea)  rean people normally eat Galbi with Kimchee (spicy, pickled 
  cabbage), ssamjang (paste), lettuce and steamed rice. 
Who is your favorite Walt Disney   
character? Mickey Mouse, Donald  Recipe Ingredients: 
Duck, and Woody, every character of  • 16 ribs 
this historical company has been 
very famous and loved by many peo‐ • 1 cup soy sauce, 3/4 cup sugar, 1/2 cup water 
ple, especially children. In 1971, the  • 1 Asian pear, chopped (or 1/2 Korean pear) 
white castle appeared in Orlando. It  • 1 onion, chopped 
was the start of Walt Disney World. 
Orlando is a city which creates new things every year, but before building  • 2 tbsp minced garlic 
Walt Disney World it had been just a common city like others. Now, no one  • 4 tbsp sesame oil 
hesitates to call it ‘The Kingdom of the Theme Park’, and it is sure that Walt 
Disney World is the main reason for getting that nickname.  
• 1 tbsp ground pep‐
  per 
Walt Disney World consists of 4 main theme parks, which are the  • 1 tbsp juice of gin‐
Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and Disney’s Animal  ger 
Kingdom. The Magic Kingdom is a cartoon world where you can see all of 
the Disney characters. The Experimental Prototype Community of Tomor‐
• 4 cups Sprite or 
Coke 
row (EPCOT) is a future concept theme park. You can see a future world 
 
and cultures of many countries such as England, China and France. In Dis‐
ney’s Hollywood Studios, there are many main characters of famous mov‐ Cooking Directions: 
ies. You can also try to visit a real movie studio there. The last main park,  1.  Wash the meat. Rarely, but sometimes, you can find tiny 
Disney’s Animal Kingdom, is not only for real animals but also for fantastic  bone scraps stuck to the meat. Soak the ribs in water, Sprite or 
animals or extinct animals.   Coke for 1 hour, then drain. 
  2.  In a food processor, add chopped onions and pears, puree 
The ticket for Walt Disney World is called Magic Your Way Base 
finely. Pour it out into a large bowl, add the remaining ingredi‐
Ticket. If you add a park hopper option, you can visit all of 4 theme parks a 
ents, and stir. 
day, unlimitedly. Because of the fact it is well known, Walt Disney World is 
always  crowded  whenever.  However,  the  numbers  of  visitors  is  smaller  3.  Marinate the meat for 8‐10 hours or overnight. They cook 
than others in January and February. You can also use Disney’s FASTPASS,  fairly fast, 2‐3 minutes on one side. 
which  is  the  quick  entrance  ticket  for  every  attraction  at  Walt  Disney  4.  Traditionally, it is grilled with wood charcoal, but certainly 
World. This can save you time, and if you can use this well, you don’t have  you can grill it on a gas stove or outdoor grill. 
to spend a long time in line. 
 THE ELC NEWSLETTER STAFF:
ADVANCED II WRITING, FALL 2, 2009
KHALID ALASSAF, FAHAD ALHEDAR, KHALID ALMUTAIRI, ABDULRAHMAN
ALQAHTANI, EUN-YOUNG CHOI, NEYSI GOMEZ, EUNJIN JEONG, NATALLIA
KAZLOUSKAYA, HEESOOK KIM, MARAT KUTEEV, EUN HEE KWON, MIHYE LEE,
HONGXIA MA, SABRINE MARSOU, ALBERTO MORENO, MARIA MORENO SANCHO, LOI
NGUYEN, TAEWOO PARK,YEYOUNG PARK, CHOR.NITHI PETPAISIT, ROKHAYA SECK,
XIN TIAN, FENGJI XIANG
EDITOR: JAMIE STURGES
PHOTOS AND PICTURES: LAURA RAY, LOI NGUYEN, NEYSI GOMEZ, TAEWOO PARK,
REHAB ALFADHEL

Basic
What is your hobby?
Writing (Alaa, Saudi Arabia)
Sleeping (Yahya, Saudi Arabia)
My hobby is listening music, playing tennis,
swimming, and reading a book. (Blanca, Spain)
My hobby is playing soccer and listening to mu-
sic. (Sultan, UAE)
What is your favorite food in the United States?
Why?
My favorite food in the USA is cookies because
it’s delicious and there are a lot of kinds of cook-
ies in the USA. (Bader, Kuwait)
Bagels (and coffee: good!) I like it because there
are many kinds of bread, and a lot of cream
cheese. (John, South Korea)
My favorite food is pizza and beef hamburger.
(Annie, China)
Intermediate
If you could have a special ability, what do you
want to do?
Time control. I can change the worries in the
world and help people who need to help.
(Mohammed, Saudi Arabia)
I would like to choose disappear ability like hid-
ing from people and stealing things such as
electronics. It will be awesome! (Mohammad, Kuwait)
If I had a special ability: I will be able to fly around the world and take care for the small
children who suffer from AIDS. By one touch I can stop AIDS in the world. (Ndouba,
Ivory Coast)
What is your ideal type of partner?
Thoughtful and easygoing. I don’t mind a person
who is rich, smart or beautiful etc., I want to feel
comfortable. (Lisa, South Korea)
An honest man who doesn’t lie, is funny, hard
working, courageous, adorable, and open-
minded. (Zora, Senegal)
I hope to meet a girl who is smart, beautiful,
polite, honest and open-minded. (Ahmad, Ku-
wait)
Advanced I
If you had the solutions of every problem, which
problem would you solve first?
I would solve the global warming problem, because
it's getting really serious, and might destroy the
planet and cause a disaster. (Meshari, Saudi Arabia)
War, because we need peace in this world to assure
the continuation of humanity, and global warming, because our environment means
our lives!! (Anass, Morocco)
People in the world don't love each other. I
would love to see people caring for each
other as one big happy family so that we
stop wars!! (Rashed, Kuwait)

What do you prefer in American culture?

University Prep
How do you define wealthy and poor?
The poor (homeless) wear dirty clothes, and
some smell bad. The rich are very rich, so they
can buy everything what they want to buy.
(Yurie, Japan)
Wealthy means he/she is healthy. Poor means
he/she is not healthy. (Mazin, Saudi Arabia)
I like many things in the American culture,
mainly movies and music. (Eliana, Brazil)
I prefer their way of dealing with other people. (Ahmad, Kuwait)
I prefer the festival days in America because they are nice and I can go shopping dur-
ing these days. (Tianchen, China)
Undergraduate Bridge
If you have only 24hours in your life, what would
you most want to do?
I'll have fun with my family and friends, laugh the
whole day and go to space. (Diana, Russia)

I would like to go sky diving with my closest friends

and my mom as well, drive a fast car at a high
speed, and then go to a Paul Van Dyk concert with
everyone I know. (Tami, Saudi Arabia)

I will go to a spa, spend around 5 hours there, and

Wealthy are privileged and rich people who
have the resources to share. Poor are the un-
der privilege, or needy. They are the ones that
need help. (Eugenio, Philippines)
It can be a very hard question depending on
how you think about the question. The most
important thing is how happy or satisfied you
are can really tell you are wealthy or poor.
(Youngsoon, South Korea)
then go to do something extreme and something
that no one have done before. (Faza, Morocco)
I will fly a helicopter by myself, buy everything in
the mall and spend half of my money. Then, I'm
going to give the other half of money to the
poor. (Arwa, Saudi Arabia)
Graduate Bridge
What is your biggest goal and why?
I guess that happiness. If I did everything with-
out happiness, my life would be meaningless.
(Ya-Lin, Taiwan)
First of all, my goal is (I would like) to graduate
with a master's degree in Economics. Second,
since I am married and I had a daughter Octo-
ber 30th, I want to spend my life raising my
daughter in a good environment. Finally,
achieving the highest level on my career and
being a vice-president of a multinational com-
pany. (Maan, Saudi Arabia)
The biggest goal in my life is teaching because
it has been my dream since I was young.
(Sultan, Saudi Arabia)