By ZHOU Xingzi

The School of Foreign Languages held several special English Events this semester, which are always popular among the students and teachers. Students can learn more about foreign cultures, broaden their horizons and improve English listening and speaking skills. What’s more, the events also offered great opportunities of independent thinking.

In this semester, five lectures were given by the overseas teachers of the School of Foreign Languages. The topics ranged from personal travel experience to art and philosophy, which attracted both the students who love English and teachers who are interested in other fields of study in our university.

The first lecture, entitledAn Overview of Britain and Cultural Experience in Asia and Africa, was given by Mr. Sean McHugh. He introduced the overall history and the culture of Britain, including geography, policy, architectural features and cultural environment. Also, he shared his unforgettable traveling experience in Asia and Africa with plenty of photos, which showed his view on the differences between Chinese and western cultures.

The second lecture focused on a different topicDiscovering Oneself and Understanding Others: The Enneagram - An Exploration into 9 Basic Personality Types, by Mr. Brian Harrison. In the lecture, he mainly introduced nine basic personality types through the enneagram diagram and analyzed different types of his friends and family as examples. He also divided personalities into three other types, namely emotional, rational and the type between the two.

Mr. Craig Voligny gave the third lecture to discussPerspectives on Visual Artswith the students . He displayed some works of art from different countries in order to analyze the definition of visual art in his mind. Also he asked the students how they understood visual art. He thought that the style was only a branch of fashion, but not an element for a real piece of art.

After giving the first lecture, Mr. Sean McHugh would like to share more of his experience with the students. Therefore, he hosted his second lecture calledWorld Travelin which he first introduced DIY travel helping the students to learn the equipments, health and safety issues as well as some special experiences regarding traveling. Besides, he used slide-shows with pictures and the maps of eighty-five countries to describe different cultures.

The last lecture was given by Dr. Matthew Conduct whose study focus is on philosophy. The theme wasThree Philosophical Problems, which were discussed in contemporary Anglo-American philosophy. Dr. Matthew Conduct explained the problems of Cartesian dualism, Cartesian dualism and "Chinese Room Argument". There was always a question and answer session following every discussion of the problems, which could help the students to understand the content better.

Besides the lectures, Ms. Linda Jean Visner from the School of Foreign Languages also hosted three Special Culture Nights during Christmas season, among which two were held with the postgraduate students, and one with the undergraduate students. On the Special Culture Nights, Ms. Linda Jean Visner made brownies together with the students, sang beautiful songs and celebrated the New Year.

The School of Foreign Languages has been holding special English events for many years, aiming at providing students with a great variety of ways of learning English. By communicating with the overseas teachers face to face, students could have a direct access to western culture and related knowledge, broadening their horizons and better preparing them for their future.