Cultural Experiences

Coming from a different culture, my learning moments were of almost daily occurrence. I had several classes, which showed me the difference between society and civilization, its history and roots, as well as philosophical and ideological differences. Through classes about history of Christianity and the interpretation of its scriptures, i developed a closer understanding for the perspectives of a religious (Christian) based ideologies as well as it those of its supporters and opponents. It offered me a very interesting insight in the American culture of diversity concerning these different points of views, mental models and ideas. Within this diversity, i was also confronted with people of other religious beliefs and ideas, who chose or were born into religions like Buddhism or Judaism for example. It was very enriching to learn in and outside the classroom about their theories and lifestyles. Through a certain selection of classes, I had a chance to have a close-up look at Buddhist practices and world views, which was something rather new for me.
I discovered through philosophy classes (and a science class I took), that the Western philosophical concepts are taking their origin with Aristotle, Plato and Socrates until today, and I also discovered how much this is impacting today's views of the Western culture and ideologies. Compared to my own culture, which has its roots in Egypt, this is a rather short termed historical approach. During my time in the educational system in Cairo, I was taught that our history and philosophical thoughts are reaching far back beyond the Greek philosophers and they are interestingly rather considered a by-product of our own philosophical and ethical studies and approaches.

2. How did it contribute to your desire to make change in the world (whether on an interpersonal, local, national or global level)?
When I first took up my studies at Belmont, I had already a rather clear idea about what I was aiming for and why. My interest in political science is something that accompanied me all my life, even though I am originally a science-guy. I knew that I was taking up these studies to support a position of mutual understanding and joint gains of different nations and cultures in the future. My desire is to make a difference on any level that is possible for me. Right now, my time and activity is only leaving me time so far for my activist channels and videos, but I hope that in the future, I will find time and opportunity to extend and deepen my activities, and hopefully i will attain my goals in teaching and writing about political science and its realities one day in the near future.

3. How was this experience shaped by what you have learned both inside and outside of the classroom?
As I mentioned above, being in the situation of a foreigner, I was largely benefiting from the classroom experiences and close talks I had with some of my professors and teachers to gain a deeper understanding of the different cultural viewpoints in this country. Outside the classroom, my daily reality consists of working and meeting all kinds of different people in my business, and I often take advantage of these encounters to learn from and about people on a personal level. My customers are from all over the United States sometimes and they are also sometimes from all over the world; therefore I have the opportunity to get exposed to a maximum of different thoughts and concepts. I have many friends form different countries and different religious backgrounds that came to the United States with certain ideas in mind about their new home country or simply as visitors. I listen to them and I try to analyze their opinions and point of views based on their circumstances and situation and it is keeping me busy and interested in social and political correlations.