Appreciating Diversity at ISU:  A Response to International TA Complaints

We’ve all had complaints about past courses, professors, and TAs.  Either the course load was too heavy, or the professor graded unfairly, or the TA was always five minutes late (or more) late.  These are serious concerns that can negatively impact our academic and personal development.  However, I deny that language difficulties qualify as legitimate complaints.

Now before you check my major and scoff that I know nothing about international TAs, remember that we’re at a land-grant school.  I had to take my quota of math and science courses with international TAs, and I admit there have been some good experiences, some bad.  

I’m not saying that international TAs should be immune to criticism.  Nor I do not attempt to deny that language difficulties exist.  Far from it!  I had a Calc II professor with a marked accent who spoke to the board the first day of class; I’ve been there.  What I am saying is let’s not turn stones into boulders.  As the Daily article published last Thursday showed, TAs are not drawn from a hat.  Professors care that both the students and the TAs have a good experience, and difficulties are minimized so as not to seriously interfere with academic endeavors.  At least, no more so than having a chronically late professor does.

Even if there is a difficulty, changing sections or dropping a class on the basis of an accent or different syntax is a disservice to yourself.  ISU provides a rounded education and the opportunity to meet representatives from over 100 countries.  And you’re only two hours away from home.  This is not a burden, but an opportunity to gain new perspectives—to develop both academically and personally.  

If you would speak on equal terms with some of these students, they would blow you away with their intellect, humor, and heart.  From experience, I know it’s worth the effort.  Some I even count as family (shout out to Owens’ Family Group!).  It’s not fair to disregard 11% of ISU’s student population over a trifling inconvenience.  

So go ahead and criticize your Korean TA, but do it because he doesn’t understand the material.  Don’t give the better evaluation to your Nebraskan TA who just makes jokes during lab; give it to your diligent TA from Nigeria who doesn’t talk because she gets embarrassed when you don’t understand her.  Remember that internationals, too, want to succeed and connect with people.  

I hope we as a student body can move past selfish complaints to embrace the amazing people we get to share our classes, our dorms, and our campus with.  We are not a fractured conglomeration of races and tongues.  We are Cyclones!