School! Finally Classes

This past Monday we finally started classes! I was really excited because I definitely missed having schoolwork and readings. (Yea...I'm a nerd) Here is a description of what my classes are and when they will be:

Mondays 9:30am-12:50pm:  My first class is "European Politics and Government."
I love European history and politics so I was greatly looking forward to that class. At first, however, the professor did not leave me with a very good impression. He seemed nice but very informal. He would laugh loudly and seemed a little bit too easygoing. Not that I wanted a super strict professor or anything, but I think professors should be serious about their class. However, I liked him much more once he started the class lecture. He lectured well and kept the class engaged. We covered basic information about European nations like France, Germany, Spain, Italy, and of course the UK. For the rest of the semester, we will learn about the European identity, the EU and European integration, and Europe's nature and development. We will have to write a couple of papers but other than that, the class doesn't seem too difficult.


After my class ended and I ate my lunch that I packed, it was almost 2pm. I decided to stay at the CAPA center and just read and study and wait for my next class at 5:45pm. It takes a very long time to go back to my apartment (or "flat" as the British call them), so it was better for me to just wait.


Mondays 5:45pm-7:   The second class I'm taking is "Learning through Internships."
This class goes hand in hand with our internship. Through this class, we will make a portfolio of our work experience. We will also receive help with our resumes, cover letters, and interviews. In addition, we will cover topics like British employment law, gender and work, and social justice.
This class will be great and I hope to develop my professionalism as well as learn more about the British work place.

Tuesdays 9:30am-12:50pm  My third class is "Islam and Democracy."
This class seems super interesting! I am most excited for this class to start. We will talk about Islam in politics, how it relates to the Middle East, and how the Muslim immigrants affect England. We will also learn about Muslim communities in London and we will have field trips to a Muslim neighborhood and to a mosque. I can't wait! I hope I remember enough from my Modern Middle East class in high school. I have not taken a class on Middle Eastern politics yet. What I loved most about this class, however, was the professor. He is an intellectual and he is amazing at keeping the class engaged. I also likes how he forces people to participate by prodding until he gets an answer to his question.

Varying times/dates: "Global Urban Lab"
This is the class we are taking through Rice, only for Rice students. This is where each student will do a research project on a policy topic related to the Olympics. We will create an interactive blog to present our project. We will also work with other students at Rice who are taking Dr. Marschall's urban politics class. I am really looking forward to this class because I want to follow the Olympics and learn more about the politics and sociology surrounding them. It is also super exciting because through this class, we get to spend our Spring Break in Istanbul, Turkey!! We get to meet our Rice classmates there and  present our research projects at a university.