At first, I was aghast by my American classmates’ relaxed approach to almost everything, and then I was in awe. They exhibited a swagger that no one would have dared in India, where, for two decades, I had watched students stand up in respect whenever a teacher entered the room. Students at Yale put their feet on the desks, munched on sandwiches, called the professors by their first names—“Vic” and “Dave.” They walked in late or left early and boisterously challenged the teachers’ points of view. I found the free-flowing discussions spectacular. Topics were explored in depth; pros and cons
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