Editor's note: Anthony Moretti, a special commentator for CGTN, is an associate professor in the School of Communication and Media at Robert Morris University. He also writes regularly about China-US affairs. The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of either Robert Morris University or CGTN.

Over the next five years, at least 100,000 US students – the country's future leaders – are expected to accept an invitation from Chinese President Xi Jinping to visit China for exchange and study programs.

When Xi was in the US in late September, he encouraged 100,000 US students to explore China for themselves. That proposal mirrored the one he had made in 2023, when during another visit to America he asked 50,000 students to travel to his country by the end of 2028.

That figure was exceeded in roughly two and a half years, a clear sign that America's young adults want to know more about Chinese culture and history, and they want to see the country's modern cities and off-the-beaten-path locales as well. And, of course, they want to get to know some of the 1.4 billion Chinese people.

A student, who visited in 2025, reflected on how "inviting and friendly the people were." Another, who flew to China in 2024 and again in 2025, also remembered with fondness his interactions with Chinese citizens: "Their lives are so different [from mine], but at the same time, so much the same," he said.

As those students continue to embrace the similarities, rather than identifying with the tired negative beliefs instilled by others, they add important skills to their personal and professional toolkit.

Academic research has identified the transformative power of an international educational experience. Students return to their home country with a strengthened, yet changed, view of the world; they acknowledge feeling more independent and confident in themselves; they form the foundation necessary to become a global citizen; they are smarter; and they are prepared to challenge negative stereotypes of the "other."

I have been in higher education for more than two decades, and in that time, I have been fortunate to lead three international trips, two to Ireland and one to Czechia, with students. In all three cases, the transformation that those college students went through in roughly two weeks was obvious. Each day allowed them more belief in their ability to become more than just a typical tourist; they tried their best to speak at least one new Czech word each day; they visited historical sites, and later their reflections went beyond the mere "This is what I felt about being there."

Viewed another way, learning could be thought of as a transactional moment, as a teacher provides facts and context that students jot down and then regurgitate on a test. But experience is transformative; comparisons to other historical places are considered and interpretation is performed.

Let's consider a typical class about China. It will discuss the nation's centuries-long civilization. Critical dates will be announced and various historical themes will be shared. But China's development from a traditional agricultural land into one that leads, or comes close to leading, the world in creating the most modern technologies has to be seen with one's own eyes. There is no better time than now for US teenagers and young adults to do that.

That sliver of the country they explore now is certain to ignite the desire to see even more later.

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