Education in England

The most intriguing and important part of studying abroad is, of course, the ‘studying’ part. Coming to a whole new country also means being introduced to a whole new education system. I have undoubtedly been challenged, confused, but also infused with excitement to retain all of this new information in a different format.

My main course of studies at the University of Essex, in Colchester, England, are Performance and Communications, so under this umbrella I took one theatre class, Models of Practice, a literature and drama class, Origins and Transformations of Literature and Drama, and a media class, Approaches to Film and Media. As a mental health advocate, I also wanted to venture into the mental health views in England, and I also purely wanted to learn more about it, so I took a psychology class, Emotion.

The structures England has for education, at least the part of England the University of Essex is in, is based on a very independent learning style. There is significantly less coursework, and no strategic attendance policy. The general term for the class as a whole is a “module.”

The module is set up into two different halves: one is a lecture, of which, every other lecture a different professor will be presenting their area of expertise, and the other half is called a “class,” which is very similar to our general teaching/learning style: one professor, and 30 or less students in a more laid-back, personalized session. A student generally has one lecture and one class every week, but as aforementioned, attendance is not as eminent as it is in most of the Uni’s here in the States.

Some professors can, however, count attendance as a percentage of the module, most likely if it's a class like Theatre, where participation is imperatively necessary. Further on, when attending the class, the student has to “tap in,” which means to wave their student ID card on a black sensor in the room to track their attendance.

Lastly, just to share some fun facts about the finals week here in England: We have almost no quizzes/tests throughout the semester, just one approximately 10 page research essay, and a two-hour exam during their finals week. Again, professors can add a test or coursework here and there, but it's only one to two times within the semester, for revision purposes … and that’s another positively intriguing thing: they don’t say “study” here, they say “revise” like “I have so much revision to do for exams” etc!

In totality, I have found this way of education to be so lovely and refreshing, but also very stressful. I felt as if I had so much more time on my hands, with how their scheduling was and the less coursework/attention to attendance, but I also felt very behind in my studying mostly because this independent way of education is very self-management heavy. I relentlessly learned how to stop procrastinating more (but not completely, of course, I’m still the average college student), and how to put more pride and enjoyment into what I am learning.

England has honestly been so encouraging to not merely remember material, but to actually retain it and believe in, or even challenge, what is being taught.

— Emel Rasim, a junior theatre arts major, is studying abroad this fall at the University of Essex in Colchester, England. #HuskyAbroad #ProfessionalU

China Today: A breathtaking experience

What an interesting start to our trip! An exhausting 14-hour flight to Shanghai led into a three-and-a-half hour flight to Yunnan. We arrived to our hotel around 3 a.m. and jet lag kicked in. My body was still on Eastern Time, and I did not sleep much. We woke up to have breakfast in a tiny restaurant very close to our hotel where everything was fresh and made right in front of us. We walked around Yunnan for a while until our welcome banquet at YNNU, (Yunnan Normal University). The variety of food here was fascinating; everything from chicken and rice to donkey and grasshoppers!

After this we packed our stuff and hopped on a bus to Hekou. This six-hour bus ride gave us the chance to look at just a portion of the breathtaking scenery that China has to offer. We arrived at our hotel and Hekou, and went right to dinner which had more varieties of ethnic food to try. Our seats at dinner were incredible, because we were looking right at Vietnam! In the morning we woke up to see the people of Vietnam cross over the bridge to China for trading and selling. We explored much of Hekou this day by visiting the old railway station, Customs House (1897), the Border Trade Market, and the local farmer’s market.

There was a lot of pollution in the area, which was saddening. The air was filled with dust and debris, which was hard on breathing. Overall, I was amazed by the people of Hekou. They are extremely hard-working, which I admire. Many of them were very friendly; always smiling, saying hello, and taking pictures of us. Seeing them excited to be around us was my favorite thing about this area.

Today we left Hekou and took a very bumpy ride to Yuanyang. The 3 ½ hour bus ride gave me time to admire the amazing landscapes. I was in awe at the mountains, fields, plants, and people working to maintain them. The bus ride took us up in very high altitude. The weather went from warm and sunny to cold, partly cloudy, and partly sunny. We stepped off the bus and look out onto the incredible terraced fields and people working on them. We then took a path down to Quing Ko, the folk cultural village in the terraced fields. As soon as we stepped on the path we saw a lady who I was very intrigued by and wanted to take a picture of her and was surprised to find out that I had to pay to do so.

I was excited to see all of the little children running around and playing. I came to find that the people of Quing Ko were the same exact way; even the children. I was very careful about taking pictures unless I really wanted to, and I thought it was worth it. The shops in this little village were adorable! We needed help from Mr. Li and Dr. Luo to bargain for reasonable prices. I was very grateful for them.

I was also excited about the donkeys and water buffalo working hard in the town and walking freely. There was also ducks, roosters and chickens scattered all around. As we were walking back up the pathway, we became very winded. This made me think of the woman carrying heavy loads on their backs walking up and down the path. These women looked very old but we came to find that they were not very much older than us! The people of this village do not have very long lifespans.

Our next stop was Tiger Mouth in the terraced fields. This was my favorite part of the day. As soon as we got there, we were bombarded by the women of the village trying to sell us things. They followed us and it became slightly uncomfortable. We took the 300 steps down to get a closer view of the fields. I was a little nervous because we were up very high but the view was breathtaking.

We spent some time just staring out onto the fields. The sun painted the water in the fields so delicately it looked like a painting. It was very surreal. We took the path back up to the top of Tiger Mouth to watch the sunset over the fields. This walk was extremely tiring but worth it. The sunset was something unexplainable. The last minute of the sunset I put my camera down and just relished in the moment. It was truly remarkable. The bus then took us down to the town of Yuanyang were we stayed the night. Our dinner was more ethnic food but somewhat Americanized Chinese food. I was excited to try the Chinese beer. It tasted very familiar.

We spent much of our day on the bus coming down off the mountains. The mountain roads were very rough and uneven. This made the ride very uncomfortable. But the mountain ranges were beautiful so it made up for it. I had seen some men walking by our bus playing instruments. This was the first time I had seen this.

Because I fell asleep when the clock struck midnight on New Year’s Eve, I counted down the minutes until midnight in the U.S. We were on a bus to Mengzi when midnight came over there. I counted back from 10 and it felt somewhat like home. On the way to Mengzi we stopped at Duoyishu scenic spot to get another view of the terraced fields. It was much of what we had seen the day before. We walked some pathways and such to view the fields then we got back on the bus.

We stopped at a local farmer’s market to try some tropical fruits we have never seen before. There were lots of large and colorful fruits. They were very interesting and surprisingly good! Jackfruit, a very large fruit that took some effort to cut up, was somewhat gummy and tasted like bananas. The large grapefruit, which looked identical to a large lemon, tasted like a mixture between grapefruit and oranges. The tamarinds tasted just like raisins but in a completely different form.

At night we arrived at our hotel by Hong Hue University. This was not one of the better hotels. The Wi-Fi was very hard to get on and every time I left the room all of the power would go out. So I could not charge anything while I was out of the room. The dinner was a New Year’s feast. It was more food than we had ever gotten before. It was very good but very filling.

Today, I woke up to a nice sunny day. I’m starting to get used to eating noodles and rice for breakfast. We hopped on the bus and made our way to the former French railway station. There were a number of Chinese tourists already there but it was very peaceful there. Dr. Luo took some of us down the path to where the railway hit the road. He showed us some buildings related to the railway station and explained what some stone markers stacked up and pushed to the side were.

We went to two museums on this day; the Honghe Minority Museum and the museum related the university. Everything inside was very interesting to look at but I found myself just walking aimlessly, because I could not understand most of the things meant. Almost everything was in Chinese.

It became time for lunch where tried the famous Cross and Bridge Noodles. The waiter came in and put a large plate in front of us. The plate had tiny bowls on it filled with raw meat, eggs, vegetables and noodles. He then came back in and stacked another large plate with more varieties of foods on it. The waiters brought everyone an extremely large bowl filled with piping hot broth. We had to select everything from the large plates we wanted to put into the bowl. The boiling broth cooked everything as we threw it in. This meal experience was something I had never done before and it was fascinating to say the least. Overall, it was decent. I was full very quickly and it seemed as though not one person finished the entire bowl.

We then took a walk by the South Lake. We saw beautiful Pagodas, the French Gardens, and the French Embassy. The sun was out and it was a beautiful day for a walk by a lake. A couple of us saw a pet store on the walk and we went in. I was very excited to see dogs, because I miss my own dog very much. I was surprised to see Husky and Labrador puppies because most of the dogs I have seen in China have been wild and just roaming the streets; emaciated, standoffish, and dirty. Seeing expensive purebred dogs and puppies for sale as pets was somewhat shocking to me.

I have been waking up very early around 5 or 6. So waking up at 7:15 a.m. for breakfast was not difficult. After breakfast, we packed our stuff and got right on the bus. The bus ride was very scenic and we passed the stone forest which looked beautiful. We will be heading there later on in the trip. Everyone seems to be very excited for that. The bus ride was around 4 hours back to the university but it felt much longer.

Once we got off the bus, we had to say goodbye to our bus driver and our tour guide. They were very sweet and nice. Nixon, our tour guide always helped me with any questions I had. I really appreciated him in times when I was very confused. He was always making us laugh and being very friendly!

We finally made it to Kunming. Mr. Li and Ms. Li set up a very formal and well done orientation for us at Yunnan Normal University (YNNU). I felt very welcome. They made it very clear that if we needed anything at all, they would be there to help us. They showed us around an old classroom that was very quaint inside. It had windows on all sides, a chalkboard and a large cluster of wooden desks. I liked the old time feel it had.

We had some free time to walk around the city after class. This was very laid back and relaxing. I enjoyed walking around. I was very excited to find some American food for the first time on the trip! We were all so happy to finally eat something familiar. Then we all celebrated with dessert. It was a perfect end to the day.

Today was our first day of class, which went very well. Dr. Luo introduced us to some of the history of China. Three others and I did our presentations today. I think they all went pretty well. Professor Vera ran through some camera basics for the introductory students.

Our big venture was to take on the Chinese Walmart today. The walk to Walmart was about 20 minutes of crowded streets and shops everywhere. There was always something to look at. There were many illegal street vendors out. As we were walking, they all rushed to grab there things quickly and hide as the police scanned the streets for anything illegal. We stopped to watch for a couple minutes.

One we got to Walmart it was almost nothing like an American Wal-Mart. Unfortunately we were advised not to take pictures in Wal-Mart. It was very congested and confusing inside. There were many workers standing by isles, working in their own shopping sections that looked like mall stores rather than Wal-mart shopping isles. A

s we went to pay, we passed the “Wet Market.” This had a large selection of meats and fish. There were sellers standing next to their products advertising their products by yelling out information about them. This is was so interesting to me. This part seemed so much like an outside market of some sort rather than a big supermarket.

During free time, I was very excited to get some souvenir shopping done. We found some very cute little stores with trinkets and gifts that were perfect keepsakes for some of my friends and family! My favorite little store was called, “Good Life and Good Idea.” I bought most of my things inside this store. Everyone was so welcoming and friendly inside!

— Victoria Rawa, psychology major #HuskyAbroad

Led by Vera Viditz-Ward, professor of art and art history, and Jing Luo, Ph.D., professor of languages and cultures, a group of Bloomsburg University students spent three weeks in China studying language, culture and photography. The group, hosted by Yunnan Normal University, traveled to Kunming, Hekou, Yuanyuang, Mengzi, Dali, and Lijiang, where they had close contact with a variety of ethnic groups and learned about their lives and cultures.

China Today: Along the border

Today we got to know the small town, Hekou. It is located near the southern edge of China. It boarders Vietnam. The major event that takes place in Hekou is the boarder trade. The trucks and people line up on a bridge and wait till the border to either China or to Vietnam opens and then they can go across. The number of trucks that would line up to cross the boarder was huge and it would take forever for each truck to get across.

When we were sitting eating lunch near the bridge it seemed as if the trucks didn’t even move. The trade process seems inefficient and not very use full in my opinion.

It took too long for thing to come across and there seemed to be more supplies then needed. However, like Dr. Jing said to me; for the Chinese and Vietnamese it is not about the supply and demand like it is in the US.

Today we saw the Vietnamese were bringing over to the Chinese side to trade. A few of the items were melons, rice and prostitutes. It was interesting to see the trading upfront when most of the trading that goes on in the U.S. is behind the curtains. The manual labor that all the people do for each of their products is a amazing, basically their lives/jobs. In return it is understandable that they have the patients to wait hours to be able to trade the product. This is something that I think very few Americans would understand and have the patients to do, so although it doesn’t seem efficient to me it also builds a lot of character.

The other interesting thing in Hekou is the old railway station. The French built this when they invaded China. Each of the horizontal slats on the railroad cost one Chinese life when being built. Mostly everything around the railway was broken down and abandoned. The sides were full of trash. I think this place is amazing and beautiful but the amount of trash and broken down places brings the beauty down a few levels. Hekou has the combination of new and old.

We departed in the morning on the bus and traveled about three hours north to a small village in the mountains called Quing Ku. The people that inhabit this village are a minority group by the name of Hani. The Hani people spend their days farming in the terraces, which hold red rice. The Hani people came up with a complex system to bring the water from the mountaintops down into the terraces. To create an irrigation system like that is amazing ad these people must be smart.

The amount of work that the Hani women put into farming the terraces is huge. They carry large sacks on their backs that are help up by a strap, which goes across their forehead. This intense labor that the women go through has a huge toll on their aging process. I thought the women looked to be in their late 60’s and later found out that they were in their 30’s. This was baffling to me because I don’t understand intense labor. I don’t consider my-self a girly girl but I do prim my-self. After seeing the work that these women do it gives me an enormous appreciation for the life style that I was brought up in. The work I saw these women do has inspired me to put that same mount of determination and intense work into all of the work I do.

Today we again visited the terraced fields. One would think that once you have seen it, it will look the same but that is not the case with the terraced fields. Every time I look at them they are just as beautiful and different. The lighting changes all the time and therefore changes the reflection and the look of the terraced fields. The ambiance is breath taking.

However the most exciting part of our trip today was the bus ride. The fact that our bus driver scraped the side of a truck was inevitable with the way the people drive around here. They zip passed one another on these skinny roads with buildings on both sides. As far as I can tell there doesn’t seem to be any driving laws. I think that either the roads need to be expanded or they need to drive smaller cars. The trucks and buses driving up and down these roads, which should only be for one-way traffic. I would look out the sides of the bus and see people working on building more buildings but I didn’t see was anyone creating or expanding the roads. Building more homes or stores will not be useful if no one can get to them. The small roads also make it very dangerous for the town’s people. It is unbelievable that the people don’t seem to mind being almost run over by trucks 24-7.

Today we were in the city of Menzi where the former French railway station is and the Original Southwest Associated University Mengzi Branch is located. It was interesting to hear the story of how some of the professor and students used the French railway to go from Kumming down to Menzi during WWII; because the professors needed to get away form the Japanese. They then moved back up to Kumming once the war was over. Some of the greatest Chinese scholars studied at the Southwest Associated University Mengzi Branch. What I don’t understand is why the scholars had to go back up to Kumming when the University in Mengzi was a good school?

The hype of todays trip was to experience the Mengzi Cross the Bridge Rice Noodles. It was quite an experience! When we first walked into the restaurant all I could think of was, “Man Chinese people eat a lot of food,” because of all the plates piled high. Then once the servers started bring all the little plates with different meats, veggies, and herbs to our table in my head I was like, “My stomach will explode.”

However, the eating process was explained to us and then I began to understand why there was so much food. The process is very unique and interesting. I absolutely loved the creativity of basically being able to create your own noodle soup. I didn’t think that the raw foods could be cooked just by putting them into the boiling hot water, but it did and it was amazing! If there is one thing I have learned so far it would be that the Chinese definitely know how to cook great foods; and how to present them on at table in a way that is practical so everyone can reach the food. I love it!

We took the bus back to Kumming today, which took about four hours and once we got back to Normal Yunnan University we went through orientation. I thought it was honorable and amazing how high education is held in this country. We were shown the monument of the University’s history, which was located on the campus. It was unique the way they kept the original school building and how the original professors were buried on site.

The museum was very interesting to look at and it was peaceful in the way it ended with a quite garden area to study. I think that it really goes to show how proud they are of their academic history and it shows students who or what they are representing by going to the school. I think it would be very beneficial and interesting if Universities had something similar to this. I don’t know a lot about Bloomsburg history but I think it would be interesting to know. The rest of the campus was very quant. It was very interesting to see the classroom we will be using for the next nine days because it was not what I was expecting! It is very low tech and has a very different desk situation then in the United States. I’m really excited to experience class in this new location.

We had class today. It was interesting to see the difference in the classroom compared to the ones back in the United States. The desks were long and green tables, which had cubbies under them. Two people could sit at each desk. The building didn’t have wifi and the computer aren’t connected to the Internet, which I thought was something that it should.

No academic building in the United States would ever not have wifi or be connected to the Internet. Angela and I walked around campus in the afternoon to see what the students do. The thing that I noticed most was that the students actually study while they are laying and sitting outside. The students in Bloomsburg, when it’s sunny and warm out, have a hard time studying. I always see the students just laying and talking with their friends. I wonder if going to college has become such a common thing in the United States, so the students don’t take it as seriously as the Chinese do?

It was our first “free” time today, so we got the chance to walk around the city by ourselves. We went to the little shopping area and had some Australian food. It was a nice break from the Chinese food we had had for the past six days. All around the shopping area there were murals on the buildings.

I absolutely love how China decorates the walls and buildings. It blows my mind how cheep things are here compared to home. I understand that it is made here so they don’t have the shipping costs to add in, but I didn’t think it would be this cheep. Also, I like the fact that there is not sales tax so you know the exact price. Lastly I don’t understand why servers don’t get tipped in China.

— Nicole Updegrove, psychology major #HuskyAbroad

Led by Vera Viditz-Ward, professor of art and art history, and Jing Luo, Ph.D., professor of languages and cultures, a group of Bloomsburg University students spent three weeks in China studying language, culture and photography. The group, hosted by Yunnan Normal University, traveled to Kunming, Hekou, Yuanyuang, Mengzi, Dali, and Lijiang, where they had close contact with a variety of ethnic groups and learned about their lives and cultures.

A month into college, how are those sea legs?

Going from high school to college is one of the biggest life changes I have encountered. You go from having almost eight hours straight of classes Monday through Friday, from early in the morning until about 3 p.m., to classes scattered throughout the day with plenty of free time in between.

After four years, you have finally mastered the routine of going to bed at just the right time where you won’t be too miserable in the morning and getting up when you have just the right amount of time to eat, get dressed and do some last minute homework you’ve been putting off for the past week.
College throws you for a loop the first day of class and the semester following.

Like I said before, in high school you had a constant routine but in college, well, that’s a whole different story. My freshmen courses were from anywhere between an 8 a.m. class on Monday, a 1 p.m. class on Tuesday and a 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. class on Thursday, where does a routine come in?

You will also find that you have so much spare time on your hands! In high school, you were in class for eight hours straight, what do you do with yourself? This is where you start to make some friends and get to know your roommate. A few weeks before I left for college, I got into contact with my future roommate who I have never met before.

We discussed who was bringing what, what were her likes and dislikes, and how we would decorate our room. It seemed like everything was going to work out and we were going to be great friends! The day we moved in, we hugged and laughed like we have been friends for years.

After we got our room decorated the way we both liked, we started to compare schedules, they were the same except for one class! In my head, this was the ideal situation, I had someone to get lost walking to classes with and a convenient and fun study partner.

During the first couple of days before classes start is where you really start to get to know the people in your hallway. People will pile into rooms or gather on the floor of the hallways and talk until about 3 a.m. Who wants to get sleep when you have so many new faces to talk to and no parents to tell you it’s time to go to bed?

This is where you learn about other peoples’ life styles, where they come from and if you might become friends with this person. Early on I found out that becoming friends with your CA or older students in your hall is very important.

Every CA has to create a “program” for the students on campus to help people get to know each other or to inform students of what else you can do on campus. My CA had a program where we all had to go see a magician in the Kehr Union Ballroom, and it was the coolest thing I have ever seen. Before attending that program, I had no idea what was in the Kehr Union and that events like that even happened at Bloomsburg.

The person that was running the event lived in our hallway and made sure that we had front row seats! That was the beginning of my involvement in Program Board. It was a great start of college before classes and homework and it relieved some stress of not living at home.

I don’t know about you but for me, high school made me terrified for college courses. They would tell me that the books were extremely heavy, the professors didn’t care if you passed or failed their classes, and that you would have piles of homework and 20 page papers to do every week. I found this to be mostly a myth.

Yes, sometimes the books that you have to buy can get rather large but most of the time, the professor doesn’t care if you bring the book or not, sometimes, you never even use the book. Most likely, the classes that you were placed in are general education classes and if you already know what you want to major in, this can be super frustrating. Even if you haven’t declared a major, you don’t have a choice in the classes you want to take for your first semester and maybe chemistry, for example, isn’t your strong suit. I was put into a Chemistry 101 class my first semester and did horribly.

Don’t get me wrong! I did great in chemistry when I was in high school but of course we had to sew together little moles to look like the element we chose from the periodic table and do a report on it…big difference. In Chem 101 we had to balance equations and study all of the elements on the periodic table. That class was a struggle for me.

On the other hand, I had a Principles of Cultural Anthropology class that was amazing! The course content was very interesting but what really got me, was the anthropology professor. He had traveled all over the world visiting different cultures and studying them. He treated us as equals and obviously loved his job. Even though you were in a classroom of about 200 students, he made you feel like you were the only one in the room that he was telling his adventures to.

Now don’t panic! The school didn’t lie to you when they said they have a small ratio of faculty to students, because they do. Your general education courses will be much larger because the demand for the class is very large.

For example, almost every single major on campus needs to take a psychology class and therefore more people need to take that class which will equal a larger classroom size. Once you get into the classes that a geared toward your major, the class size will dwindle. I am currently taking a class that has eight people in it.

Even if you have a very large class, make it a habit to visit your professors during their office hours even if you don’t have any questions. Professors do care that you do well in their class and they truly want you to succeed during your years at Bloomsburg and beyond. You never know when you may need a reference letter or 0.10 of a point to make it to Dean’s list. If they see that you are trying your best and are putting your time and effort in, they are more than likely to help you either study for the final, or give you an extra credit assignment.

All in all, freshmen year will be terrifying for some and a breeze for others. Just know that you have people around you going through the same experience or have already been through it. Take the time to make friends and get to know your campus and professors.

Don’t be afraid to ask questions, even if you might think it’s stupid, chances are, there are many other people with the exact same question but are too afraid to ask. Enjoy the time that you have here and make the most of it because it will go by faster than you can imagine.

— Chelsea Underhill, senior marketing major #HuskyLife

A positive impact through literacy learning

The month of April was a busy month for the BU Toy Library. Our main focus was finishing strong with our Early Literacy Initiative as well as our Say Y.E.S. Service Project.

In April, we officially completed our literacy programming in two preschools: Children’s Country Cottage and Magic Carpet Preschool. The rest of the preschools will be completed during the first week in May. All locations have expressed their gratitude for our time and efforts.

Magic Carpet Preschool showed their appreciation by giving Ashlie and me matching thank you cards as well as beautiful paintings of a heart made out of the children’s handprints. It was so nice to receive such well thought out, hand-made gifts and Ashlie and I were extremely grateful.

It felt amazing that the Toy Library made such a positive impact in the community. Not only did the children express gratitude and excitement from our visits, but also Miss Penny (head teacher of Magic Carpet Preschool) requested that the Toy Library return next semester to continue our literacy initiative with the next class of children to attend their preschool.

During our final weeks being practicum students at the BU Toy Library, Ashlie and I also created a comprehensive list of materials needed to enhance the toy library’s materials that develop sensorimotor skills. Ashlie focused on sensory toys and resources while I recommended items that would enhance children’s fine motor and gross motor skills.

These resources will benefit typically developing children and be especially useful for work with children on the Autism Spectrum, children with ADHD, and children with sensory impairments. We are pleased that another senior psychology major will be able to use our preliminary research as a foundation upon, which to build her summer research through the URSCA program, as well as her honors independent study project in the Fall 2014.

We have had a busy and successful semester at the Toy Library. This experience helped us grow in many ways and we are proud that our programming will be used in future semesters.

— Emily Haines is an intern with BU Toy Library.

#CollaborativeLearning