Sunday, December 14, 2014
Friday, December 12, 2014
Introduction
Who We Are?
We are 留学生 (Liu Xue Sheng).
Liu Xue Sheng is the Chinese vocabulary for us. It literally means a student studying in a foreign place. The word in general can describe any group of students who go abroad in any foreign country to study. China has liuxuesheng since late Qing Dynasty. But word's meaning has changed drascitally in the past decades due to the political situation at different times. Politically, we are the first generation who can decide whether to go abroad or not so freely than any other generation.
Why I Choose This Topic?
The reason I choose this topic is very simple. I myself am a part of this group at this time in the history of China. Though I can not represent my group fully, my thinking and observation can provide some first-hand insight of the topic. I want to make us visible. We are such a huge group of students in the US that you might find it hard to believe. However we are not the mainstream. Maybe not even belong to the minor group. We are "international students" in campus. I hope those people who do not know or do not realize the existence of us find my website informative.
Why America?
America is our dream. The land of freedom. As a generation of 90s, we grow up in a very western culture. Chinese market began to open under the leadership of Leng Xiaopin in 1990s. Huge mount of western culture came in, especially for all the big cities in China. When I was small, I watch Disney movies and comic books. Girls have Barbie dolls. We go to Mc Donalds and KFCs very often. And we celebrate holidays like Halloweens and Christmas and Valentine's Days. The school taught us American values and western culture were so popular that started to change family values. The idea of going to American some time in the future is so natural to think of and feels like we meant to be in the United States some time in my life. And New York is like the place I meant to be. This is our American dream.
- A huge group of students from Mainland China
- Age around 19 to 22 years old
- Alone while parents back in China
- Studying or Pursuing our BA degree
- In Universities or Liberal Arts Colleges
- Self-paid tuition or Receiving student financial
- In the United States of America
We are 留学生 (Liu Xue Sheng).
Liu Xue Sheng is the Chinese vocabulary for us. It literally means a student studying in a foreign place. The word in general can describe any group of students who go abroad in any foreign country to study. China has liuxuesheng since late Qing Dynasty. But word's meaning has changed drascitally in the past decades due to the political situation at different times. Politically, we are the first generation who can decide whether to go abroad or not so freely than any other generation.
Why I Choose This Topic?
The reason I choose this topic is very simple. I myself am a part of this group at this time in the history of China. Though I can not represent my group fully, my thinking and observation can provide some first-hand insight of the topic. I want to make us visible. We are such a huge group of students in the US that you might find it hard to believe. However we are not the mainstream. Maybe not even belong to the minor group. We are "international students" in campus. I hope those people who do not know or do not realize the existence of us find my website informative.
Why America?
America is our dream. The land of freedom. As a generation of 90s, we grow up in a very western culture. Chinese market began to open under the leadership of Leng Xiaopin in 1990s. Huge mount of western culture came in, especially for all the big cities in China. When I was small, I watch Disney movies and comic books. Girls have Barbie dolls. We go to Mc Donalds and KFCs very often. And we celebrate holidays like Halloweens and Christmas and Valentine's Days. The school taught us American values and western culture were so popular that started to change family values. The idea of going to American some time in the future is so natural to think of and feels like we meant to be in the United States some time in my life. And New York is like the place I meant to be. This is our American dream.
Wednesday, December 10, 2014
A Brief History of Chinese Liuxuesheng 1
Generally Chinese Liuxuesheng can be into five main geranations.
The first group was between 1872 to 1900, which is the late Qing Dynasty period. They were a group of very young kids that the government sent them out to America to study. They stayed with well-educated families in Springfield and went to Yale. They mainly studied practical skills like Engineering, Mining, Shipping, Public Transportation, and Mailing. Later after they went back to China, they developed revolutions which ended Fedualism.
(the photo after they went)
The second group was between 1900 to 1927. Besides America, students also went to Japan and France to study. Instead of practical skills, they studied humanities, economics and management. Communist Party of China was also founded among during this time period.
The first group was between 1872 to 1900, which is the late Qing Dynasty period. They were a group of very young kids that the government sent them out to America to study. They stayed with well-educated families in Springfield and went to Yale. They mainly studied practical skills like Engineering, Mining, Shipping, Public Transportation, and Mailing. Later after they went back to China, they developed revolutions which ended Fedualism.
(the photo before they went to America)
(the photo after they went)
The second group was between 1900 to 1927. Besides America, students also went to Japan and France to study. Instead of practical skills, they studied humanities, economics and management. Communist Party of China was also founded among during this time period.
Tuesday, December 9, 2014
A Brief History of Chinese Liuxuesheng 2
The third generation was from 1927 to 1940. They mainly went to America and Europe to study high technology. Among them, there were Yang Zhengning, studied in the University of Chicago, who received the Nobel prize in physics; scientist Qian Xuesen, studied in California Institute of Technology, contributed on missile space programs for both China and America. Qian Sanqiang, who was a nuclear physicist, went to France. Qian Weichang, who also went to Caltech as physicist and Li Zhengdao, who received Nobel prize in physics, went to Columbia University.
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(photo shown : Qian Xuesen, Qian Sanqiang, Qian Weichang, Li Zhengdao and Yang Zhengning)
The fourth generation was from 1949 to 1965. People's Republic of China was founded in 1949. This period of liuxuesheng mainly went to Soviet Union and East Europe to study. The group was mainly leaders of China who were important for the development of the new China. Leaders like our former president Jiang Zemin, Li Peng, etc.
_0624_-_Li_Peng_cina.jpg)
The fifth generation, which was after 1978 till today.
This is the mania of studying abroad. The whole number of liuxuesheng after 1978 is 10 times more than all the four generations before. It is the studying of all kinds, including PhDs, Masters Degrees, BA degrees and high schools.
The fourth generation was from 1949 to 1965. People's Republic of China was founded in 1949. This period of liuxuesheng mainly went to Soviet Union and East Europe to study. The group was mainly leaders of China who were important for the development of the new China. Leaders like our former president Jiang Zemin, Li Peng, etc.
The fifth generation, which was after 1978 till today.
This is the mania of studying abroad. The whole number of liuxuesheng after 1978 is 10 times more than all the four generations before. It is the studying of all kinds, including PhDs, Masters Degrees, BA degrees and high schools.
Friday, December 5, 2014
Chinese Women in America's Women's College
There were also some excellent and famous Chinese women went to America's Women's College. Women's college education was only accessible for daughters in wealthy and powerful families. The daughters needed to be well-educated ladies both elegant and smart.
The Soong Sisters (Song Ailing, Song Qingling, Song Meiling) and their husbands were significant political figures of early 20th century of China. The Soong sisters all went to Wesleyan College and the youngest Song Meiling later went to Wellesley College.
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(Song Qingling and Sun Zhongshan)
Bing Xin, who was a famous writer and poet in China, went to Wellesley College and studied literature.
Reference :
http://www.wesleyancollege.edu/about/soongsisters.cfm
http://www.wesleyancollege.edu/academics/library/archives/chinaroom.cfm
http://www.wellesley.edu/msc/chiangkaishek
http://www.wellesley.edu/admission/why/womenleaders
The Soong Sisters (Song Ailing, Song Qingling, Song Meiling) and their husbands were significant political figures of early 20th century of China. The Soong sisters all went to Wesleyan College and the youngest Song Meiling later went to Wellesley College.
(Song Meiling and Jiang Jieshi)
Bing Xin, who was a famous writer and poet in China, went to Wellesley College and studied literature.
Reference :
http://www.wesleyancollege.edu/about/soongsisters.cfm
http://www.wesleyancollege.edu/academics/library/archives/chinaroom.cfm
http://www.wellesley.edu/msc/chiangkaishek
http://www.wellesley.edu/admission/why/womenleaders
Thursday, December 4, 2014
Wednesday, December 3, 2014
Relationships
Before we came to America, most of us get to know the style of American love and romance through media. It is a kind of mutual equal and respect relationship in marriage we admire. But the fact is not what we thought. Duh. A Chinese female student actually summarized her and her friends' experience dating with American males and shared online. She said dance party, dorm party, clubbing are the common places to know different guys. So do school events, classes, libraries and gyms. However, the way of dealing relationships is very different.
There are one night stand, booty call, friends with benefits, date, in a relationship, in an open relationship. Some Chinese students like the American ways but some still prefer the Chinese way, which is in a relationship or you don't.
Relationships for us are just hard to maintain even though the couple is in the same school. Not to mention long distance relationships which most of us had this experience. The thing is, sometimes we do not know whether it is just lonely that we need somebody because studying and living in a foreign country or it is actually real love. And if it is real love, even when sharing similar values, there are practical issues will just break us down. For example, if we are in the same class year, the plan after college is important. What if the couple do not have a same plan? Most of us break up at this point because it involves commitment and sacrifice and college students are just not ready for that. Usually students change after college environment because they enter the real society and become real adults. The growth is crucial and if the couple is not on the same page together, the relationship becomes shaky. Say, if one needs to stay in America and one needs to go back to China. Also, if one goes to work after graduation and one continues to pursue a master degree. Remember, most of us want to end long distance relationship after college and try to be in a same city. And sometimes it is the whole visa situation causes the break up. The whole practical thing just make us not that confident in relationships. Of course there are couples who worked this our. But most just choose to love without commitment because things change quickly in America and commitment is just too heavy and cruel for those who want but can not get. A fun fact that I remember that statistically, East coast sides have more single female and California has more single male working in engineering and computer science industry. Relationships also suffer even if we go back to China.
We need love. Sometimes we do feel lonely and need someone to care. We want stable and mature relationships. But this is just hard. Thus we learn to love and cherish ourselves more.
Monday, December 1, 2014
Identity
What makes us Chinese? What is American exactly?
Identity was not an issue at all before we came to US. In fact, we know nothing about identity and identity crisis. Even though we have 56 shaoshuminzu in China, most of us belonged to Han. We are taught that no matter what minzu we come from, we are Chinese. And foreigners are Lao Wai. literally meaning people from outside. But identity conflict became very obvious right start from the first year studying in US. All of a sudden, we are foreigners, and international students. I did not know the deep meaning of international students until my junior year that I somehow feel like we are actually not even belong to the minor group but "International Student". Our school has a huge diversity and we have students from 75 countries. Moreover, what we find shocking is that, there are actually different groups people even we are all Chinese. There are ABCs, American born Chinese. There are adopted Chinese girls raised by American families. There are Chinese from Malaysia. They all call themselves Chinese so what is the difference between us and them? The funny thing is, as a generation of 90s, we grew up with huge amount of western cultures. Thank you for the globalization and capitalism. If culture experience does not split us apart, it is actually the politics and law. We are not American citizens and we share different political views. Some of us become even more Chinese in a foreign country when they realized the Chinese traditions are the only thing that can make them feel like Chinese. But the ABCs and adopted girls faced a tougher situation on identity crisis. My personal suggestion for them is, when in America, say you are an American and when you are in China, say you are a Chinese.
Identity was not an issue at all before we came to US. In fact, we know nothing about identity and identity crisis. Even though we have 56 shaoshuminzu in China, most of us belonged to Han. We are taught that no matter what minzu we come from, we are Chinese. And foreigners are Lao Wai. literally meaning people from outside. But identity conflict became very obvious right start from the first year studying in US. All of a sudden, we are foreigners, and international students. I did not know the deep meaning of international students until my junior year that I somehow feel like we are actually not even belong to the minor group but "International Student". Our school has a huge diversity and we have students from 75 countries. Moreover, what we find shocking is that, there are actually different groups people even we are all Chinese. There are ABCs, American born Chinese. There are adopted Chinese girls raised by American families. There are Chinese from Malaysia. They all call themselves Chinese so what is the difference between us and them? The funny thing is, as a generation of 90s, we grew up with huge amount of western cultures. Thank you for the globalization and capitalism. If culture experience does not split us apart, it is actually the politics and law. We are not American citizens and we share different political views. Some of us become even more Chinese in a foreign country when they realized the Chinese traditions are the only thing that can make them feel like Chinese. But the ABCs and adopted girls faced a tougher situation on identity crisis. My personal suggestion for them is, when in America, say you are an American and when you are in China, say you are a Chinese.
Sunday, November 30, 2014
Work Situation in China
The chart gives us a visual result of the going to trend for Liuxuesheng. It shows from 1978 till 2013, there are 30, 586 thousands Chinese students studying abroad and 14, 442 thousands choose to go back. There is 72.38% students have the intention to go back. Most students who majored in Humanities, Business Managements or related went back to China these years. STEM majored students mainly stayed in US. Age is between 22 to 34 years old. Most of them choose financial and educational industry in China to work. They mainly want to stay in big cities like Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou.
Wednesday, November 26, 2014
Reverse Cultural Shock 1
Believe it or not, we need to readjust into our own culture when we go back to China. If it's summer time, it usually takes me one to two month. But if we are going back for a job, it will take us longer to adjust. This sounds ridicules because who can be more familiar with our own culture than ourselves? The place we grow up and stayed for more than 18 years before we come back to US. Also, we've been insisted so much on our Chinese identities and our culture while we are in the US. In no way, there should be any problems to go back but the truth is, we have changed when we were in the US. More or little but influential. This is not a problem I personally met but a common thing we experienced when we go back to China. We become the most familiar strangers of our own motherland.
Language Problem
We speak in a language combination with Chinese and english that our friends, family and others just find it weird and can't understand why we are talking in this way. For example, when I want to explain something to my mom, I use some English words but since my mom doesn't know what that mean, she wants me to say it in completely Chinese and I just don't know how to say it in total Chinese, which drives her crazy because she just can't comprehend how my language system changed to a way that I can only use English words for some situations. We talk in a way using english words to replace our Chinese expressions unconsciously because we were in US this long time and this is how we learned from friends or professors and this is how school taught us what to say. We lack the college experience in China and it is normal why we don't know what words are being used among Chinese college students. This new way of talking make our friends mad at us especially. Using proper words in Chinese speaking is important. If you play too much with it, it is impolite because they would think you don't want to talk with them that's why you are talking in this weird way. But we didn't do it intentionally. And if we explain, our friends just think we are being hypocratic because we won't even want to talk Chinese in a normal so that to show we are from America. we now talk sentences in an American way just with Chinese words. The word order is not even right in Chinese. We talk translated Chinese.
Language Problem
We speak in a language combination with Chinese and english that our friends, family and others just find it weird and can't understand why we are talking in this way. For example, when I want to explain something to my mom, I use some English words but since my mom doesn't know what that mean, she wants me to say it in completely Chinese and I just don't know how to say it in total Chinese, which drives her crazy because she just can't comprehend how my language system changed to a way that I can only use English words for some situations. We talk in a way using english words to replace our Chinese expressions unconsciously because we were in US this long time and this is how we learned from friends or professors and this is how school taught us what to say. We lack the college experience in China and it is normal why we don't know what words are being used among Chinese college students. This new way of talking make our friends mad at us especially. Using proper words in Chinese speaking is important. If you play too much with it, it is impolite because they would think you don't want to talk with them that's why you are talking in this weird way. But we didn't do it intentionally. And if we explain, our friends just think we are being hypocratic because we won't even want to talk Chinese in a normal so that to show we are from America. we now talk sentences in an American way just with Chinese words. The word order is not even right in Chinese. We talk translated Chinese.
Tuesday, November 25, 2014
Reverse Culture Shock 2
Our Voice
We now talk whatever we want because we think we have a right to speak out loud. But this is just impolite in many situations in China and we find it hard to adjust and keep quiet now. We forget our own culture manner etiquettes. We now treat our parents and friends differently. We tend to encourage different voices from everybody and we expect them to speak out also. This is really obvious especially online.
Company culture
Most of my friends and I have been worked in both foreign company and local company these summers to discover what kind of company culture do we like. There is a huge different. The culture in foreign company in China welcomes us and treats us very likely the way we used to in America. The working atmosphere is more relaxing based on equal communication. However, it took me sometime to adjust into our local company culture. The local company would not tell you the job position in advance. Also students need to be really helpful but not in a "loud" way, meaning do your work and speak less. The hierarchy in local company is important and students should bare in mind who is the leader to talk to when having problems. No matter what, being able to experience and adjust into different company's culture is important. It is the professional way.
Our taste changed
I miss everything in the US when I was in China and I miss everything in China when I was in US. This sounds insane but last summer when I was walking down the street some day, a huge craving for hamburger and pizza just make all the food in Chinese restaurants seem tasteless and I need to find a place to buy a sandwich to end my craving. And sometimes in the midnight, I just need a hot chocolate and cookies so bad. Our taste changed. Chinese believed so much in food and if the taste changed, this person really changed because memory is linked with food. The fact that we want American food back in China drive our parents nuts because we used to love the food they make for us. But now they are also forced by us to taste "junk food" that we loved when we were in America.
We now talk whatever we want because we think we have a right to speak out loud. But this is just impolite in many situations in China and we find it hard to adjust and keep quiet now. We forget our own culture manner etiquettes. We now treat our parents and friends differently. We tend to encourage different voices from everybody and we expect them to speak out also. This is really obvious especially online.
Company culture
Most of my friends and I have been worked in both foreign company and local company these summers to discover what kind of company culture do we like. There is a huge different. The culture in foreign company in China welcomes us and treats us very likely the way we used to in America. The working atmosphere is more relaxing based on equal communication. However, it took me sometime to adjust into our local company culture. The local company would not tell you the job position in advance. Also students need to be really helpful but not in a "loud" way, meaning do your work and speak less. The hierarchy in local company is important and students should bare in mind who is the leader to talk to when having problems. No matter what, being able to experience and adjust into different company's culture is important. It is the professional way.
Our taste changed
I miss everything in the US when I was in China and I miss everything in China when I was in US. This sounds insane but last summer when I was walking down the street some day, a huge craving for hamburger and pizza just make all the food in Chinese restaurants seem tasteless and I need to find a place to buy a sandwich to end my craving. And sometimes in the midnight, I just need a hot chocolate and cookies so bad. Our taste changed. Chinese believed so much in food and if the taste changed, this person really changed because memory is linked with food. The fact that we want American food back in China drive our parents nuts because we used to love the food they make for us. But now they are also forced by us to taste "junk food" that we loved when we were in America.
Wednesday, November 19, 2014
Visa Issue
November the 10th, President Obama claimed a change in Chinese Visa to America that from now on, the business travel visa is 10 years and student visa is 5 five years. But the OPT (Optional Practical Training) and STEM still remain the same, which are 12 months and 31months perspectively. This only means we do not have to fill a form called DS-160 every time when we go back to China.
Some students choose to work after graduation. That is a tougher situation for all the international students because even though we get a work offer, the company might not be able to sponsor our working visa H1B. And even if the company has money to apply the H1B for us, the working visa works as a lottery. PhDs and masters first, then undergraduates. STEM majors first. It means after a year of working, without the working visa, we have to leave.
I am not saying this whole Visa system is unfair for us. Actually it is very fair and make students competitive. However I just want to point out the fact that how visa status plays a huge role for us and affect our decisions and plans in America that most Americans do not realize.
Saturday, November 15, 2014
How Chinese Media Reports Us
Sina, a Chinese media website, recently reported the real life of Chinese students in America. These are the students from Ohio State University. Even though it was reported in a passive and negative perspective, it is actually somewhat true.
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The student is worrying about his grades and the workload.
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How students get together and celebrate Chinese holiday.
Students, who did not pass the TOEFL exam, need to take a year to learn language and then can be accepted.
Chinese students play Majiang in leisure time to get rid of the boringness.
Thursday, November 13, 2014
Go back or Stay? This is a question.
Wednesday, November 12, 2014
Summer Schools & International Schools in China
Two types of summer schools are very popular in big cities in China. One is like SIE, which provide college credits course for Chinese students with a cheaper price then the summer schools in America. The other is like Fujen Summer School, which provide high quality small size college credit course but for excellent high school students, who are going abroad to America to study or have already been admitted in the spring.
https://www.facebook.com/FujenInternational/info
http://summer.sieschool.org/en/
Professor from Columbia University in Fujen Summer School
International schools are also growing rapidly in China. These schools are for students who want to go abroad to study. Students take exams like SATs instead of normal Gaokao. Due to the regulations from Educational Department, international schools can only co-exist with a local normal high school or university. The school campus environment usually is in very good condition. All the teachers are native english speakers who possess a teaching certificate. The courses being taught are mainly IB and ALevel. The whole english teaching environment and teacher sources are two big benefits for students and the tuition is also very expensive.
Students from an international school
An area of an international school
Tuesday, November 11, 2014
New Oriental School
Founder Yu MinHong and his two partners.
The one on the very left is the film director. 
The film that is based on their real life stories.
New Oriental School was founded in 1993 by Yu Minhong, who was a student from Peking University. The other two business partner are his friends. Their company and their dream is about learning English and go to America. Their stories were filmed by a Hong Kong director few years ago and it was such a hit and touching because excluding the regular school we attend, New Oriental School is the second "school" and also a place to grow our dreams.
I learned my TOEFL, SAT, IELTS there. And many other students just like me did the same in order to go abroad. Yu Minhong had an American dream when he first founded the school. The visa to US was very limit in 1990s. He did not get the visa but his friend did. He determined to learn good english and to teach students to learn good english that one day, everyone can go to America with good quality English to see this country and study or even live there. Teachers in New Oriental School are young and energetic. They are all good at a specific part of English and they all have their own learning style and patterns, which should be very effective, to teach students.
Some direct statistic reference from its own website.
-approximately 19.6 million student enrollments
-approximately 2.7 million enrollments in fiscal year 2014
-a network of 56 schools and 711 learning centers
-31 New Oriental bookstores and over 5,000 third-party bookstores
-over 16,700 teachers in 50 cities
-online network with approximately 9.6 million registered users.
http://english.neworiental.org/Default.aspx?tabid=3463
Monday, November 10, 2014
Sunday, November 9, 2014
Chinese High School Students In America
The number of Chinese international students in US has reached 27.4 million. Moreover, the tendency of high school students going abroad these years is just crazy. It is not about how Chinese parents suddenly become rich that most money is self-paid. Since Chinese parents would always love to spend huge mount of money on children's education, by sending kids out to America in their teenage years is just worrying. They are at the age that should be staying with their family to build emotional and world values. But now students need to face much more pressure than the peer students alone in America.
Around the world, 31% international students are from China.
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Reference: http://www.collegedaily.cc/blog/1169/
Saturday, November 8, 2014
Saturday, October 25, 2014
American Culture 1
There are several elements that most of us experience in America that can be categorized into American Culture.
Trust
People just trust each other. This whole trust virtue seems so easy and understandable in America that we find it unbelievable when we first arrived. It is just like what we heard. It is everywhere. On the bus, in a store, in school, with people we know or don't. This trust makes everything comfortable to go on and most importantly people really do well with trust. I still remember how Professor Ferraro said in the first class of World Politics that he trust us. And only with trust, we can trust ourselves more that we become more confident in learning and questioning and thinking and the result is just amazing.
Self-advocate
Everyone is important. Every single voice that should be heard need to be heard. Sharing ideas is important. Saying out loud is important. Talking is important. We need to let others know what we are thinking. We need to put ourselves out, maybe uncomfortable because in a non-comfort zone, we feel that we are not ourselves anymore. But we are. Chinese students are just too familiar to not self-advocate. But it is actually not scary at all to say what we think really deep down. And when we say it out, there will be awareness from others that it is even better because they now know how to help us or what to do to adjust. I encourage everybody to say it out loud because your voice is important and should be heard.
Critical Thinking
This is a very important skill or even an ability in America. It is not only in class discussion seminar. It is not only in college campus or liberal arts education. It is a lifestyle. A thinking habit. The good habit to deal with all kinds of information we receive that we should be a little bit suspicious about everything. Question the source, the origin. Question the truth, the "fact". Question our belief and people who put this idea in us. Question and think. To find out why, and how. To understand why things go this way and not the other round. To prove and find evidence. To argue and accept other people to challenge your ideas.
Trust
People just trust each other. This whole trust virtue seems so easy and understandable in America that we find it unbelievable when we first arrived. It is just like what we heard. It is everywhere. On the bus, in a store, in school, with people we know or don't. This trust makes everything comfortable to go on and most importantly people really do well with trust. I still remember how Professor Ferraro said in the first class of World Politics that he trust us. And only with trust, we can trust ourselves more that we become more confident in learning and questioning and thinking and the result is just amazing.
Self-advocate
Everyone is important. Every single voice that should be heard need to be heard. Sharing ideas is important. Saying out loud is important. Talking is important. We need to let others know what we are thinking. We need to put ourselves out, maybe uncomfortable because in a non-comfort zone, we feel that we are not ourselves anymore. But we are. Chinese students are just too familiar to not self-advocate. But it is actually not scary at all to say what we think really deep down. And when we say it out, there will be awareness from others that it is even better because they now know how to help us or what to do to adjust. I encourage everybody to say it out loud because your voice is important and should be heard.
Critical Thinking
This is a very important skill or even an ability in America. It is not only in class discussion seminar. It is not only in college campus or liberal arts education. It is a lifestyle. A thinking habit. The good habit to deal with all kinds of information we receive that we should be a little bit suspicious about everything. Question the source, the origin. Question the truth, the "fact". Question our belief and people who put this idea in us. Question and think. To find out why, and how. To understand why things go this way and not the other round. To prove and find evidence. To argue and accept other people to challenge your ideas.
Friday, October 24, 2014
American Culture 2
Cooperation
Team work is everywhere in America. Chinese students usually took it for granted about the idea of teamwork that it just a group of people working together. But it is not that at easy. It is the ability to work with people that are better than you and to work with people that are maybe weaker than you. And you have to contribute not by just doing your own stuff. You are a team. Everybody affects each other.
Don't Judge
Respect the choices other makes. We meet all kinds of different people from all around the world. They have different culture backgrounds, beliefs, knowledges, habits. But no one can say who is absolutely correct. Appreciate the different and maybe even more learn from each other. If people are the choices they made, and it is different from you, it is fine. They have their own reasons. Learn to really listen and don't judge.
Work hard Play harder
Studying is intensive for college students. But American kids do know how to enjoy life. They work hard and they can play even harder. Their attitude to life is constantly being happy and freedom. They can throw crazy parties and go wild places to get out of the school environment to enjoy their holidays. They enjoy hanging out with friends and do all kinds of silly things just because they are happy. They work really hard to make sure all the works that need to be done are done. This kind of attitude is very encouraging and also feeling relax and chill to live like this. When you do something, do it good. And then you can enjoy your trip or holiday and enjoy it in the most way you want that make yourself happy.
Team work is everywhere in America. Chinese students usually took it for granted about the idea of teamwork that it just a group of people working together. But it is not that at easy. It is the ability to work with people that are better than you and to work with people that are maybe weaker than you. And you have to contribute not by just doing your own stuff. You are a team. Everybody affects each other.
Don't Judge
Respect the choices other makes. We meet all kinds of different people from all around the world. They have different culture backgrounds, beliefs, knowledges, habits. But no one can say who is absolutely correct. Appreciate the different and maybe even more learn from each other. If people are the choices they made, and it is different from you, it is fine. They have their own reasons. Learn to really listen and don't judge.
Work hard Play harder
Studying is intensive for college students. But American kids do know how to enjoy life. They work hard and they can play even harder. Their attitude to life is constantly being happy and freedom. They can throw crazy parties and go wild places to get out of the school environment to enjoy their holidays. They enjoy hanging out with friends and do all kinds of silly things just because they are happy. They work really hard to make sure all the works that need to be done are done. This kind of attitude is very encouraging and also feeling relax and chill to live like this. When you do something, do it good. And then you can enjoy your trip or holiday and enjoy it in the most way you want that make yourself happy.
Wednesday, October 22, 2014
We Are The Future
Columbia University Chinese Student Club
Columbia University Chinese Students Club
Harvard-Radcliffe Chinese Students Association
Mount Holyoke College Chinese Culture Association
photo after Moon Festival
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