大三出國、全英語課程 - 國際視野 : 淡江大學大三出國通報及學分採認系統

:::

2019大三出國輔導通報系統 - 留學心得報告[編輯]

觀光Ｂ 406867142 　黃嘉欣　　留學學校：天普大學

(一)基本資料

My name is Chia Hsin Huang. I am currently exchange in Temple University. The school is located in Philadelphia, PA, which is a very historical area. Although I had to shift to online classes during the last semester because of COVID-19, I still enjoy the time in Temple.(48字)

(二)課程學習

【照片說明：First day to school】

My favorite class in Temple is Introduction to Academic Discourse (ESL). To me, writing is a beautiful creation of words from personal experiences. It can be as simple as a normal diary, but also can be as difficult as a professional academic essay. In addition, only by mastering the ability of reading can create attractive articles. Unfortunately, reading and writing an English essay is a very laborious task for a non-native speaker. During this semester, I had faced so many difficulties on both of them. For example, I struggled to develop my ideas fluently, I didn’t know how to use the right word to express my ideas, I took too much time on reading a few pages of articles…etc. Thus, at the end of the semester, I would like to talk about my learning experience from reading and writing in class. Ability of using vocabulary is very important while reading a paragraph and writing an essay. In fact, this is my biggest weaknesses. I always faced trouble on choosing correct words for my paragraph. I used to think that as long as I memorized words, I could write a good article. But when I am trying to write an essay in class, I failed to use the right words again and again. Until I almost finish the semester, I finally realized that the reason I failed to use the correct vocabulary is because I didn’t read as much as I can. During the in class reading activity, I learned how to read an article critically. We will pay close attention to the words in the article and identify the style of the authors, then later discus in class. This method improved my reading skills a lot. Our professor hope everyone can inspire enthusiasm and motivation not only in class, but also in our reading and writing process. Moreover, a good essay needs to be well organized with many elements. During the class, I had learned how to organize an essay. I used to directly finish my essay without an outline. But the problem is, the reader will not understand my thesis and the whole article will become not logical and unattractive. Organization is one of the most important elements of creating an essay. An organized essay is clear, focused, logical and easy to understand. Now if I am going to write an essay, I will first think about my thesis, then later create an outline with several main points. Finally, I will write my first draft then re-examine all of them. To be honest, even though I faced many difficulties in reading and writing, I still enjoy the whole process. I believe these are very important skills not only for now, but also in the future. After the great semester, I will keep going and practice more in both of them. (474字)

(三)生活環境

【照片說明：School life】

My favorite place in temple is Charles library. The new library, which was built in 2020, conceived as a public space as much as one for academic research. It is instantly the most beautiful building on Temple’s campus. I would suggest students go get a cup of coffee in Stella, which is the best cafe in the library. Then borrow a laptop or book, spend the rest of the day in Charles library. The weather in Summer is nice and warm. We usually drive to the beach in New Jersey. Such as Atlantic city and Ocean city, they are both popular place to go. On the other hand, the temperature in winter is very cold to survive, I would suggest student find their accommodation near to school. You might have to take a long walk to school in winter if you don't do so. Usually students can find a good price around $600 to $800 per month to live in off-campus with your own bedroom. But there are more options for students to live in a luxury apartment if you spend more than a thousand USD. Depend on you. Most of the time I would like to cook by my own. There are many grocery stores which sells interesting products I have never seen before. Also, I would love to go China Town when I miss Asian food. It is not too far from Temple. Philly is a very cool place to discover. It is also a famous big city. I had joined several cool events that was held in here. Moreover, most of the people are nice and friendly in Philly. You will fall in love in this place as long as you live in here.(285字)

(四)自我成長

As an international student, we are going to be surrounded by others who only speak English. Even I have been learning English for my entire life, studying in the United States can be a new challenge to me. Especially the learning process of speaking fluency in an English communication can also be difficult. The fluency of the conversation doesn't affect me too much in daily life. But when I have to give a speech for more than five minutes, I will be frustrated. I believe most of the international student have the same problems at doing a well conversation. Not understanding the English for academic purposes also presents major issues, such as not understanding the lectures in class. They are challenged to be able to read the class material. Moreover, they are challenged to communicate themselves clearly on written assignments. Many international students often struggle with the them. These range from not just coursework but also exams, project, presentations, reports, and so on. Almost every international student is very serious about succeeding academically. They may become depressed because of the barriers, and this could lower their academic achievement. In my opinion, the only way is to learn to adopt the US assessment culture. Most professors in the United States would like to help their students succeed. I often write email and talk to my professor in order to solve my problems. Though it made me nervous at the beginning, but it did really help when I was having a hard time. There are also some resources, such as the tutors in the English Academic Writing Center, which is helpful to most of the international students. I think students have to keep practice and find their own way to overcome the barriers. To accept a new lifestyle and environment may be difficult at the beginning, just always remember to be positive, problems will finally be solved.(315字)

(五)大三出國建議

Being an international student in the United States could be an incredible experience to many foreign students. Although some students do very well in their new environment, most of them still face struggles in many ways. International students may easy fall into homesickness when they feel isolated. They may start missing their home country, family, friends, the customs, and even the food. Most of them came to the United States along, knowing absolutely no one. As a special existence in class, it's hard to always stay positive. “On the one hand, faculty have good things to say about international students and they appreciate their presence, but at the same time they don’t know what their role is or they don’t know how to make changes in the classroom to adjust to these students” ,said Jason Schneider, an assistant professor in the Department of Writing (qtd. in Redden). Students have to suppress themselves while facing the unsolvable problems, because it is hard to find a solution in an unfamiliar environment. “In fact, international students seemed much more aware of the barriers created by cultural differences than their American counterparts. Many international students wrote comments about overcoming (or failing to overcome) specific differences between American and international students” (Voice of America 1) International students have so much to look forward to about living and learning in a new country, but cultural differences might result into challenges. I suggest to step outside of our comfort zone and try to make new friends in campus. Also, join some social clubs and school activities. Although sometime is difficult to get active for shy person, staying busy and active always help us avoid homesickness. (279字)

(六)其他

(0字)

補充照片

點閱次數：162

資料更新時間：05月02日 15:08

[編輯‧修改]

[ 回通報首頁 ]

主選單

登入連結