Adjusting to University Life and the Challenges of KAC

1. Adjusting to University Life and the Challenges of KAC Don’t panic. We did this too!

2. Academics

3. Behavior

4. Effort

5. Responsibilities

6. Which of these students is in college? • Kim Bop asks, "Are you going to curve this?  It was too hard." • Sam Getungasks, "How did everybody else do?  What was the average?" • ShikHehasks, "What can I do to prepare better for next time?"

7. Knowledge: memorizing words, answering words using exact phrases from a text Comprehension: explaining ideas from a text in your own words, putting different pieces of information together Application: using new information in a setting outside the classroom or in another class Lower-level Thinking

8. Evaluation: giving your opinion; critical thinking, supporting your opinion Synthesis: Creating something new with the information you have learned Analysis: taking information and ideas apart and closely studying them Critical Thinking

9. University subjects are hard.The professor will sometimes make mistakes.He or she is a human being.Sometimes he or she doesn’t know. And sometimes no one knows the answer to complex or abstract questions.

10. Cultural Differences • Do western and eastern people think differently? Why? • What are the intellectual inheritances of western and eastern cultures?

11. The Geography of Thought • The Syllogism and the Tao • More than a billion people worldwide claim intellectual inheritance from Ancient Greece • More than 2 billion people are heirs of ancient Chinese traditions of thought

12. Ancient Greece • Tradition of debate • Every kind of decision determined through debate • Emphasis on logical reasoning • Focus on identifying characteristics of individual objects and classifying them • Characteristics are stable despite contexts • Deemphasize context • Isolate variables in order to test

13. Ancient China • Harmony over agency • The goals of the group are more important than the goals of the individual; strong emphasis on maintaining relationships. • Focus on relationships rather than objects • Early Confucians: characteristics determined by environment – not stable • Studying contexts essential for understanding

15. What does the picture depict? What is the function? How would the culture or climate you come from affect your answer?

16. Western Model of Academics • Professors will expect high levels of involvement in class. • Professors may employ the Socratic Method of instruction; using questions to guide students to new ideas and learning • Professors may ask for volunteers, or they may call on students randomly. • “Correct” answers are not as important as answers that lead to better understanding • Professors generally like to be challenged with opposing opinions if it is done respectfully and demonstrates reasoning skills

17. Western Model of Academics • Most academic disciplines follow a model of scientific experimentation: Question  Theory  Test  Revision • Every theory must be tested before it is accepted • Challenging ideas and testing them is the basis for intellectual development. • Ideas are improved through rigorous debate.

18. Your foreign professors are working from a different set of social rules than you may be used to. • You may not like some of the things we do or say, but learning to resolve cultural conflicts will be an important part of your education. It does not mean you must always agree with us. • They will probably not be persuaded by personal appeals – • “Please, Professor, I need an ‘A’ to keep my scholarship.” • “I know I missed 8 classes, but couldn’t you just let me pass the class anyway this one time? You are my favorite professor. I promise I will do better next time (sniffle)…please…I’m begging…”