Education: Values and Expectation

Education: Values and Expectation

Immigrant students who attending schools in the United States will have experience about multiple cultural shock. Immigrant or international students should adapt the custom with the new classroom. Cultural differences as well as the experience of being a new comer account for some of the adjustment problems that non-native-born student’s experience. The differences of student population on the campuses make Americans consider that there are many different habits, customs, and attitudes in America.

Diversity in higher education

There are many institutions in America, therefore the students can continue their study even they age are old. Some communities have adult school as well as two-year colleges which also called “junior colleges” and “community colleges”. Most of students in America does not pursue a specific degree as their study goal, but they prefer to choose vocational training for their job. If they have leisure time, they will fill it with following the activities. There is saying in the American culture that “you are never too old to learn”.

Active participation

Students in America must be active in the class because the grade is on the oral participation. In a small percentage of the more informal classes, students may even decide the topics for study and choose the appropriate books and articles. The students can be ready to critique theories, formulate models, and interact with the professor. If they do not ask questions and do no bring up their own ideas may appear to be uninterested in the course. However, students who contradict teachers must be prepared to defend their position.

The Teacher-Student Relationship

The ideal student is considered to be one who is motivated to learn for the sake of learning, not the one who is interested only in getting high grades. Unlike in the other countries, in the united stated courses are not usually designed merely for students to pass exams. A teacher does not respect a student who only comes to class on the last day to take an exam. It is common for students to have easygoing and friendly relationships with their professor. Sometimes, the professor can go out for coffee with a student. In addition, the professors have several roles in relation to student: they can be counselor and friends as well as teacher. However, the students should appropriately adapt their behavior and attitudes to their professor.

Trust, Honesty, and the Honor System

In American education, trust is an important expectation. The students and the teacher should impose the honor system. The infraction of the honor system will give bad impact to the process and the result of learning. In one Midwestern university handbook, the following behaviors are listed as example of academic dishonesty are: plagiarism, cheating, fabrication, aiding, and falsification. If the students want to use the idea from other people, they must use citation to avoid plagiarism. When international students are accused of plagiarism, it may be that they omitted the citation out of ignorance and not because of dishonesty.

Competition and Grading

Cooperative and competitive usually happen in the relationships of the students. Cooperative relationships the students are willing to share notes and be helpful toward each other. In the contrary, in competitive relationships, the students may be reluctant to share lecture notes or other information for fear that their own grade will suffer. A high grade-point-average (GPA) is important for student because when facing a competitive job market graduates may be hired largely on the basis of their grades and faculty recommendations. When the students disagree with the grade that they have been given by their objection and ask for a change in the grade. However, politeness and respect should be used by the students if they want to approach their professor.

Students stress and coping

Every students sometimes have emotional problems in their educational environment. Their problems in their educational environment cause the stress in young and older students. When some American students find it difficult to cope and have excessive stress, they can seek counseling. Usually, many schools in America offer peer counseling in which students with experience actually advise other students. However, many international students or new immigrant students are not comfortable with peer counseling. This is because to talk with the stranger about personal problem is not common in some cultures.

International and Immigrant Students in the United States

Making friend in the new college is not easy. Sometimes, foreign students and immigrant students find Americans to be cliquish. If the feel exclude from the social aspect of American college life, they should actively seek people with shared interest. Usually, foreign students feel uncomfortable during the first few weeks at a new school because they do not understand the system and are not willing to ask questions. Foreign and immigrant students should anticipate that cross cultural misunderstanding may arise as a result of different.