I went to SIM for a briefing today. So I will be going back to school at the end of this month. Since I deferred from the exam last year, I had to retake the same module again. As a result, I can only take one module - the compulsory foundation module, instead of trying for two modules as planned.
The module I am re-taking is the Introduction to Humanities, where this semester, the first part will be covered. It comprises of Art Appreciation, Art History, Philosophy, Classics, Literature (Poems and Sonnets) and Political History. I am rather looking for it, despite the fact that I have almost completed the module if I had taken the exam. But there is no harm in refreshing what I have learnt, afterall, there may be new information and knowledge this year.
I am probably very behind the times, but apparently, now tertiary students can submit their assignments online! I do not mean just mere Multiple Choice quizzes, or fill in the blanks type of questions, which can be submitted electronically by just filling in the answers, but a thousand-word academic essay.
The university is coming up with a new student portal where our essay reports and assignments can be submitted electronically, by uploading via a special system which helps to check for plagiarism as well. The tutor will then review, mark, comment, and then return the assignment by re-uploading with the grade and comments.
Amazing! Imagine what modern technology can do! It cuts down a lot of time as well, because in the past, assignments have to be submitted by post to the tutors, and there were problems of the post being delayed, thus missing the deadline, or getting lost in the mail, so the tutor never received the assignment. In this case, can we then take the examination online as well? It would save so much time and resources!
One thing I notice about the difference between normal students (full-time students like kids and young adults) and part-time students (mature working adults) is in the attitude. Younger people go to school with the idea that it is more than just studying. They get involved in activities and have fun. They interact with their classmates and friends, study together and share their knowledge with each other. Which is why school friends normally become very close and the friendship remains for a long time.
Adult students, on the other hand, study for the sake of studying, ie they want to upgrade their qualifications simply because their work requires it, and they want to get the promotion and better prospects after they finish the entire course. Very few, if any, will want to study just for the interest, like me. So even though they are very hardworking and enthusiatic about the studies, they are less likely to interact with the peers.
But I guess this cannot be helped. We attend classes only once or twice a week (nights only), as compard to full-time students who stay on campus the whole day almost everyday. By the time people get off work, it is time to rush for class. By the time class ended, it is late and everyone wants to just go home, especially those who have families. As a result, people go for lectures and tutorials seeing their classmates but not knowing them.
Besides, they are also less willing to share. Last year, I sent a group email to my tutorial group, asking if they would like to share their assignments. That was after we got back our assignments, so my idea was to share and learn from each other, not to copy from each other. But no one responded. Back in my own school days, I have friends who have no qualms sharing and exchanging, just to see how each other wrote and handled the assignment questions.
This is from my own school experiences. I do know that there are many students, secondary or tertiary, who are also not willing to share, all with the fear that people may score better than them. This paper chase is making everyone more selfish. But to me, I feel that if we go to school, it is to learn, not just from the tutors, but from each other. So is it necessary to step on each other, and break each others' necks just to score well? Afterall, if one has the ability, then he / she will be able to score, even without all these antics. As long as one has tried the best, that is all that matters.
The module I am re-taking is the Introduction to Humanities, where this semester, the first part will be covered. It comprises of Art Appreciation, Art History, Philosophy, Classics, Literature (Poems and Sonnets) and Political History. I am rather looking for it, despite the fact that I have almost completed the module if I had taken the exam. But there is no harm in refreshing what I have learnt, afterall, there may be new information and knowledge this year.
I am probably very behind the times, but apparently, now tertiary students can submit their assignments online! I do not mean just mere Multiple Choice quizzes, or fill in the blanks type of questions, which can be submitted electronically by just filling in the answers, but a thousand-word academic essay.
The university is coming up with a new student portal where our essay reports and assignments can be submitted electronically, by uploading via a special system which helps to check for plagiarism as well. The tutor will then review, mark, comment, and then return the assignment by re-uploading with the grade and comments.
Amazing! Imagine what modern technology can do! It cuts down a lot of time as well, because in the past, assignments have to be submitted by post to the tutors, and there were problems of the post being delayed, thus missing the deadline, or getting lost in the mail, so the tutor never received the assignment. In this case, can we then take the examination online as well? It would save so much time and resources!
One thing I notice about the difference between normal students (full-time students like kids and young adults) and part-time students (mature working adults) is in the attitude. Younger people go to school with the idea that it is more than just studying. They get involved in activities and have fun. They interact with their classmates and friends, study together and share their knowledge with each other. Which is why school friends normally become very close and the friendship remains for a long time.
Adult students, on the other hand, study for the sake of studying, ie they want to upgrade their qualifications simply because their work requires it, and they want to get the promotion and better prospects after they finish the entire course. Very few, if any, will want to study just for the interest, like me. So even though they are very hardworking and enthusiatic about the studies, they are less likely to interact with the peers.
But I guess this cannot be helped. We attend classes only once or twice a week (nights only), as compard to full-time students who stay on campus the whole day almost everyday. By the time people get off work, it is time to rush for class. By the time class ended, it is late and everyone wants to just go home, especially those who have families. As a result, people go for lectures and tutorials seeing their classmates but not knowing them.
Besides, they are also less willing to share. Last year, I sent a group email to my tutorial group, asking if they would like to share their assignments. That was after we got back our assignments, so my idea was to share and learn from each other, not to copy from each other. But no one responded. Back in my own school days, I have friends who have no qualms sharing and exchanging, just to see how each other wrote and handled the assignment questions.
This is from my own school experiences. I do know that there are many students, secondary or tertiary, who are also not willing to share, all with the fear that people may score better than them. This paper chase is making everyone more selfish. But to me, I feel that if we go to school, it is to learn, not just from the tutors, but from each other. So is it necessary to step on each other, and break each others' necks just to score well? Afterall, if one has the ability, then he / she will be able to score, even without all these antics. As long as one has tried the best, that is all that matters.
0 comments:
Post a Comment