Whoops

Forgot to post this earlier.

9/25/11

Here are some cultural/social differences that I have begun to notice. There are lots of dad’s that walk around during work hours with their infant children. This is because many of them can get a leave from work when their child is born. Usually the mother takes off from work initially then the father takes the second half of the leave to allow for bonding time early in the child’s life. Danish couples live together relatively early in their relationships. My guess is housing is so expensive that it just makes sense. It seems that many Dane’s (well, my sample size is limited to the ones I’m grouped with) don’t like to procrastinate and stay very much on task.

As far as differences education wise, it’s very interesting to have classes with so many international students. The more classes that go by, the more evident the differences in learning style and academic strengths and weaknesses. I noticed that of the student presentations so far, the Americans have the best presentation skills hands down. I might also add that in my opinion many of my Shidler classmates are far better orators. I understand that for majority of my classmates here, English is not their first language and puts them at a disadvantage. However, as far as just their presence, aura as Dr. Shin would say, is not confident. Also, the way information is conveyed and the unprofessional/low quality powerpoint presentations make the US students shine even more.

I get the sense that non-US students are much more interactive in learning and gain a much deeper understanding of materials taught. Most international students grasp the bigger picture more easily and make connections more quickly than I do. Also in most classes that I’m taking there really aren’t any benchmarks for determining how you’re doing and if you really understand concepts and how they fit together. Professors lecture but don’t often pose questions unless someone asks specifically.