Getting Used to College Life

Transferring from high school to college is a difficult pathway to go through because I have to get used to the environment and the courses’ level in college. I live in the dorm with two other roommates. Living away from my parents, I learned to be independent. I am the person who usually didn’t know how to cook. At home, my parents cooked for me everyday. By living in the dorm, I have a chance to learn how to cook for myself. On the weekend, my roommates and I will usually buy groceries from the supermarket to make our lunch and dinner. There was one time my roommates and I went to the Safeway nearby San Jose State University. At Safeway, one of my roommates said: “ What should we buy?”  I replied: “ The problem was what food we could cook.”  After wandering around every sections at Safeway, we ended up with just some vegetables and rice. There was no meats because we did not know how to cook. We came back to the dorm and took out the rice cooker that one of my roommate bought from home. The first step we did was to wash the vegetables and to cut them into pieces. Then, we cooked the rice. It was difficult especially when there was no kitchen; we had to cook in the dorm. That took us about two hours to cook the dinner. However, the dinner did not turn out the way we expected. The vegetables were overcooked and the rice added too much water; we couldn’t eat any of them. Many of you might think why don’t just eat outside at a restaurant- it was more convenient. I could, but it costs too much money to eat outside every time. Even though, we did not cook successfully this time. However, we learned from the process. We could improve by the next time.

   

Besides learning to be independent, the most important in 

college is to be proactive. College can be getting very difficult. 

When I get stuck, it is beneficial to get help from someone. 

There are a lot of resources on campus that are available to 

students such as the writing center, counseling, the tutoring 

center and much more. A couple weeks ago, I just had a 

speech in public speaking class. Before the speech, I went 

to the communication center to get help on my speech outline. 

They helped me look through my rough draft and gave me 

suggestions on how to improve my speech outline. Being 

proactive helps me to get good grades in class and to expand 
my knowledge.

 
In class when professors are giving lectures, I learned to take notes. By taking notes, it is beneficial to me because
I can refer to the notes when there is a test coming up. When school just started, I did not get into the habit of note taking. Usually in high school, the teachers told us to take notes. In college, there is no one telling me that I should take notes. One time in my dance appreciation class, I saw the person who sat next to me was writing down everything that the professor said. At that time, I still didn’t realize the importance of taking notes until the next day of class. In the next day of class, the professor talked back to the lesson that was giving the last class. I only remembered some of the lesson materials in my blurry mind. If I took notes, I would know all the lesson materials. After that, I finally recognized the importance of taking notes in class. Taking notes helps remind me of the lessons that the professors taught. It is very a useful skill, so I started to get into the habit of note taking.

  I am still on my way to explore college life and to learn more on myself. San Jose State University is a very enthusiastic and friendly school. I always feel like I am part of the community. Although transferring from high school to college seems a difficult process, I will strive to do my best to make everything possible.
   
            

Goals for English Class and College Experience

Everyone has some sort of goals that they want to accomplish. By setting up goals gives motivation and encouragement to move forward and to find meaning in life. I have set goals for myself,too. My family and I moved a long way from China to the United States. They want me to have a better future.

On July 2015, it was the time when I registered for college English class , I struggled to choose between LLD English class and Stretch English class. LLD English class is only for one semester. If pass with a high score can advance into English 1A class. Stretch English is a one year long version of written communication which allows more opportunities to practice and to build up a stronger writing skill. After having a better understanding in both classes, I decided to choose Stretch English because I needed more time to practice for my writing skills. In this one year long Stretch English class, my goals are to build up stronger writing skills and to learn useful writing techniques. So far in this class, I learned to write concretely of an essay which meant in a detailed and specific way. Writing concretely leads the readers to understand the messages and ideas from my essay. I also learned to use independent clauses, dependent clauses, parallel structures and the variety of punctuations. Those are very helpful for writing a comprehensive and critical essay. I still need to work more on my grammar and sentence structures such as verb tense shifts, subject verb agreements, singular- plural words and prepositions. For example when I am writing an essay, I have trouble with the tenses. Sometimes I get confused of when to use present and past tenses. In my previous essay “Looking for Work”, my tense shifted in a sentence such as “ He believed if he has a job, his family will turn out to be the family he saw on Tv”. The correct tense should be had instead of has. I will work on the weaknesses of my writing and to achieve my goals in Stretch English class.

For most of the college students, they set goals for themselves either in short term goal or long term goal. Goal setting is an important part of succeeding in college. 

By setting goals, students set a road map of where they want to go. My goals in college are to increase my knowledge, to expand my interests and to receive the training I need for a professional career. 
College is a best way to explore and to understand more of 
myself. I have a variety of opportunities to get involved in the 
college campus. The way to expand my interests is to join 
different organizations and clubs. By joining organizations 
and clubs, I can find out what interests me the most. College also provides me the training I need for a professional career. My major is general business; I want to switch to computer engineering. I have to study hard and pass the required classes to get into the major I want. Knowledge is important in college and as well as in the future. It prevents us from making the same mistakes we made in the past. We can improve ourselves by the increasing of knowledge. Knowledge is power; that’s why we are in college to earn that power.


   I always set goals for myself, so I know the pathway of where to go. I am the first person in my family to go college. They have high expectations for me. I will achieve my goals and to earn a better living in life.

"I Just Wanna Be Average" by Mike Rose

In the reading, “I Just Wanna Be Average” by Mike Rose tells a story about some of his experiences throughout high school. When he was a freshmen, he got accidently placed in the vocational program also known as the bottom classes. However, he did not fight to get out from the class instead he stayed to make the best of his situation. He described that the teachers in vocational track did not care much for the students. There was lack of lesson plan and had no motivation to teach the students. He also mentioned the various personalities of his classmates. Many of them had no desire to learn rather they were playing and joking around the classroom. Although they all seemed like a mess, Rose noted some of the special qualities that show their true personalities. One classmate that really stood out to Rose was Ken Harvey. He got a call for an opinion in class about working hard to reach achievement- he stated that he just wanted to be average. The quote “I just wanna be average” stayed with Rose for many years. Because of the incompetent teachers, Rose didn’t understand the simple knowledge that was usually a piece of cake to him such as to simplify algebraic fractions and to translate Spanish. During his sophomore year in high school, he really enjoyed and did well in biology class with Brother Clint. In his junior year, Rose got switch to a college prep program. Switching to a college prep program is a difficult transition, however Rose was able to overcome the challenges. In his senior year, he met the most influential person in his life- his English teacher: Mr.MacFarland. At first Rose didn’t look upon at him because he seemed like a very messy and unorganized person. However, he used his specialized teaching techniques and motivated the students to learn. The most important point was he cared about the students success. Mr.MacFarland also persuaded and helped Rose get into a college. With Mr.MacFarland’s help, he was on his journey to pursuit his educational goals. That’s when he came to a point of realizing the importance and the power of knowledge.


In Mike Rose’s high school experience, I believe he depicts the idea that we shouldn’t be afraid of getting far from average. We have the right to deserve a better living. No matter how bleak the future might seem, there is hope and possibility. There is nothing impossible if we try our best to make it happen. Even though Rose was accidently put into vocational track, he still work on his way to success. In his first year of high school, he didn’t do so good in his classes. He even copy homework from his fellow classmates. In his second year, he did very well in biology and his grade improved a lot. Later, he received help from his English teacher Mr.MacFarland and got into a college. The way to be successful is to get far from average. By wanting more in life give motivation to move forward and to move further.

Does Mike Rose’s story inspire you to pursuit your own goals? Mike Rose’s hard work and effort finally rewarded. He is now a professor in the University of Los Angeles. He has won many awards including the National Academy of Education, the National Council of Teachers of English and the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation. From Mike Rose’s story, I understand the quote that people always mention which is “ Your hard work will pay off. Don’t give up”. I can be successful just as Mike Rose.    

Letter to Parents

Dear dad and mom:

     Thank you for all your encouragement and care. From your encouragement, it leads me to become more brave and positive to face difficulties. Immigrated to the United States, the lifestyle had changed completely. You worked very hard and tried to give me a better future. Now I am in college, time seems to have passed by very fast. I know you have high expectations for me. I will try my best to achieve your expectations. I do not want you to feel disappointed. I leave home and live in the college dorm. You always worry if I can take care of myself. Mom and dad, don’t worry. I will be fine.

The college life, I am getting used to it. I am exploring new things and meeting new people. Although I can’t be home everyday, but college gives me a chance to learn to be independent. You always behind my back to support me and believe I can accomplish my educational goals. I will graduate in college and have a good job that I like. You don’t want me to work as hard as you did. Life can be difficult in some way. When having difficulties, the most important is to overcome difficulties. Don’t try to ignore them and think the problems will be gone. It is actually getting worse and worse. That’s what you always taught me as growing up. I always remember in my heart. Last week in school, I had some difficulties on the homework in psychology class. I knew I needed some helps, so I scheduled an appointment in the tutoring center. The tutor explained to me the homework and made sure I understood what the homework was asking me to do. She gave me suggestions and ideas that led me to start on my homework. Besides the tutoring center, there are many other resources I can get help from if I get stuck on my school works. In college, there is no one telling me what to do next- it’s all on my own. Being proactive is an important step to be successful.

You must want to know what my goals are in college. My goals in college are to get good grades in every classes, increase professional skills, meet new people and to graduate college with my degree. I will strive to move forward toward my goals everyday. Every steps I move forward, I get a little more closer toward my goals. Thank you for your motivations and supports that make me to become a better person.

                       Sincerely,

your daughter Shu Juan ( Amy) Huang

给父母的一封信

敬爱的爸爸妈妈:
谢谢你们多年来的鼓励和关心。因为你们的鼓励让我变的更勇敢和积极的去面对困难。移民到美国，所有的生活方式都改变了。你们每天这样辛苦的工作只是为了让我有个更好的未来。转眼之间我现在上大学了，感觉时光飞逝。我知道你们对我有很大的期望。我会尽我所有的努力去完成它。我不想让你们感到失望。你们一直放心不下我离开家里。你们会担心我会不会照顾好自己，会不会吃的饱穿的暖。但是我已经长大了，我会学会怎么照顾好自己。你们不用担心。

  现在大学的生活，我已经慢慢的习惯了。我也交到新的朋友。虽然我不能像平常一样每天回家，但是这让我有一个机会学会独立。你们一直这么的支持我。你们始终相信我会努力完成我的目标。我会从大学毕业和找到一份好的工作。你们不想我像你们一样工作的那么辛苦。我不怕困难，它打倒不了我。有困难的时候，最重要是要找到解决的方法。不要选择逃避，逃避解决不了问题。只会让问题变的更加严重。这是你们从小就教导我的一个道理。我一直铭记在心。上个星期在学校我就遇到了一些功课上的困难，我不知道怎么做那些功课。有些人选择不理它，而我不是这样的人。我去我们的补习中心请那里的人帮忙。她们给了我很大的帮助和建议。我懂了许多。在大学没有人会告诉你要做什么事情，完全是要靠你主动去做。这个因素是一个很重要的成功之路。

你们一定想知道我的目标是什么。我在大学的目标是拿到好的成绩，认识新的朋友，增加专业知识和从大学毕业。我会为我的目标每天努力奋斗着。谢谢你们一直以来的支持让我一步一步的成长成为更好的人。    
       真诚，                                                                                                    你们的女儿黄淑娟


                                             

Something Great about Being a College Student…

If you have to ask me what is something great being a college student. I would say one of the greatest things about being a college student is to be able to select my own schedule for classes. In high school, the schedule is always given to you. It is the regular five school days from eight in the morning to three tenths in the afternoon. In college, the schedule is choosen by students based on their time and convenience. College has more freedom than high school, but always keep in mind to manage time wisely.


  In my fall semester freshmen year, my schedule is mostly in the afternoon and late in the morning because I am not a morning person. I get to choose classes that are not in the early morning. That way I don’t have to worry that I will be late to class. Also, I choose four days classes from Monday to Thursday. On Thursday afternoon, I can go back home to spend the three days with my parents. Being able to choose my own schedule allows me to live in a lifestyle that I want.
 
The second greatest thing about being a college student is the connection to build huge network. In college, I have many awful opportunities to meet new people from different backgrounds. This will broaden my mindset and allow me to mix with people whom I would not have encountered in my high school. That being said, I have to step out my comfort zone and be friend with others whom may seem strange and too different from me. I have the opportunity to view from their perspective side. This might helps me to figure out in a way to improve myself. One of the ways to meet new friends is to join clubs and organizations either in college or around the community. There are over four hundreds student organizations at SJSU. In the next semester, I will consider to join a business related organization because I am in business major. I want to explore more on the subject. Making new friends can hold a last long connection in college and also in the rest of my life.
     
On the way of exploration in college, I have many chances to experience much more great things about being a college student. It’s just the matter of trying.
 

Stress Associate With College Students

College can be getting very challenging. That’s when stress comes into play. Stress isn’t always bad; stress within the comfort zone can provide motivation for students to do their best and to perform under pressure. However when stress becomes overwhelming, it can damage health, mood, relationships and quality of life.

      College requires significantly more efforts from students than in high school. Most of the college students find that balancing classes, tests, projects, extra-curricular activities and work are enough to make them feel overwhelmed, especially with final exams right around the corner. I had also experience stress as an incoming freshmen college student. For example in college, there are a lot of homework and exams which often lead me to stress. I feel depressed when I am not able to get my homework done or get a good grade on the exams. I remembered one time in Dance Appreciation class which I had to write a five pages essay reflecting on the five minutes video clip that I saw. It was a lot of writing that I had to finish in just one weekend and was due by the next class. It caused me very stressful because I felt anxiously on the time limit and the long writing assignment itself. I was experiencing academic stress, so it is important to manage stress accordingly.                        
       

What are some of the ways to relieve stress?

College student stress is an inevitable part of campus life, so it is essential to know some of the ways to cope with stress. It helps students return to a calm and relaxed state of mind. The following are ways college students can deal with their stress:

• Use the school’s wellness center- The wellness center is a great place that help students with any physical and mental issues. If you feel like you need someone to talk to, the counselors are always there to help you out with any problems you might have. You may feel better by having someone to talk to. The counselors are trying to stand in your perspectives side to view your problems and to give you suggestions. The wellness center also has a massage chair and it’s free for SJSU students. It helps students to relax themselves.
• Get some exercise- Exercise is important for your overall health. Anytime is a good time to be physical active. Take a 30 minutes walk or jog everyday can help boost up your self esteem and stay healthy in college.
• Stop comparing yourself to others- Try to learn to value more of your own individual growth, interests and needs and not how you stack up to your roommate, classmates or friends.
• Have some fun- While doing homework is important, but sometimes try to have some fun and enjoyable time for yourself. For example, hang out with friends and eat some tasty food.

   Those are some of the helpful ways to relieve stress. When experiencing stress, don’t panic. There are always things you can do to balance out your stress and to stay in a healthy lifestyle.