There are numerous stories and perspectives on each country, each culture, and even each person. Depending on how the story is told, people may perceive the story differently from what it originally should be. Like the story on Fide the houseboy that Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie presented in her TED Talk, students from East Asian countries, because of limited perspectives, have the stereotype that American K-12 education is emphasizing on extracurricular activities and grade are not important overall; thus, life as an American high school student is easy. However, such stereotype on American education may cause discrimination upon those who study abroad.
In the United States, schools do not put their focus solely on academics, but on both academics …show more content…
In the U.S., scores do not speak everything, but the combination of scores and activities does. For a student to be competitive enough, one must have a high standardized test score, a decent GPA, leadership experiences, and sufficient extracurricular and volunteering activities that enable the student to demonstrate why he or she is a good candidate for the university. As a result, American students are spending a bulk of time discovering the activities that suit their interests and can help them gain leadership experiences. As the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services points out, American students are spending an average of 3 hours per day on volunteering or participating in sports practices (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services). The 3 hours per day does not seem much, but think about the students’ energy level after sports practices, which usually ends at 6 or even 7 pm; these students still have homework and tests to prepare. After finish eating and showering, it leaves about 4 hours to study before they go to bed early enough so they can have the energy to perform the exact procedure once again. It is true that average American high school students spend less time on academic work, but it does not mean academic …show more content…
are less intelligent than those in their own country. For this reason, people in Taiwan may hold some discrimination on those who studied abroad. In the summer of 2017, I went back to Taiwan and visited some relatives. While I was there, I saw my tenth-grade cousin struggled with her math homework. Thus, I decided to ask if she needed any help. However, when I approached her, she said, “I don’t think you can solve this either, because American school doesn’t teach such difficult material, right?” At first, I was astonished. I did not understand why she was discriminating my math ability because I studied in the U.S. Then, I realized the reason may be the stereotype most Taiwanese have on the American education: freestyle and little academic pressure. At the end, I did teach her how to solve the problem, but the stereotype that causes her to have such discrimination on American students was the biggest concern. Such negative stereotype can be harmful that it limits people’s knowledge and perspective on American students; it prevents people from seeing the whole story that there are intelligent, hard-working, and highly competitive students in the U.S. Since these stereotypical ideas are imprinted in people’s mind, they may say something, without consciousness, that hurts the feeling of those who have been targeted. Similar
In the United States, schools do not put their focus solely on academics, but on both academics …show more content…
In the U.S., scores do not speak everything, but the combination of scores and activities does. For a student to be competitive enough, one must have a high standardized test score, a decent GPA, leadership experiences, and sufficient extracurricular and volunteering activities that enable the student to demonstrate why he or she is a good candidate for the university. As a result, American students are spending a bulk of time discovering the activities that suit their interests and can help them gain leadership experiences. As the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services points out, American students are spending an average of 3 hours per day on volunteering or participating in sports practices (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services). The 3 hours per day does not seem much, but think about the students’ energy level after sports practices, which usually ends at 6 or even 7 pm; these students still have homework and tests to prepare. After finish eating and showering, it leaves about 4 hours to study before they go to bed early enough so they can have the energy to perform the exact procedure once again. It is true that average American high school students spend less time on academic work, but it does not mean academic …show more content…
are less intelligent than those in their own country. For this reason, people in Taiwan may hold some discrimination on those who studied abroad. In the summer of 2017, I went back to Taiwan and visited some relatives. While I was there, I saw my tenth-grade cousin struggled with her math homework. Thus, I decided to ask if she needed any help. However, when I approached her, she said, “I don’t think you can solve this either, because American school doesn’t teach such difficult material, right?” At first, I was astonished. I did not understand why she was discriminating my math ability because I studied in the U.S. Then, I realized the reason may be the stereotype most Taiwanese have on the American education: freestyle and little academic pressure. At the end, I did teach her how to solve the problem, but the stereotype that causes her to have such discrimination on American students was the biggest concern. Such negative stereotype can be harmful that it limits people’s knowledge and perspective on American students; it prevents people from seeing the whole story that there are intelligent, hard-working, and highly competitive students in the U.S. Since these stereotypical ideas are imprinted in people’s mind, they may say something, without consciousness, that hurts the feeling of those who have been targeted. Similar