Writing this to those who wanted me to be a good student! To be obedient! To memorize everything! You people stole all my dreams, wasted my time. Undoubtedly, I learned (or memorized) a lot, I collected a lot of dots, but there is no worth in memorizing when I had never learned how to connect […]
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Step Away from the Podium and Teaching as Yourself
As a future instructor, I am fascinated to think and figure out who I will be as a teacher before I stuck in teaching my first class after graduation. What was said by Professor Fowler, first, I need to answer these questions: How can I be genuine, sincere, and fully present in the classroom? How […]
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Mind Full …, Or Mindful?
When was the last time you REALLY take a shower? This morning? Or yesterday? Did you mindfully take a shower? Did you feel the water on your skin or you did all routine tasks while you were half awake, half asleep? Were you actively engaged in the present when you were taking a shower, OR […]
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Shhh…! Students Are Sleeping!
As a student, I am conscious and excited the first half an hour (maximum :D) of the lecture classes. After that, my mind is preoccupied with thoughts of the past or future plans. Although I am staring at the professor, my mind is somewhere else. At the same time when I look around, I see […]
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Cyberspace is NOT Culture-Free!
Networked learning facilitates the relationship between digital technologies and education and learning1. The central concept in network learning is the connections. Connections include interactions between the user, digital technologies, and resources. However, the question is whether all interactions with technologies constitute networked learning. In other words, despite a growing demand for efficient ways of using […]
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Future of the University: Beyond Globalization
When I am thinking about what I want to change in higher education, I come up with the long list of what I suffered from that I want to change to make higher education more pleasant and useful. But this blog asks for one change. I want to think out of the box, so, I […]
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Networking Skills in Higher Education
“Networking” is the word that I am freaking out even by hearing that. As an international student, I feel that the networking here at U.S. is more important than my country because I already have my family and friend as my network there. Despite all fears and shyness, I believe it is very important skill […]
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Grad Students, Heads Up! It Is Important to Know How to Deal With Psychiatric Disorders
“For me, the frustration comes from the fact that I know I should get up at 7 a.m. and start working, but I hit snooze 10 times because I technically don’t have to be in an office. Then when I do get up, I feel super guilty and behind and then I’m unproductive and the […]
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Mental-Health Crisis in Higher Education
When all of us started graduate school, the university warned us about mental health issues. We may think these mental-health issues are just for others who already suffer or at-risk, but everyone of us at-risk of having psychiatric disorders. Statistics show that the number of graduate students with mental disorders has been increasing and many […]
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Teaching U.S. Students: a Challenge for International Scholars
Internationals faculties and teaching assistants whose English is not their first language face challenges when they want to teach U.S. students. This is because they are not acquainted with the U.S. educational system nor with U.S. culture. Based on my personal experience, as an international teaching assistant, I was shocked when my undergraduate students did […]
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