Author: Xie

The biggest benefit of online courses has been demonstrated during the pandemic, and that is that it doesn’t care about time and space. As long as you have a computer and an internet connection, you can take online classes anytime and anywhere. This great convenience is one of the main advantages of online courses. Another advantage of online courses is the variety of choices they offer. Different from the traditional face-to-face class model, there are now many teachers who upload their teaching videos to the Internet, some of them are charged, some are paid. But in any case, if you want study any subject now, as long as search keywords on big video sites like YOUTUBE, you can get instructional videos from different teachers. You can find your favorite instructional videos just like watching a movie. This is particularly beneficial in subjects like mathematics, physics, and other sciences. It’s great that when I’m learning something new in math, I can explore different online courses to discover alternative approaches or methods that I may not have encountered before

Although there are many advantages to online courses, for me, traditional face to-face teaching is more suitable for me, and online courses can be used as a supplement. The reason for this is because of the biggest disadvantage of online courses – the inability to concentrate. For college students, this and the disadvantages do not affect them much, but for middle school students, these and disadvantages are fatal. When the epidemic broke out in China in 2019, I was a middle school student, and although the school teachers would livestream classes every day, I would still secretly play games. If this is the case for live broadcasts, then no students will watch other recorded courses. Therefore, in the case of insufficient supervision or lack of self-discipline, the efficiency of online courses is very low, especially for middle school students, who are the most playful.

The primary difference between Chinese high schools and American universities is the degree of control you have over your time. In most Chinese high schools, the school dictates the daily schedule, including wake-up and dormitory curfew times. Therefore, in Chinese high school, your planning revolves around how you will study. However, this does not imply that college life is necessarily more liberating; indeed, it requires a higher degree of self-discipline. In Chinese high schools, if you fail to submit assignments or attend classes, teachers will seek you out in the dormitories, call you to class, and even supervise the completion of your assignments. In contrast, in college, whether you attend classes or complete assignments is your responsibility. No one will force you out of bed if you choose to skip class. College life is indeed more liberating, but it requires a strong sense of self-discipline.

Most Chinese high school students have likely heard their parents exclaim, “Study hard in high school, and life will be easier in college.” This sentiment suggests the high demands and intense pressure of Chinese high schools. I attended high school in a city in southern China, where as a senior student, we woke up at 6:20 in the morning and went to bed at 10:30 at night. We had a two-hour lunch and nap break during the day, and an hour in the afternoon for dinner and laundry. However, compared to high schools in northern China, this schedule is considered lenient; students in northern China may have to rise at 5:30 in the morning and retire at midnight. When I share this with people from other countries, they often find it hard to believe and deem it unacceptable. In China, students from low-income families must secure a place in a good university to land a good job. The only way to get into a top university is to take the national “gaokao” exam after the third year of high school. In 2023, nearly 12 million students sat for the “gaokao,” with only 30% gaining university admission. Consequently, the life of a Chinese high school student is fraught with challenges. I arrived at UWGB in the spring, and this is my second month here. Apart from the challenges presented by language and lifestyle differences, American university demands are indeed less stringent than those of Chinese high schools. However, I also understand that it ultimately comes down to self-discipline. If I want to learn more here, I can’t afford to take it easy.

中国高中和美国大学之间的主要区别在于你对时间的控制程度。在大多数中国高中，学校规定了每天的时间表，包括起床和宿舍宵禁时间。因此，在中国高中，你的计划围绕着你将如何学习。然而，这并不意味着大学生活一定更自由;事实上，它需要更高程度的自律。在中国的高中，如果你没有提交作业或上课，老师会在宿舍里找你，叫你上课，甚至监督你的作业完成情况。相比之下，在大学里，无论你是上课还是完成作业都是你的责任。如果你选择逃课，没有人会强迫你起床。大学生活确实更自由，但需要强烈的自律意识。

大多数中国高中生可能都听过父母的感叹：“高中好好学习，大学生活会更轻松。这种情绪表明了中国高中的高要求和巨大的压力。我在中国南方的一个城市上高中，在那里读高年级，我们早上6：20起床，晚上10：30睡觉。我们白天吃了两个小时的午餐和午睡时间，下午吃了一个小时的晚餐和洗衣。然而，与中国北方的高中相比，这个时间表被认为是宽松的;中国北方的学生可能不得不在早上5：30起床，在午夜休息。当我与来自其他国家的人分享这一点时，他们经常发现很难相信并认为这是不可接受的。在中国，来自低收入家庭的学生必须获得一所好大学的录取才能找到一份好工作。进入顶尖大学的唯一途径就是在高中三年级后参加全国“高考”考试。2023年，近1200万学生参加了“高考”，只有30%的学生获得了大学录取。因此，中国高中生的生活充满了挑战。我是在春天来到UWGB的，这是我在这里的第二个月。除了语言和生活方式差异带来的挑战外，美国大学的要求确实不如中国高中严格。然而，我也明白，这最终归结为自律。如果我想在这里了解更多信息，我不能放松。