ibzie
New Member
Posts: 18
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Post by ibzie on Apr 27, 2008 2:19:00 GMT -5
My dads swedish
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Post by PerzanKitCat86205 on Jun 4, 2008 11:30:08 GMT -5
I found out that most of you here are Half North American(and some English), who have had English education. I wonder how many of you have a European father/mother who is not from English speaking country. Somebody said that I might be one of a few EAs here who are brought up in Asia, who didn't have western education. But I assume some of you are half european-half asian in Europe or Asia, who didn't have any English education, like kyu-ree. Even if you have grown up in Europe and had what you call western education, it might be pretty different from American one. And I just want to know how EAs are treated in Europe. That's an interesting way to consider it. What's the difference? I thought the US, while not a classical European country, was entitled to provide the European cultural setting to all?
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Post by manitjotirat on Jun 27, 2008 5:51:25 GMT -5
My dad is swedish
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Post by rosadreams on Sept 21, 2009 13:14:44 GMT -5
I consider England european I live in Europe, in England.
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Post by FreckleFoot on Feb 1, 2010 4:40:40 GMT -5
My mother is British and I grew up in the UK, but British education is still very different from American education despite being taught in an almost identical language (there are differences in grammar, punctuation and some vocabulary). When I spoke to American people about primary school, secondary school, post 16/sixth form college, years, GCSEs, A levels and International Baccalaureate (the latter is European), they don't know what I'm talking about unless they are close to someone British or have looked it up.
I've lived in the UK and in Europe. In the UK as a kid I was subjected to some terrible racism and I actually lived in a place that most Brits would consider to be posh and therefore violence free. People often assumed me to either be 100% East Asian, or 100% white. 100% East Asian was definitely more common (and was what often invited violent acts towards me), but there were the odd few people that tried to guess my ethnicity. They always only guessed one and didn't guess that I might be mixed. Most people treated me like any other person.
In France I have not experienced any violence towards me, but I do live in the south of France. Most northern French people and non-French people find this area to be very racist. Generally it is more towards black and Middle Eastern people, but I do wonder if my foreign name and looks may be working against me when it comes to finding work. I've noticed it is rather protectionist. There are other factors I know may also be working against me, but I can't help but wonder when you can come across cafes full of people discussing how X race is full of stupid and ugly people... Also, it seems many are ignorant of Asia because they have Thai red curry paste that is always labelled as coming from India and they have sambal (which I believe is Indonesian and Malaysian) labelled as Chinese.
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Post by Ganbare! on Feb 1, 2010 5:20:28 GMT -5
To the people who assimilate N. American education with European's are mistaking. I've been alternatively schooled in both France and Canada and I have found they have little in common. The workload, examination, methods, countries-centered disciplines like law, history or political science etc differ greatly.
Inside Europe studies are conducted differently, content, language, emphasis in evaluating are all different. I had to overcome a huge academic shock when I switched back to the rigid and demanding French system and that's from Canada's most selective university..
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Post by rob on Feb 1, 2010 11:13:09 GMT -5
I switched back to the rigid and demanding French system and that's from Canada's most selective university.. [/b][/move] sorry, ignore the alarm. i seem to have hit my 'thinly veiled egotist' quota for the day. would prefer you avoid beating around the bush and post pics, transcripts, medals of honor or any third party references 1 attesting to the fact you are God's gift to humankind. It would save alot of us from having to sift through your posts in search of the thoughtful point you are equally inclined to make. 1. in latin
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Post by Ganbare! on Feb 1, 2010 17:29:59 GMT -5
^I'm not bragging that I come from Ivy league, just comparing the gap in terms of expectations and level. North American higher education institutions top rankings due to superior research, funding and infrastructures not because they are more demanding academically-speaking... Ask any European student who did his curriculum in both systems. Even international students from third-world countries schools admit Canadian Universities are easier ! It depends on the schools but in general fewer electives, undergrad dissertations, 10x3 hours schedules. In France medical studies are 9 to12 years long depending on the specialty and there's a first-year competitive examination with a 15% pass rate that's determined by the State. Compare that to a 4-years MD degree with a 3 to 4 year undergrad bachelor in unrelated fields (..).
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Post by Emily on Feb 1, 2010 23:52:54 GMT -5
Ask any European student who did his curriculum in both systems. You should just do that to avoid sweeping generalizations. There's no way one can categorically state the Euro or North American system is more demanding than the other. By discussing this topic with people who have studied on both continents, I've come to the conclusion there is no good answer. I thought studying at a so-called elite university in France was much easier than my studies here in Quebec. Does this lead me to conclude that the North American system is more rigorous? No. That was my experience amongst so many others. One anecdotal experience is not indicative of a rule. I could base myself on my experience and disseminate the idea that French schooling is a joke. My engineering friends who studied at l'INSA would be quick to disagree, even if they also study at an "elite" school here in Montreal. Then there are the French students who come here and completely bomb their exams... there are more of them out there than you might think... It probably has more to do with the specific field, and really specific university. Sure, there are certain things that are typically North American and others typically European. I'd actually be more prone to classifying some methods as distinctively British, Dutch, French, German, Canadian, etc than grossly dividing into two continental methods. Bottom lime, some find it harder in France, others find it harder in Canada/US, there's no hard and fast rule.
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Post by Ganbare! on Feb 2, 2010 1:14:35 GMT -5
^I beg to differ, I've been a student in several universities/fields and have never heard a single international student claiming Canadian universities are rigorous. I can't recall how many Singaporeans or Indian students had straight As in my classes. Many European friends from Great-Britain, Norway, Italy, studying diverse subjects, both exchange and international students, all thought NA curriculums were easier comparatively as well.
However that cannot be said of the whole continent because of some South or Eastern European countries lax education criteria but it generally holds true. There are many circles where not being an US university alumni is a serious handicap. In my opinion American post-secondary institutions are overrated in terms of intellectual training while they are truly leading in terms of research, communication or financial endowment.
Anyways, we're off-topic discussing higher education here.
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palavore
Full Member
I put my pants on just like the rest of you -- one leg at a time. Except, once my pants are on, I make gold posts.
Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.
Posts: 298
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Post by palavore on Feb 2, 2010 11:16:31 GMT -5
^ I don't know how professors are rewarded in Europe or Canada, but tenure in the U.S. is given to professors based on research and contributions to their field--not because they are excellent instructors.
The focus in American universities is to produce research--more so than in the education of students, where there is less innovation. That strength is indeed evident and does hide some of their glaring weaknesses. I agree with you on that point. However, this is not a result of culture, but more the effect of institutionalized incentives.
Anywho, the reputation behind your degree only matters to young people starting out. Once you're in the field, then it's all about your resume and performance. Your previous employer and position matters much more--as they've likely put the value of your education through proper real world testing. Also, the correlation between the price of an education and projected income is starting to decline in U.S.
The U.S. is very large, however, and there's quite a variety. I'm sure there are private colleges that are positively European. Primary and secondary education are also very diverse and I've sampled much of it: Catholic school, gifted programs, magnet schools, dual enrollment, large schools the size of malls, small rural schools, etc.
I'd like to know what Europeans see as weaknesses in their own university system. Americans are always complaining. Maybe our troubles are also the world's troubles.
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Post by nadamas on Feb 15, 2010 12:35:23 GMT -5
In the UK, sometimes old people ask me:
So what's it like back home? - this is my home Are your family all back home? - my family live here You speak very good English. - I was born and edcuated here and sound quite ''posh'', the language school did well, eh?
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Post by Ganbare! on Mar 10, 2010 15:44:27 GMT -5
nadamas: It's sad some people have to assume you're from another country if you don't look like the locals. I cannot recall it happening to me though. I can only think of two reasons, it's either because the people I meet are not that culturally ignorant or my behavior appears very local. I concur with palavore, US/CAN universities are very research-driven, they pay whatever it cost to get the best professors they get Nobel prizes etc. Nevertheless the actual offered education is lacking, I can't count the number of foreign MBAs, LLMs etc teaching classes barely speaking intelligible English or without any pedagogy. Obviously not all postsecondary institutions are in thid case but too many are. In France or in Italy for example profs systematically have PhDs, else they can't teach not even first year students. British universities got the right formula of demanding classroom curriculum and research excellence, of both theory and pragmatism.
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