2014/05/162014/08/13

I am going to write a monthly report in English from December. The reasons are that English is in fact the standard all over the world, it is convenient for me to write in English because my living is in English, and this will be a good writing practice.

To make this report easy to understand, I divided into several topics; 1 Classes 2 English 3 Life 4 Schedule 5 Finance 6 Others 7 Travels 8 Pictures.

1 Classes

Finished all classes

After classes were done, students gave applause to professors in all classes. We thanked them from the bottom of our hearts for the professors’ efforts for preparing classes and contents of classes. That was impressive.

Final exams

Final exams started on Dec.7 this year. Library opened for 24hrs during final exams. Exams are usually for 2~2.5hrs.

Econ345 Money and Banking Prof. Newman

The exam was not so difficult. Half multiple choice and 2 essays. There was enough time to complete the exam. My final score was 80.

Econ355 Introduction to International Trade Prof. Ashok

 The exam was easy and almost the same as homework. My final score was 95

Econ441 The process of Economic Development Prof. Eswaran

The exam was pretty hard, especially for exchange students. We were asked to write 5 essays which were applied questions of what we did in class. In the class, he just showed us an example of a solution but not all of the solutions. So the exam was considerably hard. My final score was 80.

Econ442 Issues in Economic Development Prof. Berta

The exam was half multiple choice and 3 essays. The questions were pretty fair and well organized. You can solve if you properly reviewed your notes. My final score was 90.

Econ447 Monetary Theory Prof. Newman

 The exam was a bit hard. All 5 questions are applied questions and you had to choose 4 of 5. My final score was 70. The professor held a Sushi dinner for us right after the exam.

Tips for taking classes ( in addition to the one from the October’s report)

1. Bring a camera and a voice recorder to record class after you are allowed to do so by a professor. If you cannot understand class, you should ask people if you can take photos of notes, instead of borrowing notes to photocopy. People are more willing to allow you to take photos than to borrow notes.
2. Make sure to record the date when the notes were taken in class
3. Reviewing after class is more important than studying beforehand.

How is this effective?

This way is very efficient to understand class. Compare mine with usual way.

 

Usual waySuppose you cannot understand class even after you review your notes(1a) ask your friends or a professor in office hours. (1b) borrow notes from other students. (1c) you use a lot of time to read the materials.(2) However you cannot ask or borrow every time from friends or a professor. You are forced to read the materials. (3) You have to take a lot of time and you may not still understand important points. (4) You are confused and you cannot understand class anymore than before.

 

My proposalSuppose you cannot understand class even after you review your notes(1)    You first ask friends if you can take photos of notes. They are willing to accept because it is instant. (You need to put the date on the notes to find unclear notes quickly.) (2) If you cannot understand these notes, you should use your voice recorder. (You should remember time when you did not understand in class. (This is also good listening practice) (3) Even if you still miss points, then you should ask friends and a professor. (4) You will understand class more and more. (5)Read material as a review if you have time.

The merits of my proposal are ①Understand more ②Quick ③Do not take others’ time so much.

Tips for tests preparation

l  Make a summary after each chapter finished. This is very effective for class where you are asked to memorize (e.g. Historical class)

l  I had 4 dinner parties during exams terms. Many people hold parties during final exams terms so you should manage your time well.

l  Almost everyone seemed to start preparing for exams a week before. However I started from 1 or 2 days before exams. And I prepared pretty well. If you already understand the class materials, it is not too late to start studying a few days before.

l  Many students stay up studying very late in the library because library is open for 24hrs. However I do not think this is good for your health. It would be better to keep your routine.

l  There are special office hours after classes are done for exams. It is useful to use them.

l  Many people study in a group. However that can be often a waste of time. You should study yourself at first and ask friends if you need help. By the way, I studied with friends to practice English. Explaining what you learned is very good practice.

l  For getting high scores on theoretical questions, you should make practice questions to make sure you understand. Think about the material the professors did not teach in the classes.

Tips during exams

l  Don’t forget to bring your dictionary to class.

l  English used in questions is different from normal English. It is sometimes difficult even with using a dictionary. So it is good to ask your professor or TA.

l  Take a memo on the back page of answer sheets. In western style test, you are often asked to explain with long sentences. So you at first should write on the back page.

l  Use a color pen to make your answer easy to understand

The difference between 200, 300 and 400 level

200level classes are more intuitive than others. There are sometimes discussion classes or presentations. Students are not as eager as intensive classes because many students from other departments also take these classes. 300level classes are more theoretical but do not use math much. Students are more eager. 400level classes use much more math and are for students who want to major and study hard.

2 English Practice

• During final exams, it is a good chance for you to improve your English because you are asked to explain what you learned to your friends.
• You can get help to improve those skills while studying abroad. After I practiced writing and speaking of TOEFL I noticed that I needed to improve pronunciation such as ‘’Blue, Woman, Mouth and Rule’’. I needed to practice to use plural and the third person singular. I also found that I cannot keep talking with the same level of English more than 1minute. After 1munite, I often use incorrect English.
• My Venezuelan friends got more than 100 on IBT test without studying anything. It seems a huge gap in English skills between Japanese and South Americans or Europeans.
• An alumnus gave me advice. He said ‘’ you don’t have to make native sounds.’’ Even if you have a Japanese accent, when you can speak naturally, that is well.’’

3 Life

1. Weather

It is getting colder and rainy. It started snowing on the 13th and continued for a few days. However compared with other regions with same latitude, it is much better.

1. Life in Campus

ü  I attached a picture of the Japanese Sushi Shop.

ü  You can have your hair cut in SUB for $22, quality of which is very good. Or there are many beauty salons in Broad way and down town.

ü  You have to apply for MSP (Medical Service Plan) in early November. This covers your all insurance in Canada. So DON’T FORGET.

ü  The dormitory closed on the 23rd. I traveled to Seattle and Chicago. Those who want to stay in Vancouver should choose Walter Gage.

ü  You should get Caller ID service on your phone. In Canada, this service is optional. Without it, you cannot see who is calling you.

4 Events

3rd  End of semester event in International House

4th  Learn how to wear tie for formal dinner in a dormitory

5th  Formal Dinner and Dance in cafeteria for FREE

8th  Exam for Econ 447 and Dinner hosted by Prof. Newman

10th An exam for Econ 441

11th Kwansei Gakuin Alumni Association in Vancouver

Those who are related to Kwansei Gakuin are invited to a Christmas party. We enjoy dinner and games. At the end of the party, we received a lot of Glico Snacks from a president of Glico subsidiary in Canada who went to Kwansei Gakuin. I attached a picture at the bottom.

15th A dinner with mid-term study abroad students from MASSIE

Kwansei Gakuin students from Mount Allison University came to Vancouver and were lectured about history of Canada by President of Kwansei Gakuin Alumni Association. After that we had a dinner at a Chinese restraint. The Glico president came again and gave us a maple pretz.

17th An exam for Econ 355

19th An exam for Econ 442

23rd Dormitory is closed.

5 Finance

After the dormitory closed, I traveled to Seattle and Chicago. I spent a lot of money for traveling. More than I thought I would. You should take advantage of Christmas sales.

Ordinary Expenditures　　　　　　　$　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　      $

Meals 31times                      131

Alumni Association Fee 　           25

Restraunt 4 times                   66.7

Groceries(pens, books, Binders)      66.51

Payment in Advance               115.34                               Sum＄404,55

Extraordinary Expenditure          \

Voice Recorder                    7091

Mouse                            3584

Dormitory Fee                   138570

Clothes (2)                        5432

Fido phone bill                     2519    　　　　　　　　　　　　　  Sum \157196

Travel Expenditure                　\                   

Bus                               6845　　Taxi(2)                      　　　8000

Sum \41357

　　　　　Total=404,55+2203,7=2608,25

Total9+10+11+12=$8978　Total Budget$11,384　Balance$11.129-8978=$2151

 

6 Others

①How was first term so far?

I tried to do the best for all but only 60 or 70% of that worked well. Everything about me is constant or improved but my effort paid off much less here. I found the effect of the environment on my ability is huge. For example, I could not understand classes fully in English, my application for insurance was not accepted due to a blank or I paid too much for taxi fare unexpectedly.

However I believe my effort finally will pay off. I think the path to my success will be like the graph shows below. I may be still on the half way. Hence I make much effort.

②もう少しこちらで勉強したい。

最近よく思うことはUBCでの一年は短すぎることである。取りたい科目を履修するためにできれば一年半は滞在したい。最低でも５~７月のサマー授業に参加できたらと思う。それだけ、UBCでの授業、生活は価値があり楽しい。周りのInternational studentsを時々羨ましく見てしまう。

7Travels

I stayed in Seattle and Chicago. Here is some important information as tips for your winter travel.

Seattle

You need to get a non immigrant visa by ESTA on line. This is very simple and easy to do. You can visit Seattle by coach bus. Bus fare is around $75 by Amtrak. Take a city bus to central station. Taxi is too expensive. From Seattle Airport to downtown, it is convenient to use the sound transit train from Sea-Tac Airport to downtown.

 

Chicago

I booked a ticket for American Airlines. It costs around $350. You should bring 2 bags but deposit only 1 bag because each bag is charged differently. First is $20, second is $30. When you go through customs, make sure you have returned your declaration card.