It is currently the seventh week of my stay here at Queen Mary University. It is also Queen Mary's "Reading Week" which is a week off from classes where we can get caught up on any reading or work that we have in class, study if you have assessments coming up, or just relax, something that I have needed desperately.
I really needed this week off, not just to catch up on my reading, as the two English courses I am in require me to read two books a week every week, but also to bring my stress levels down several notches. I am not going to lie, the courses have been tough. Most of my classes only meet once a week and while this may be appealing to some people, I can attest against that. Because of the limited class time, there is quite a bit of self work required to stay on top of everything. My Spanish course in particular requires a lot of self study to understand the material as our professor typically just throws stuff at us without much explanation.
Back home, as I now realize, professors practically hold their students hands through their course work. They tell them what to do, when to do it, and how to do it. Here, it is very much "here is what you need to do, now do it," and while that is okay, I cannot help but compare the two teaching styles. That said, the professors here are very accustoming and are always willing to talk with a student if they need help.
Queen Mary is also different in terms of assignments. For the most part, assignments are almost rare in classes. There is the occasional worksheet or short fill in the blank assignment, but other than that, it is all class work. We do have assessments, which are more or less midterms, but the bulk of our grade comes from final exams and papers. Those are close to eighty percent of our final grade, so if you do not do well on those, you most likely will not pass the class.
While I have enjoyed my time here, I cannot say that it has been easy. The classes are challenging and I have to spend quite a bit of time out of class going over material so I actually know what is being talked about in class. That and the Wi-Fi is ten times worse than BishopNet could ever be, as such I will never bad mouth OWU's Wi-Fi again upon my return, but digress. I am happy for the challenge that my courses provide as they are bettering my understanding. I am confident that I will be able to pass my course and I will be better because of them. That being said, I need to get back to the books. Wish me luck!
