Well,
Just thought I´d post a very quick blog to let everyone know I´m still alive and while I´m at it, share some of the thoughts that have been passing through my head this week.
Since I came back from Tasmania things really have been crazy in regards to school work. I honestly have to say this is the busiest semester I have ever had at a University level. Here at the University of Adelaide, you get marked for tutorial participation during the semester and you have to hand in assignments or take tests in order to pass the course. This means that the work load is supposed to be pretty even during the semester and you HAVE TO BE active for the whole semester to pass the course... This system has really had some positive effects on me, cause even though I´m having a really tough period right now, I know know it will benefit me later on.
The last days I´ve been spending 8-10 hours a day at the library working my as off to be able to finish all my assignments and right now I´m still in the middle of it all. This week I had to hand in 2 assignments for Marketing and Social Sciences and then deliver one presentation about Core Values (which is really interesting, I´ll get back to it in another post) for my Cross Cultural Communications class.. On top of that, I´ve also got 2 assignments due for next Wednesday + a test in Management... But even though it´s tough it really feels good in some way to be spending so much time reading. I really feel like I´ve pushed myself and become a whole lot more intelligent this week :)
This is sort of work load is quite different from what I´m used to back in Denmark. At ASB it is completely in your own hands weather you show up for lectures, tutorials or even if you hand in assignments or not. You are only strictly encouraged to hand them in but it´s not obligatory. In other words, you don´t get a grade for participation during the semester and all the pressure is in the end of the semester as your final exam is the only thing marked in your final grade. So basically you get away with not really doing anything during the semester as long as you just study really hard for the final exam.
In a way that is an advantage for many students as it gives them the opportunity to develop their own learning style and thereby become more independent and responsible in decision making. However, I find that most students don´t have the actual self discipline it takes to actually do all of their readings and assignments when there is no one there to monitor them... And you can even see that very clearly in the class participation at ASB. From what I have experienced very few people actually show up for all lectures and prepare for the tutorials which means that the quality of the tutorial becomes very bad when only a few of the whole have actually done the readings and are ready to elaborate further on them. And those few prepared individuals are really people I admire for their self-discipline , because I´ll freely admit that I´m NOT one of them. For me to be productive (and that´s not just in regards to school work) I need to have clear goals with clear results in order to be motivated for doing the work. And by that I mean I need to be pushed by something external, like a coach, teacher or just the obligation of having to turn an assignment in, to deliver my best performance.
So I guess where I am getting at with this is that, even though the Australian school system is much harder on me in terms of work load, it suits me much better then the Danish one because it pushes me to be active for the whole semester and not just right in the end of it. Yes people this means I´m really getting smarter by the minute...! Watch out I´ll be a total genius when I return from good old Aussie ;O)
But to top everything, I have not just been busy with school work. At the same time I have really started to try taking my squash training seriously again. Now that I have finally got a professional coach again and playing competitions every week, it really motivates me to want to get better. (Again, my need for external motivation becomes clear:)
The coach, Michael Nash, is really good and has already got me working on a lot of things. But he is also very different from all the other coaches I have had because his main focus is set on active thinking and mentality. That is to get players to think about their tactics, shot selection and thereby outsmart the opponent with the proper game strategy. Which is fantastic because that is definitely the weakest side of my game. Up until now I really haven´t been good at actively thinking about what I am doing, I just played my game and let my natural instincts take control and sometimes it went good and sometimes bad. I always had difficulties with evaluating my game and often just ended up with saying ohh well, had a bad day; bad karma or yeah had a good day. And if I did bad, I always assumed I just needed to improve my technique or get in better shape. BUT, now, it just all looks so much clearer to me... My main problem is that I´m not thinking logically about what I am doing on the court, I´m not selecting the right shots and I´m not thinking about where my opponent is positioned.
And now it just seems so stupid to me that I have been playing squash for so long without giving these things a serious thought... But like some wise man said: "Better late then never!" so as I see it I´m just thrilled to now the help and opportunity to work on these things and hopefully get better...
So all in all, one thing is for sure: Australia really is effecting my critical thinking in a positive way and the future is bright :)
Another thing which has been great this week is the weather. It seems as the summer has returned for a bit. The temperature has been up to 33 all week with blue sky´s. Even though I haven´t been able to enjoy it because of school work it still manages to contribute to a positive state of mind.
But thats all for now... wow this really ended up being a much longer blog then I expected :) (Cris, you must be proud of me! ;)
I still need to post a travel blog about my amazing trip to Tasmania and hopefully I´ll find time in the next days.
Until then, cheer up, be focused and NO WORRIES ! ;)
Over and out...
