Re-adaptation to Routine

I have been back home for a couple of days now, settling in has proven to be quite an intricate task. I was phased out for the first couple of days and the information about the work I had to do on my dissertation, assignments and forthcoming exams were making me panic. Now that the puzzle pieces seem to be falling into place again, I decided to update my blog on the past exhilarating experience.

At first I was very skeptical about the outcomes of this intensive program, I wondered how it would be possible to work with people coming from different backgrounds, teaching and learning environments. Moreover the group was quite numerous and I was concerned that we would find difficulty in reaching a common conclusion and produce a singular student tool kit. The first few days until we settled in were quite hectic and it was noticeable that everyone felt more comfortable in the shelter of his/her own country group, we were still divided.

Then it suddenly felt natural to be a whole group, the ice was broken and the borders were crossed. Factors that influenced this mingling process were, in my opinion, facebook, the team building session and peculiarly enough the common difficulties we found in reaching the targets we had to attain including blogger, the student tool kit and the student conference. However notwithstanding all the difficulties we had to overcome, counting the days and evenings we spent getting acquainted, working, brainstorming, chatting and mingling, everything somewhat magically glued together. Then the time came to reap what we had sown and the conference turned out to be a huge success. It was a thorough learning experience from various aspects and one I would repeat eagerly and recommend to anyone readily.

As I reflect I realise that it would be a shame if all the MINE group’s work goes to waste, especially as I strongly believe that the tool kit would be very useful to future Erasmus exchange students. I also appreciate that it was a very good idea to include students and listen to their opinions in this matter as our ideas were generated from the questions our fellow students raised and their fears and concerns, before their departure to this experience. It was refreshing for them that upon our arrival we shed some light from our own knowledge.

The bond that was created in this intensive program was intense, I hope to maintain these new acquaintances and I wish all the outgoing Erasmus students a life experience as enriching as MINE :-)

Before we came to this MINE exchange program, we all assumed that we would generally feel most comfortable with the Italian students and the English students. I thought it would be more difficult to relate to Finnish students and that we would have less common interests. However now that we have been here for a week, I realize that even though we have different cultures we get along with each other so well!!!

Today we had a very intensive day, and being a big group it is difficult to agree on everything but we finally came to an agreement and our student tool kit is now under construction. I found myself working well in my group and even though we had differences between groups, we managed to merge the work we have done into one project for the conference.

Now that I look back and reflect on the situation, I remember the first day of our program, when Bernard and Rodianne conducted the ice-breaking session. During the "egg game", Bernard outlined three important points that we should keep in mind: (1) Communication is vital for a group to succeed, (2) Team work is important, (3) Leaders of the group are not those who force their ideas onto other people but those who identify the strengths of the others in the group and uses them effectively.

Assessment methods

On friday we discussed the different assessment methods of our four countries. The assessment method in Malta ranges from an "exceptional level" to "inconsistent level". In other countries the placement assessment is either pass or fail.

I used to think that our gradings were unfair since a mentor's view is subjective and therefore it will vary. I also found myself in a situation where a mentor told me on the first day I started placement that she would never grade a student as "exceptional" in her field. In another instance it happened to me that my mentor wanted to grade me as "exceptional" but my link lecturer argued with her on the same lines saying that I was still a first year student and as such I did not deserve that grade.

This used to demoralize me but then my link lecturer got to know me through various mentors' good remarks about me and nowadays she is the first to tell my mentors that I am a good student. I think that as time goes by, through continuous improvement, mentors are more able to understand on which grounds to grade students, by comparing them to other students and depending on their year of studies.

When I compared the Maltese system to the others, my opinion is that I prefer our grading system, as with just a pass or fail one will not distinguish between a very good student and an average student, and this is not fair on those who work hard. I also think that grading motivates a student to achieve a good level of practice and maintain it constantly. More so since students are rarely known to fail in all four countries.

The London Bus

On the first few days of this exchange program, I couldn't help but notice the difference in comodities we have in different countries. Back in Malta, most of us travel by car, we park in the university car park or the hospital car park. It only takes me 15 to 20 minutes to get to university from home. On the first day of the exchange program, I was speaking with Alexis (the English student) and she told me that she came with her car and had to park so far away that she had to take the bus to come to university!!! This was so different from what I was used to, I hadn't traveled on a bus for over ten years.

I recall that when Michelle had first told us we had to come to our destination by underground with our luggages, I was reluctant to do so. I came to London quite a few times before and I had only used the underground on one instance. I was afraid I wouldn't know how to get around by my own means. I was used to everyone else always planning ahead for me when I go abroad, but now I had only myself to rely on.

Then as a couple of days went by, i realised that I was making a huge storm in a teacup as the underground and buses were a very easy and convenient means of transport here in London. The other students are used to long distances, it takes a long time to arrive from the hospital accomodation to university but i was impressed how easily you fit this into your routine. I have only been here a couple of days but I feel like I am getting used to this system already. It's fascinating how easily people can adapt to different situations when the need arises. Probably we are a bit spoilt in our country in this aspect. Now I definitely know that I will not complain anymore when I am back home if I do not find a parking space that is exactly in front of the building I need to go!