Entry 4: Make use of the resources around you(ft. Professor Lynn Ishikawa)

 

    Being in college definitely means having more independence. I discovered that I have more time in a day to manage my own schedules; but  also that means that I need to accomplish more tough work. I believe that a common issue among college students is the perception that asking for assistance is weak. On this, I for one am in disagreement. I schedule an office hour with my professor when I have queries or even just challenging problems so we can work through them. During exam week, I go in and ask advice from my STEM mentor, who is very supportive of my learning style. I love and never hesitate to seek assistance when I need it. This is one of the skills that I believe I acquired at DePauw.

There are a ton of resources at DePauw that can help students both academically and socially. The W-center is one of the resources that I particularly enjoy. In my first-year seminar class, I remember being given an assignment to write a brief summary, and I was completely stumped. I had never before decided that I wanted to register at the W-center. I was extremely fortunate to be able to reserve a time slot with an SEII tutor. My experience during the session was fantastic. She gave me advice on how to approach the task and assisted me in deconstructing what the summary writing process should contain. I believe that one of the advantages of this session was the opportunity for me to talk with someone about how I understood the reading. It truly helps me come up with ideas, which improves the quality of my summary writing. I've returned to the center a few times since that first experience.

There are a ton of resources that can assist me and other international students, but students rarely make good use of them. Professor Lynn, an academic professor of English here at DePauw, and I recently had a fruitful discussion about whether it is typical for students to ignore these benefits. "For writing, they are writing their paper the night or the day before. So, they don’t really have time to have someone look at it or take advantage of something like the writing center,” she said. Again, having your task done on time is critical. It's kind of sad to learn that you are missing out on extremely good opportunities just because you did not manage your time well. Professor Lynn continued, “Another reason is probably some students feel like they don’t need resources.” I completely agree with this remark, and I disagree with the students who believe they do not need these resources. These tools, in my opinion, are available because they can benefit us. With this perspective in mind, I am certain that some struggling kids aren't even aware of their own struggles, which is bad for them.

I'd like to conclude this entry by emphasizing how crucial it is to utilize the resources available to you, particularly while trying to improve your writing abilities. I strongly urge everyone to take advantage of their opportunities because, in my experience, they are all beneficial in some way.

Link to learn more about Lynn Ishikawa