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    Student Exchange

    Thailand

    Hello, my name is Naili. I am an alumnus of Chemistry Education of Education and Teacher Training Faculty (FKIP) in UNS. I would like to share my experience as a representative of UNS on the “Pre-Service Student Teacher Exchange in Southeast Asia” program. There are two exchange programs offered at that time. The first one is conducted by SEAMEO, while the other one is conducted by UNS-TRU cooperation. I was selected to join the second program, called UtoU (University to University) of UNS-TRU Batch 2. In this program, each university sends its representatives to the university partner to do an internship abroad. There are six representatives of UNS who were going to Thepsatri Rajabhat University in Lopburi, Thailand. The representatives are from six different education majors, chemistry, economics, English, mathematics, physical education (P.E.), and early childhood education. The second batch of this program was held for one month, from 13th August 2019 – 10th September 2019.

     

    When we arrived at Lopburi, we were introduced to the dean, lecturers, and our buddies there. We were also explained about things we need to do during this program, the schedules, the school where we did our intern, and others. I assist the chemistry teacher in Demonstrate School (Satit) TRU, Ms. May. I taught three chemistry classes of 10th grade by preparing the teaching material and helping explain the answers to the questions given by the teacher. Ms. May also gave me chance to help her in the laboratory activity of science class for junior high school.

    The university did not only give us the time for internship, but also did our time with the university activities of TRU. My friends and I participated as a speaker to introduce Indonesia in a foreign language class in the English Education Department of TRU. The university introduced us to the English education student of TRU at a cultural night party. They provide us to participate as performers to show some of the Indonesian cultures by dance and sport. We were invited as guest participants at Banjongrat School to present things about Indonesia such as culture, traditional food, dance, and others.

    Phillippines

    I was given a chance to participate in Sea-Teacher Project or Pre-Service Student Teacher Exchange in Southeast Asia Batch 7 by SEAMEO (Southeast Asia Minister of Education Organization). This program is a training program/internship for 1 month for student teacher in Southeast Asia. Beside SEAMEO, this program was also supported by Chemistry Education Major, Education and Teacher Training Faculty, Sebelas Maret University. The program was held on January-February 2019. Before the program took place, I took part in various preparations, such as online oritentation, blog training, micro teaching, and sharing with alumni of Sea-Teacher Project Batch 7 in UNS. My host university was TIP (Technological Institute of The Philippines) and I was placed in T.I.P. Quezon City Senior High School which is located in 938 Aurora Boulevard, Cubao, Quezon City, Philippines. During the pogram, I observed the teaching and learning activities, participated in many school’s activtities, and of course the students’ direct teaching practice. I taught some classes which was consisted of 50 students each class. By this progam, I got to know how the teaching and learning system in the other countries, especially Philippines. Then, I also got to know the characteristics of students in Philippines and how to be a good teacher according to the characteristics of the students.

    Taiwan

    Hello, I am Rakhma Amalia Nurdina. I am a final year student at Chemistry Education, UNS. In 7th semester, I took part in the Global Challenge program selection held by the International Office UNS. This program provides scholarship for UNS students who wish to carry out international mobility. After got the suggestion from my academic advisor, I decided to enroll in the Fall Semester Exchange at the National Changhua University of Education (NCUE), Taiwan.

    The lecture program will be held from September 13, 2021 – January 31, 2022 (1 semester). I took two courses, namely Presentation Skill (3 credits) and Introduction to Cellular Mechanisms of Signal Transduction (2 credits). In this program, I participate in international transfer credit so that the credits I take can be converted into my studies in Indonesia. Besides that, I also took additional classes to learn Chinese. This class is held every weekend.

    For the Introduction to Cellular Mechanisms of Signal Transduction course, I study and discuss the mechanisms of classical signal transduction pathways. It’s very good for me to be able to get a new learning experience outside the subject of Chemistry education. I gained a lot of new knowledge and insight during my learning. The lecturers for this course are also fun and very professional. I will be forever grateful to Dr. Lee, Dr. Ken, and Dr. Wang.

    The Presentation Skills course is my favorite course during student exchange. In this course, I study how to plan a presentation, use the body language, and increase my communication skills. The course give me knowledge of good presentation principles for creating the structure, using visual aids and tools and managing my use of English. This course is important for me as a prospective teacher. I must be able to convey, share, and present the learning materials well so that all messages and learning objectives can be conveyed. In addition, the learning process carried out was very fun and challenging. We always do a group presentation every 3 meetings. It made me interact a lot with international friends. It’s great to know the different characters and perspectives on each person. This has also made me develop the leadership and teamwork skills in a small scope but very different from what I usually do in Indonesia.

    The Chinese class that I take every weekend is also very fun. Although Chinese is known for its difficulties, the learning process that I experienced was very enjoyable. The most memorable assignment I’ve ever had while taking this class was when I had to call my classmate and practice the Chinese we had studied. I paired up with Avery, someone from America. We tried our best to practice what we had learned, but because we were not proficient in speaking Chinese, the results were not satisfactory. However, during the process of working on the assignment, I felt very happy because we often joked and got to know each other better. I remember that moment very well.

    Other than the fun stuff, I also had some difficulties. Difficulty in learning materials, of course, I often encounter. In addition, the courses I took were not in line with my field of Chemistry Education. Moreover, the time difference between Taiwan and Indonesia makes me have to really pay attention to the time because the people there are very disciplined. In addition, the cultural differences that exist also make me very careful in speaking and acting. But, these things are difficulties that I can face. I really hope to be able to meet in person with my friends, professors, and my lecturers there. I will forever be grateful to Chemistry Education, UNS International Office, and NCUE for the most precious experiences in my life.