The truth about life as a Polytechnic Student Part 2

By Teng Cheow Yi

A day ago, I published a post that garnered way many more responses than I expected - the good, and the bad. I wrote about my thoughts on how I felt as a student studying in Polytechnic, ie the perspectives of a Year 3 student who came from the School of Business.


I posted this up on Facebook last night and word started spreading.



Here are some issues which I'd like to clear up, in addition to that share some of my views on the GOOD POINTS of studying in a polytechnic.


1. My point of view is biased.


Almost every negative comment is telling me how I'm being so one-sided with regards to the article I've written. That is very true, because my entire post was (1) based on my own personal experience and opinions, (2) basically ranting about the pains in my life as a polytechnic student, (3) coming from the Business Student point-of-view.


There was a comment which went like...


"Your points are too subjective, one-sided, and does not reflect accurately on the thoughts of all poly students."


I won't say that it's too subjective, because if it was, it wouldn't have garnered this huge response of students agreeing on what I said. Lots of people seem to have agreed from where I'm coming from.


But I do admit that, despite my title stating "The truth about life as a Polytechnic Student", it does not necessarily have to reflect the feelings of EVERY SINGLE poly student out there. I mean, isn't it obvious? As similar as the schooling process which we all go through, it is pretty much common sense that we all come from different backgrounds and environments.


2. I had ONE bad experience during my educational journey in polytechnic that really affected me.


Out of all the good experiences that I had throughout my three years in poly, there are bound to be bad ones, and one of them that happened in the third year really got me thinking about how I felt about students these days.


Let me cite you a scenario which happened to me:


I know this might not sound familiar to you because it is MY PERSONAL experience, but I hope to emphasize on the fact that,


(1) I really dislike it when people put on a fake front when interacting with you.


(2) Especially when they know that you're trying your best to improve for the better and change your stupid habit of being late.


(3) Peer evaluation also does not have much of an impact on me because I'm not AS concerned about my grades as compared to when a group mate or friend lies to me about everything being okay, yet marks me down behind my back whilst pretending to be a team player. That is NOT okay. (personal take)


That being said, it's great to know that some of you have the perfect team mates and grow up in the perfect educational environment. I admire you to the max. But please don't forget that not everyone is as fortunate as you. My thoughts might be biased, but who can say yours truly aren't? Everyone is entitled to his/her own opinion.


3. Bad experiences do not have anything to do with the school I'm in.


It's more of an issue with the people you meet nowadays. I'm also not the typical studious teen, and I have myself partly to blame for the occasional bad grade. As far as my lecturers and course of study are concerned, they are perfectly fine.


I might have stated my views on how I felt about lectures, too, but most of my lecturers are the best people with the funniest characters and loveliest personalities. They were the ones who were there to motivate me continuously and even listen patiently to some of my complaints. They were the ones who willingly helped me clear my doubts regarding schoolwork when I approached them for consultation.


A reader from NYP also gave shared thoughts of his/hers:



While I dislike attending lectures, I totally agree with what he/she said. That's a different point of view for you guys.


4. There are fun aspects of polytechnic life, and I absolutely LOVE them!


Camps, events, bazaars, outings... the list goes on! As much as I'm a poor example of a good model student, my past two years of polytechnic life had its perks too. With a bunch of fun loving people, we organized the Freshmen Orientation Camp and Programme for our incoming batch of juniors. It was helluva lot of fun and I got to know many new faces!


Aside from that, some of my course mates and I were also part of the Organizing Committee for our course. It wasn't exactly a smooth journey, but there were fun times through the events we planned such as the Christmas Parties and Course Outings! Yes I have enjoyed myself immensely apart from studying.


5. I'm still grateful for the things I've learnt, the nice people I've known and the knowledge I've gained.


Maybe I sounded a little too emotional in the previous article because I had written that with lots of emotions and deep thoughts invested. But now I'm going to state it VERY clearly that, apart from the bad, there is so much good exposure gained and nice people I've gotten to know. I even met my boyfriend there and some of my best pals, through simple activities such as Orientation Camps.


Also, I don't find the education system wrong. How many times do I have to say that it's based on my own experiences and opinions?


So why are people telling me things like,


"You, lady, are in for a rude shock if you think having this attitude of yours is going to take you far in the future. Believe me, no employer will appreciate such cynicism, lack of respect." - Anonymous


Don't you think you're going a little overboard? I'm not intending to work in a company that I don't have interest in, and neither would these employers hire someone like me. But what I can tell you is this, there are really nice and accepting people out there who understand your strengths and weaknesses and know how to utilize them to the fullest. They might be far and few in our society, but there ARE such people out there. You are just not acquainted with them.


Who are you to lecture me about my attitude with an attitude like yours? Lol. Fancy trying to be all "opinionated" when you post your reply ever so anonymously. Try harder.


Or even telling me to quit school,


"Very immature piece of writing. Not trolling or anything but you need to think about the bigger picture. Not happy with the "mundane" process of school? Quit then. I was once like you in poly and I regret to this day. Do yourself a favour and take your studies seriously - one thing I wished I did at your age." - Anonymous


"Quit then" - Lol, easier said than done. Once again, I've ENDED my three years of studies in a polytechnic so I don't know what exactly there is to "quit". Whatever happened to your past, I don't care. All I know is you're rude, mean and another gutless anonymous replier.


Here are other bad responses I've gotten:


(responses from various anonymous people)



You guys really know how to ruin a person's day, don't you?


Now that I've read enough of these comments, I'm really glad that majority of you can relate to it. =)


Although the intention was writing it just to express my thoughts as an ordinary schoolgirl from poly, I'm really thankful for the kind comments and constructive feedback.


And to all of you nice people, I wish you all the best for your studies and good luck! Like I said, there are still some really nice people out there, you just have to get to know or meet them. =)


As for the haters, stop posting these rude remarks and go study. Must 乖乖 okay?


This post first appeared on the blog of Miss Teng Cheow Yi on 28 August 2014. It is reproduced with permission.


YOU MAY WISH TO READ:


The truth about life as a Polytechnic Student Part 1


Diploma and ITE graduates: One race to the top


"There are many ways of being smart"