New Semester in a New Country: Students weigh in on how to combat culture shock

Fall Semester has started and new students on the BYU-Hawaii campus might experience some kind of culture shock regardless if they are from the United States or international.

Masa Narita, an undeclared major from Japan, shared his experiences with culture shock. He said, “Men here wear skirts and couples kiss in public areas. If I get a job in PCC, I might need to wear skirt too. It feels so strange but also very funny. About kissing, I would pretend I see nothing.”

“I found people speak English very fast!” said Saiya Ogaki, an accounting major also from Japan. “It is challenging, but I am motivated to learn from them. I will study hard and make many friends from different countries. We can help each other.”

Sho Sasaki, a psychology major from Japan, said even the weather can leave students with some shock. “Hawaii rains a lot and very suddenly. I would bring umbrella and jacket with me wherever I go. Culture shock is a good thing. I learned to accept the way it is. From all these different experience, I can grow and to be a stronger person.”

Food size is something that varies quite a bit from country to country and can catch new international students off guard. “Food in America is double sized compared with Japan.” said Megumi Suita, an IDD major also from Japan. She said when she ordered a single scope of ice cream, she was given a “giant” scope. “From now on, I will share the ice cream and split the cost with my friends, so we can save money and eat it all. I don’t like to waste anything!”

Other students who have experienced culture shock and learned to adjust to it can provide insight to newer students who are still shaken up. “When I first got here, I literally could not make friends for about the first three months,” said Barbara Shelton, a senior majoring in political science from Saudi Arabia. She said culture shock is inevitable and it would happen to anyone. She encouraged students to take culture shock as a good experience. She said, “If you have culture shock, then just go for it. I have moved around 13 times and every time I experience a little bit of culture shock. It’s hard, but you can sit and feel uncomfortable, or you can get out and party. For me, I like to party!”

Even students who originate from the United States get initial culture shock. “When I first came to BYUH, Polynesian men were greeting me with hug and kiss on the cheek.” said Jennifer Herrera, a senior in communications from Texas. Although she is an American, Herrera said she experienced culture shock like international students. She agreed culture shock is a good thing because she got to explore and learn from other cultures. She advised new students to keep an open mind and to accept new things.

Paul Buckingham, director and counselor from BYUH Counseling Service, defined culture shock as “an exposure to cultural value in communication, relationship, and problem solving that are so different and opposite to your own framework reference that makes it different to cope with. It doesn’t mean right or wrong. It just means different.”

Buckingham extended a special invitation to students who are struggling to visit the counseling service. “Don’t feel shame. It is not a shame to have problem.”

See this article on Ke Alaka'i

Modernity Examined in New Cinema Class

A new class that begin this Summer semester, Special Studies in World Cinema, allows for in-depth exposure and understanding of the culture in one of BYU–Hawaii’s target areas. Yifen Beus, associate professor in the International Cultural Studies department, developed the course and defines it as an opportunity to explore and examine issues that rise from the impact of modernity reflected in sino phone cinemas. Sino phone cinemas are productions by filmmakers specifically from Mainland China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong.

In the class, students define and characterize modernity, cultural and national identity, historiography and cinema, as well as the inequality between the urban and rural, gender and sexuality, and the negotiation between traditional and modern living through film study. Modernity is the change from traditional values and ways of thinking to more contemporary perspectives, which matters to students since it analyzes the world in which we live today. By doing so, all students regardless of their cultural background, will have greater understanding of modernity and the impact it has on the people and cultures portrayed in the films.

Inspiration to build the curriculum for this class came from many sources. “China has risen to become very competitive in international politics and economy after several waves of vigorous modernization, and its government is ambitious to promote its cinemas to rival Hollywood,” explained Beus. “Many of these films have won international acclaim, but are not taught on this campus. To offer such a class in the context of Chinese cultural studies and the study of film medium within the humanities will provide a small window into the screen culture of a nation that has encountered the challenges of modernization,” said Beus. “Another key issue is the study of cultural identities of the ‘Chinese’ people--namely China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and the Chinese diaspora.”

Beus said the selection of films “largely depends on their treatment of certain themes and topics. I tried to choose works that depict effects of modernization, such as issues on migration, individual and collective cultural identity shift, ethnicity, environmental and social impact, and human rights.” She continued saying that some of the best selections are “films by directors whose work can typically represent the Zeitgeist of a particular era or historical juncture or that belong to a specific movement or generation.” The final factor in a film being considered for the course was that it has “been distributed with English subtitles in a playable format.”

The study of modernity is pertinent to any major or discipline because it is affecting people and cultures around the world.

See this article on BYU-Hawaii University News Room

In addiction, I wrote another version the same topic for the college student magazine.  

Beus teaching new film class that explores modernity through movies

 

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