“Choping: The art of reserving a seat in any public space with the help of a personal belonging including but not limited to a packet of tissues or your wallet.”
In NUS, the art of choping during midterm season reaches new heights. There are laptops, wallets, keys, and napkins on chairs and study tables. One time I came across a study table “choped” with a huge fluffy pillow that had a note on it.
“Don’t nap on me, it messes with my owner's head space.” The note said.
Like GW, almost all study spots in NUS are perpetually occupied during the mid-term season. In fact, some students have taken to choping seats at the local 24/7 McDonalds and I’m still struggling to find my “study spot”. I never thought I would say this, but I miss GW’s Gelman Library. Terribly.
The midterm season in NUS generally lasts from late February to early March. Furthermore, as professors can decide upon the format of the mid-term exam, it can vary from subject to subject and from class to class. My Global Governance class had a classic short answer style exam. However, for my South Asian cinema class, I had to present on a movie that we watched during the week.
There are some classes that do not have a midterm though. In these classes, students are assessed on an essay or group projects that may be due later in the semester. However, local students tend to take exams very seriously in general.
Due to limited natural resources, Singapore prides itself on its well-developed human resource. As such, there is a strong state-led drive to enhance the Singaporean population's competitiveness and skills as a workforce. Unsurprisingly, this competitiveness often translates into how much effort a local student puts into their coursework and in studying for the exams.
One of my local friends says that since students are graded according to a curve, he needs to do exceptionally well to place amongst the top 10 percentile. Thus, he often re-reads his articles before tutorials and tries to revise at least twice before the exams.
A lot of students pull all-nighters as well. The 24/7 Starbucks is full of students at night, who work well into the morning. Some students even skip their regular lectures to study for their midterms.
This is obviously not how all students at NUS study, but most do take midterms and exams very seriously. As for me, I’m still trying to find my footing in the academic setting of Singapore. I just took my first two (very different) midterms. Once I get my grades back, I think I will be in a better position to see how the bell curve works in NUS. Also, I will be able to gage where I stand on the curve, and how I can possibly do better.
“The bell curve is a learning curve, Tanvi”, my wise local friends reassure me. Learning is exactly why I am here. So, I guess it is time to finish this blog and chope my way through my Singaporean midterm season.