2021-04-06 Ivy Day 【Aiden in English】 First, let's get the big one out of the way: I'm attending New York University (NYU) to study business at Stern. Was it my first choice? No. Is my future bright? Yes. Is it a good school and opportunity? Absolutely. Am I excited? Not really. Let me explain. Since elementary school, most well-off middle-class Chinese Americans have been branded with one singular goal: to attend an Ivy League school—a "Why?" question usually is immediately rejected. The concept is synonymous with breathing: you do it. So, when I received my Early Decision II result from NYU on February 1, I barely even flinched. I had missed the ED II release date entirely and found out later that night during a video game session with my mother (to whom I asked to leave the room because the match went into overtime). But why did I lack any excitement? New York City could be considered the most exciting place in America. The sleepless city holds the most opportunities for business on the East Coast. Year after year, the Stern School of Business ranks among America's top five undergraduate business programs. The ghost of the Ivy League hovers over my fingers as I type these words. In a sense, I have failed the simplest of goals. While I constantly tell myself that NYU's business school outranks many Ivy League options, that nagging thought nibbles away every second. So, what is the message of all this? I feel obligated to warn upcoming students of this pitfall in some weird, twisted sense. If I were placed in front of a high school freshman, I would first tell them that stress is good- don't stress about stress. Pressure is a crucial part of academic success. Without it, I, like many classmates, would probably be staring at a failing grade in each course. However, students mustn't compound more anxiety and pressure than necessary. The Yerkes-Dodson Law states that, with most activities, extreme arousal results in poor performance, particularly for more complex tasks; it's better to be only slightly stressed rather than a nervous wreck. As an English writing teacher for youngsters, I've dealt with many parents pursuing the Ivy League dream for their children. To those parents who try to force their average children up into the top echelon of education, understand that the laws of averages will eventually balance a student into the level they deserve to be in (I'm not telling you, parents, to stop pushing your kids, but just be reasonable when they run into competition too tricky for them). Excess pressure often may backfire, especially with the increasing difficulty of coursework. Even though my journey took me to an unexpected location, I sit here now, perhaps not as excited as I would've been for a Wharton acceptance, but satisfied. You're going to get to where you were meant to be. 【紅霞譯】 咱乾脆開門見山：我將去紐約大學史登(意指“明星”)商學院學習。第一志願？不是；前景如何？不錯；學校可好就業咋樣？絕對不成問題；興奮嗎？ 真不見得，且聽我一一道來。 自打上小學起，多數處於中產階級的美籍華人目標執着：卯勁爬藤，甭問為什麼，反正都是順理成章的事情：動手吧。
因此當今年二月一號接到紐大“二期早申決定”錄取通知時，我幾乎毫無反應。事實上，我完全忘記了放榜日子，那晚電子遊戲比賽正酣，媽媽前來透露消息（因為恰逢加時賽，我催她趕緊走開）。
但我為啥激動不起來呢？紐約堪稱美利堅最火的地方，這座不夜城擁有東海岸最大的商機，而“明星”商學院每年排名又列居全國普通高等教育商科專業前五位。 只要我一撳到這幾個鍵，藤校鬼怪便隨指尖游動，從某種意義上說，本人未能實現最起碼的目標。我反覆告誡自己紐大商學院比許多常春藤學校更具優勢，靈魂深處才逐漸淡定下來。 那麼，上述所言究竟想表明什麼？從某種怪異扭曲的視覺來看，我有義務提醒那些即將陷入泥潭的學生。假如來到高一新生面前，我首先會告訴他/她緊張是件好事-——只是不要因為緊張而甚感緊張，壓力對學業成功至關重要，沒有它，我、還有不少同學恐怕每門課程都有可能落到不及格的地步，關鍵在於大家沒必要過分焦慮自施壓力，耶克斯—多德森定律指出，在多數活動中，極度刺激會造成表現欠佳；而面對複雜工作，最好略感壓力而非極度緊張。
身為初小學生的英文寫作老師，我跟許多懷揣常春藤童真夢想的父母打過交道，對於那些試圖敦促中等水平的子女升入快班尖子梯隊的父母，要明白均衡法則終將讓每個學生找到適合自己的支點（在此我並不是要家長停止強推自己的孩子，而是要理解擺在少男少女面前的競爭實在太難了），壓力過大往往會適得其反，尤其當課業難度加重更是如此。儘管大學申請旅程帶我去了一個意想不到的地方，眼下我坐在這裡，也許沒有像收到沃頓商學院那樣激動，但還是心滿意足。 人註定會去屬於自己的地方。
Today in History(歷史上的今天): 2016: Third Marking Period of Seventh Grade(初二第三學制) 2013: Santa Cruz Island, Ecuador(厄瓜多爾聖克魯斯島) 2012: 佛州迪斯尼世界神奇王國(Walt Disney Magic Kingdom, FL) 2011: 埃及尼羅河遊輪(Cruising on the Nile, Egypt) 2011: 埃及阿布辛貝雙神廟(Twin Temples of Abu Simbel, Egypt) 2011: 埃及菲萊神廟(Philae Temple—Isis, Osiris, and Horus, EGY)
 Driver Test @ North Montco Technical Career Center
(北蒙哥馬利“巨人山”技工職業中心·駕照路考 03-27-2021)
Crosslink(相關博文):
12th Grade(高中四年級) |
