The challenge of academic writing for Chinese students within ...

High School. In the second year, I tried to change my major to History; but I failed, because
the School of History at that time did not admit any more students, as they already had
enough students. Though disappointed by this fact, I thought at least I should work hard on
my own major and improve my oral English. Hence, I chose to join the 2+2 programme, for
one thing, I thought it would be a very good opportunity to improve my English if I can study
in the country that this language originates from; for another, I was really interested to have
a look at how people from the outside world see China, and how they viewed the history of
China.
In September 2007, I finally came to UK with all kinds of dreams about the future and also a
feeling of uncertainty. The first few months after I arrived were really exciting. Everything
seemed so different from China. I began to live a completely different life, learning to cook by
myself, making every decision by myself, and also having to think of everything by myself.
With the purpose of improving my spoken English, I tried to make friends with the local
students. However, as I began my study, I found the courses pretty difficult for me. For one
thing, the content of the courses is very academic and requires specific knowledge of that
area, which I‘d seldom learnt before. For another, before coming to UK, I had no idea of
academic writing. In China, writing is sometimes simply for some tests. But it is completely
different in UK. How to do the research How to get the information you want How to
structure your essay How to write it academically Such questions were always confusing
me at the beginning. In the first year, I struggled so much to adjust to the study here that I did
not have much time to make friends with other local students. Meantime, I also got a parttime
job in a Chinese restaurant. Before that, I‘d never worked. Work was tough in the
restaurant, but I did learn and experienced a lot, like how to deal with the relationship with
the boss, how to cooperate with colleagues etc.
Very soon, the first year came to an end. And the last year started with lots of work. However,
with the experience of last year, I now had a clearer idea of my study. Though it is still tough
for me, but by this time, I can handle it easier than the first year. And by now, I am standing
at another crossroads again—making a choice of the course of postgraduate study. Deep in
my heart, I still would like to study Chinese history again, but at the same time, I want to
make more improvements in my English, which means I still want to study for my
postgraduate degree in the UK. Does it look weird that a Chinese student studies Chinese
history in the UK I always wonder.
The study of English language, though tough, but does help me improve the analytical and
communicative skills as well as academic writing. Moreover, immersing in and experiencing
a completely different culture from China, I began to compare them. Such a comparison
enables me have more understanding of my own culture. Another thing that impresses me
during my study in the UK is the way people here view Chinese history. In China, most
criticisms and descriptions of Chinese history are written by Chinese scholars; some of the
studies are even controlled by the government, while here, most of them are from different
scholars all over the world. I am so impressed by these different views, for they are quite
different and objective from how I have been educated. Moreover, having experienced
perceiving China as refracted through the minds and opinions of outsiders, I feel that the
vantage point from which I can critically evaluate the motives for interpreting and
disseminating Chinese history is especially privileged. I feel it is essential that I pursue the
study of this outside of China. Given the current precariousness of China‘s self-perception,
there is limited space for objectivity in the critical evaluation of its history. I have greatly
enjoyed and been consistently fascinated by the literature I have read on the subject of
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