International Study Center students make impressive portfolio presentations to record their learnings.
July 2011

The International Study Center (ISC) at James Madison University (JMU) hosted a final portfolio presentation event for 16 Foundation Diploma students on July 22, 2011. The presentations represent a key milestone in their progress to their second (sophomore) year at JMU. The portfolio presentations took place at a formal but fun event attended by fellow students, ISC staff, and instructors from JMU.

Each presentation was an individual look back at the learning and personal achievements gained during the freshman year at the ISC, as well as a view of future goals and possibilities. The students created tri-fold displays showing graphics and text information. The creativity and higher level thinking of the matriculating freshmen were abundantly evident in the displays.

Weili Qian's display portrayed historical information of both China and the USA to show his interest in government and leadership. Weiwei Xu displayed a stretch of the Great Wall of China to represent her culture and as a metaphor for her journey in learning. Xiao Tang graphically represented herself as a fish swimming in an ocean of educational and career opportunities. Each display included a unique way of showing a student's interests, accomplishments, and goals.

The ISC congratulates the following students for the successful completion of their portfolio presentation:(Pictured from left to right) Weili Qian, Yunpeng Zhang, Yichen Bao, Yuting He, Fan Zhang, Xiao Tang, Runhua Tian, Weiwei Xu, Haonan Li, Jiaqi Hu, Chen Tang, Yao Yao, Xie Tao, Mengjiao Wang, Ziyang Huo and Reem Aljamid.

Excerpts from student speeches

To round out the presentations, the students also wrote and rehearsed brief speeches to accompany their displays. The following are a few the comments students made in their speeches:

Yuting He: "Study Group helped me improve my English level, and at the same time I took my JMU courses. So it was good for me as an international student."

Chen Tang: "Study Group helped me learn a lot about American culture and to improve my study skills."

Fan Zhang: "I used the lab to establish experiments to prove the things I have learned."

Yichen Bao: "I made a lot of American, Arab, and African friends."

Reem Aljamid: "Being in Study Group helped me improve my English and to prepare for academic courses."

Weili Qian: "I want to help the leaders of China to make policies to help the people improve their lives."

Yao Yao: "I got great grades with my professors' help!"

Faculty comments:

Adam Copeland, Director of the International Study Center said, "It was great to see and hear the diversity of the students’ perspectives on why they are at James Madison University and what they hope to accomplish here. They did a fantastic job of communicating their goals and dreams to the audience today."

ISC English Instructor, Jessica Penner was the faculty advisor to the presenting students, guiding them in their preparation over the last few months. She said, "It was great to see how students used visuals, including an airplane, a bridge and Duke's footprints to share their experiences at Study Group and their future plans at James Madison University."

Learn about the Foundation Program academic course curriculum.