The right chemistry...Instructor's formula mixes life lessons with instruction
Jacqui Streety, editor-in-chief

 

It isn’t often that you can go to class and learn the chemical composition of the earth’s elements and get a genuine lesson in life that could help guide you down the right paths.

It is even more difficult to imagine going into a chemistry class and finding comedic relief through the professor whose nights should be spent behind a mic at the comedy clubs. But all this can be found on any given day in the classroom of Dr. Jesse Yeh, chairperson of the Science Department and professor of chemistry.

Yeh has been a professor of chemistry for 18 years, 16 of which have spent at South Plains College. He’s traveled quite a distance to call America and Texas his home. Originating from Taiwan, Yeh earned his Bachelor of Science degree at Fu-Jen University, the only Catholic university in Taiwan, and then moved to the United States to obtain his PhD at Texas Tech. upon moving to the U.S., Yeh knew that there would be some significant changes. Obviously there would be some cultural differences, but it turned out to be more than just a cultural transformation. The main difference that he found between schools in Taiwan and schools in the U.S. is the emphasis on education and philosophy. Yeh explained that In Taiwan people are very well educated but have no practical application of the materials learned, as it is all based on memorization and regurgitation of information. The other difference that he saw was that Americans want to know why. They question authority and the way that things are, and this is socially accepted. In Taiwan, however, it is not socially conventional to question.
 

The standards of education vary in that America seems to require less of its students. Also, the school year is shorter than the 11 months spent in school in Taiwan. He added that the students who come from Taiwan are very book smart but seem to have no common sense, as they have no real application until coming to school in the U.S.
 

Comparing the United States to another country may sound like an easy feat, but it really isn’t. Yeh said he couldn’t compare the U.S. as a whole to Taiwan so he used Texas.
 

“It’s different,” he explained. “Taiwanese people are like the people of New York; they are superficially friendly. But if you’re able to make a friend, it is likely that they will be a life-long friend.” He continued, “Texans are much more hypocritical, and you’re less likely to make a life-long friend here. American culture is fake. People are polite, but they aren’t nice; they have a need for a deep respect to be taught.”
 

What is most enjoyable and most intriguing about Yeh’s classes are the ways that he incorporates such wonderful lessons of life into his lectures. It isn’t uncommon that he digresses during a lecture, but he doesn’t just shoot the breeze when he gets off topic.
 

When asked if he felt obligated in any sense to direct his students down a moral path in life, he replied with such sincerity, “To be an educator, one can’t just be prepared with lecture material; they must be responsible for life lessons.”
 

He feels that a lot of professors believe the subject matter is more important than the lessons students really need, though the way he feels is just the opposite.
 

“Students use less than 10 percent of what they actually learn in college, so I feel that lessons in life are the most valuable lessons to teach,” Yeh said. “Social interaction is most important because it’s something that everyone needs the rest of their lives.”
 

Some of the most important social aspects that Yeh brings into the classroom is the lesson of not judging or hold biases based on skin color. As a minority in West Texas, he has experienced racism and discrimination.
 

He recalls walking around the Tech campus for the first time and being shouted at with demeaning remarks and names solely based on his race.
 

“I’ve been discriminated against many times but I don’t take it personally,” Yeh said of his experiences with racism and discrimination. “I stand up tall.”
 

He added, “It’s all in your head; it’s all about the attitude of dealing with it. I tell my minority students not to take it so individually; just show them that you are different.”
 

Yeh said he responds to racism with actions rather than words.
 

“I wouldn’t tell them anything, I would show them,” he said.
 

Yeh also thinks that those who practice discrimination should spend time with those who differ from them could alleviate some of the ignorance of racism. Then they would see that they aren’t so different after all.
 

Yeh said he prefers teaching to working as a chemical researcher.
 

“I really enjoy research, but I don’t want to be forced to do it,” he said. “In the U.S., researchers are always under pressure; I want to research on my own time.
 

“I love to be around people, touching lives. What could be better than perhaps changing a student’s life, thinking or philosophy?”
 

Yeh is a favorite among students who take chemistry classes and has always received good reviews.
 

“I don’t see myself as a favorite but I do feel comfortable sharing with my students, and I’m always willing to help,” Yeh said. “Maybe it’s because I’m honest and sincere that people like me, I don’t know.”
 

Yeh recognizes that there are many problems in the world right now, ranging from racism and genocide to homelessness and the murder of our environment. But despite the world’s problems, Yeh said he would not change a thing.
 

“Nothing needs to be changed,” Yeh replied profoundly. “This is all God’s will, to provide an opportunity for humans to overcome the conditions in which we now live. We need to learn to solve the problems, not change them, so that we can make the world a better place.”
 

As the semester begins, Yeh has some really great advice for the students.
 

“Don’t stress out, just enjoy life; college can be the best years of your life.” He continued, “Relax and meet as many people as possible; you’ll need that forever and forever is a long time. Don’t focus so much on the subject matter and grades but on social interaction.”