International students and the English language: How can we move forward?

The importance of speaking English outside the classroom and interacting with local students cannot be underestimated, writes Dr Erlenawati Sawir. For many international students, overseas studies are an exciting journey. But the journey is also challenging. Some students make a smooth transition and cope well academically and socially. Others suffer in their struggle for overseas qualifications. One frequently cited challenge facing international students is language-related difficulties. Language can be particularly difficult for students from non-English-speaking backgrounds. Those from the countries where English is well established in the education system, and often serves as a lingua franca, experience less language problems. The domains of language difficulties affecting international students academically vary among individuals, ranging from difficulties in understanding accents unfamiliar to their ear to difficulties in producing a piece of academic writing, making oral presentations and contributing to classroom discussion. What is perceived as difficult for some students can be unproblematic for others. Everyday encounters are also affected by language difficulties. Students may find it difficult to establish friendship networks with other international students, as well as local students, because of language barriers. Other barriers such as lack of local and topical knowledge and other cultural dimensions may also hinder social interaction with local people. People from different cultures have different topics of conversation. In same culture conversation, jokes can be bonding. But it is harder to share jokes across cultural barriers. Sometimes the words are understood but the laughter is not shared because the international students lack the background cultural knowledge they need to understand the jokes. Even when students have a good command of English, there are often nuances that are beyond their reach which prevent them from entering the conversation with native speakers. Sometimes international students have to pay a severe price for their limited knowledge of English, or, in some cases, for the perception that their English is limited even when it is not. Students can be very frustrated when others do not make any effort to try to understand them, do not show any interest in them and are not patient enough to deal with them. The worst thing is that students with language difficulties can be subsumed into the categories of less smart or not smart students. This can happen to students who are seen as very bright in their own country and have strong academic records both at home and in Australia. In some cases , students experience subtle unstated discrimination, for example, in trying to secure a work experience opportunity, due to their limited fluency in English. For many international students, improving proficiency in English is a goal almost as important as the degree itself. If their English does not improve during the course of study, much of the point of investing in a foreign education is lost. Concerns about the language difficulties of many international students have prompted institutions to revisit the criteria for entry to the university, especially the required IELTS levels. The question at issue here is whether an IELTS-focused preparation can achieve the essential objectives of both international students and Australian universities – whether a process of preparation that is essentially designed to help students across a selection hurdle can ensure that students have foundations in English adequate to enable them to tackle English-medium learning which, for many, is a new experience. Most universities provide language support after the students arrive. But the degree of assistance varies greatly between universities and between individual disciplines and in most language support units, staffing is too limited to deal with problems. Many units have resorted to problematic administrative strategies to manage the traffic and limit the volume of demands, such as a rationed number of consultations rather than a needs-based approach. But this negates the core educational principle, which is that of tailoring academic support to the needs profile of each student. Like preparatory and bridging programs, ongoing academic support requires accumulated expertise and a stable resource commitment. If it is to fulfil its purpose, academic support must be a service on which students can depend. It must be accessible when it is really needed. Of course, language support continues to be useful for international students. However, relying on that support alone is not enough. Another resource for improving language proficiency of international students, one that often proves to be useful but is often neglected, is through natural learning. Integration with local students and engaging in campus activities provides an opportunity to learn and to use English naturally. Language proficiency is best improved if there is a good balance of input from formal learning (in the classroom) and informal learning (outside the classroom). But it is not always easy to integrate with local students. Studies of international students repeatedly reveal a low incidence of intercultural friendships. Though many students realise the positive value of befriending members of the host culture, they are unable to overcome the cultural barriers to such friendships. When their timid, hesitant efforts at making local friends are ignored or rebuffed, they tend to stick to co-cultural peers. In some cases students never start to develop their English language competence satisfactorily because outside the classroom they speak their own native language much more often than they speak English. Research to date has focused on intercultural relationships from the perspective of international students. However, there is a dearth of research which explores the perception of local students toward international students. This is a useful area for future research work and for university internationalisation strategies to explore. The need to develop closer integration between international students and local students is a frequent theme in the research literature on international education in English-speaking countries, particularly in relation to international students from Asian nations. The key to a decisive forward move in this area is innovations in teaching and learning that will create a more cross-cultural experience for the local students as well as the international students, and enable the two groups to collaborate more readily on the basis of mutual respect. Educational providers can promote closer integration outside the classroom by creating activities that encourage mixing. Making students feel welcome is critical in building up the student self-confidence and self-esteem that are essential for breaking through all the obstacles and shaping successful academic performance. To reduce the discrimination associated with lack of English language proficiency, universities can promote cross-cultural communication and tolerance towards other cultural values and customs; sensitise their academic staff to the language difficulties being experienced by students; and take the above measures to improve English language skills. Universities need to demonstrate to students that they understand their language difficulties and that they want to help, and that they are utterly opposed to prejudice whether open or hidden. What is most important, however, is for international students themselves to make the best use of all resources provided by the universities. Students should make an effort to approach local students, not just wait for local students to approach them. They should be able to mix with local students and immerse themselves in campus activities. On the other side of the coin, local students play an important role in helping create a friendly and warm environment for international students. They should be open and show interest to international students. International students bring to the university diversity of experiences and many different ways of seeing the world and experiencing life. It is a gift they bring to local students. If this range of offerings is well exploited, it can greatly benefit local students in terms of developing their own cross-cultural perspectives and broaden their human relationships. All should work to ensure that everyone learns from each other. Dr Erlenawati Sawir is a research fellow – international education with the Centre for the Study of Higher Education at the University of Melbourne. She is currently writing a book on the social and economic security of international students with colleagues from Melbourne and Monash universities.