Understanding the International Student Experience

Catherine Montgomery

• Publisher: Bloomsbury Academic
• Year: 2010
• ISBN:
  9781350306318
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Study Aids
• Subtopic: Study Guides

Presents a contemporary approach to the experience of international students in Higher Education. Using empirical and qualitative data, the book explores their social and cultural context and its impact on their learning experience.

Part 1

The Context

1Culture in Higher Education

This chapter looks at some aspects of the culture and discourse that provide the context for international students’ learning in Higher Education. Here internationalization is recast as a culture and ideas of marketization are presented as an influencing discourse on the experience of international students. Discourse is defined here as choice and use of particular language and how that choice and use carries implicit meaning and values (Richards, Platt and Weber, 1985).Culture is defined in detail later in this chapter but in terming internationalization a culture it is intended that it is seen as a set of beliefs and values that underpin a perspective on Higher Education. The idea of culture itself is one that is seen as significant in the experience of international students, mainly because of variation in national cultures. The aim of this chapter is to present a critical perspective on the idea of culture as a means of encouraging a questioning approach to this issue. Culture is often seen as the explanation for the challenges encountered by students and staff in an international context but the idea of culture itself is rarely interrogated. This chapter will address this by investigating some of the important issues associated with culture and its relevance in Higher Education.

The culture of internationalization in Higher Education

Internationalization is part of the contextual background to the spread of international students in Higher Education across the globe. It is a strong contemporary culture in Higher Education but it is not a new one, as the phenomenon of travelling abroad to study has been a facet of education for centuries, since ‘wandering scholars’ moved from place to place to broaden their learning (Bruch and Barty, 1998: 18). Publications on the internationalization of Higher Education can be traced back to the Middle Ages and up to the end of the 18th Century (de Wit, 2002; Fok, 2007).

The contemporary internationalization of Higher Education is part of a wider set of global forces, all of which have accelerated the growth in international student numbers. New technologies and new political orders have initiated a process of ‘global change’ whereby national and social borders have undergone reassessments (Belcher, 1995: 5). There is a new global competitiveness and a struggle for global economic power between giant trading blocs such as North America, Europe and South East Asia (Belcher, 1995: 5; Scott, 1998: 127). It is mainly between these wealthy trading blocs that travel for Higher Education has become possible and more commonplace.

Internationalization in education is a process which has been set in motion by globalization and describes what is happening at a national level, namely that national institutions of Higher Education are reaching out to other national institutions in order to reflect new commercial and political order. Internationalization has implications for academic disciplines (Trouillot, 2003) and has influenced their thinking and theorizing as well as the structure and content of courses in Higher Education. The effect of these complex global processes is global student mobility on a larger scale than has been possible before.

As with the concept of culture, definitions of internationalization vary according to context and perspective and there is considerable variation in the meanings attributed to the term (Knight, 1997; Gunn, 2005; Fok, 2007). Stone (2006) notes that the question of what internationalization means ‘invites seduction into a quagmire of potentially unsatisfying responses’ (2006: 334). The concept itself remains elusive and although resources, programmes and institutions of many countries across the globe are ‘mobilised around the concept of internationalization’ a clear and comprehensive definition of the core idea is still ‘conceptually elusive’ (Callan, 1998: 44).

A common perception of internationalization in Higher Education is that it is the integration of an international or intercultural dimension into the teaching and research of an institution (Deardorff, 2006; Wachter, 1999; Knight, 1995). Many sources also agree that the introduction of this intercultural dimension is seen as a means of increasing the quality of the institution and the education it provides. De Wit (1999) adds the term ‘intercultural’ to his definition and also stipulates that internationalization includes both international and local elements.

Knight and de Wit (1997) note that there is no simple concept of internationalization but that it is a multitude of aspects that aim to promote an environment that actually integrates a global perspective into the whole university. From the point of view of benefiting the student learning experience, internationalization should not just be viewed as a matter of building collaborative links with institutions in other countries and bringing large numbers of international students to the home institution. It is a matter of internationalizing the outlook of staff and students, both international and at home, and also of internationalizing the attitudes of people in the wider community of the university.

The perception of the nature of internationalization can be determined by the stakeholders who are involved in the process, and the goals, rationale, resources and individual institution will determine the way that internationalization is pursued (Kishun, 1998: 64). Stone (2006) points out that, instead of asking what internationalization means, universities should be asking ‘why internationalise’ and ‘what should internationalisation mean?’ (2006: 334).

It also appears that commitment to internationalization rests on a ‘relatively fragile foundation’ and there is a perception that the philosophies and principles of internationalization have not spread to all areas of Higher Education institutions (Callan, 1998: 45). Indeed in 2007 Edwards notes that, as far as internationalization is concerned, she feels we are ‘still having the same conversation we were all having in the 1970s’ (2007: 373). This may be an indication that some institutions may have developed effective recruitment policies and support systems but are not extending the intercultural dimensions mentioned above into the teaching, support and research cultures of the university. Thus the experience of some students, both international and home, may remain untouched by the potential benefits of internationalization.

The discourse of ‘marketization’ in Higher Education

Dixon notes that universities are being ‘forced into the market place in ways that are reshaping them in their purposes and in the knowledge they create and disseminate’ (2006: 320). International students are part of this ‘reshaping’ process. Universities now rely on the income from the fees of international students and have therefore developed complex marketing strategies to bring international students to the UK, Australia, the United States or other countries. There is competition between universities both across the globe and within countries to attract international students. Institutions have developed a powerful interest in retaining international students and have therefore set up robust student support networks within universities.

As a result of universities being market-driven, the views, wants and needs of students are now being seen as much more significant. In some quarters students are now looked upon as ‘customers’ with all the legal rights of a ‘consumer’ because they pay for their own education in a much more direct manner than before. The introduction of fees for home students in the UK appears to have spread this perception to a wider spectrum of the student body. As competition between universities within countries becomes stronger, the significance of student ‘satisfaction’ surveys becomes more crucial and responding to the views of students is now seen as highly significant. Many universities in the UK and in other countries are becoming much more responsive to the requests and views of their students, particularly their international students, who are their highest-paying ‘customers’. These words attached to students are part of the discourse of marketization that circulates in contemporary Higher Education.

This view of Higher Education as a commercial business that operates with a ‘customer service’ philosophy represents a discourse that may have changed society’s perception of the meaning and purpose of Higher Education. In turn this may have influenced both the motivation of students and their experience of that education (Mann, 2001; Dixon, 2006). International students are viewed as part of the commercial aspect of universities, and at times this overshadows discussion of their personal, social and individual purposes in pursuing study at university abroad.

Further underlining the prominence of the marketization discourse surrounding international students, some of the research that has been carried out relating to international students has been motivated directly or indirectly by a move to improve recruitment (Pelletier, 2003). This confusion between research about international student issues and market research driven by recruitment agendas has at times muddied the issues in this area. Pelletier notes that this type of market research, ironically often carried out by international students themselves, has dominated the research carried out in the field. This focus has perhaps limited the sorts of questions that have been asked about international students’ experiences and produced little emphasis on more theoretical ideas or longitudinal research (ibid). Teichler (2004) states that:

It is surprising to note how much the debate on global phenomena in Higher Education suddenly focuses on marketisation, competition and management in HE. Other terms such as knowledge society, global village, global understanding or global learning are hardly taken into consideration (2004: 23).

It appears that the impact of the marketization discourse is also having an influence on moves to internationalize the curriculum of Higher Education (Caruana, 2006). Understandings and misunderstandings of the relationship between globalization, internationalization and the development of the global ‘knowledge economy and learning society’ are driving approaches to curriculum in conflicting directions, according to Caruana (2006: 23).

Despite this there is a consensus emerging that universities need to refocus their efforts on enabling graduates to develop skills that may help them to function effectively in an international world of work (ibid).

Culture and international students

Because of the diversity in national cultures represented by international students, the idea of national or ethnic culture is one that is closely associated with their experience. This discussion of culture attempts to disassociate the idea of nationality from culture and suggests ideas other than culture that could be more usefully applied to international groups.

First, however, it is important to carefully consider the complexity of the concept of culture so that we can understand how its continued use can influence the experience of the international student in Higher Education.

What is culture?

‘Believing that man is an animal suspended in webs of significance he himself has spun, I take culture to be those webs’ (Geertz, 1973: 5). The concept of culture is a highly complex one and is bound up in many different disciplines and aspects of thought. Williams (1983) notes that culture is one of the two or three most complex words of the English Language. He suggests that this is partly because of its ‘intricate historical development’ but also because it has come to be used in several distinct intellectual disciplines and in some ‘distinct and incompatible systems of thought’ (1983: 87).

The complexity of the concept of culture is a maelstrom in terms of considering international students and in some ways it can be misleading and rather unhelpful. Smith notes that culture is an elusive concept that is both ‘slippery’ and ‘chaotic’. He also notes that culture can signify a great deal when it is clearly and coherently defined or can mean little, particularly if it is simply seen as being synonymous with everything ‘social’ (Smith, 2000: 4).

Laying aside the definitions of culture that relate to Art, Music and Literature or what is sometimes known as ‘high culture’ (Smith, 2000: 4), culture is also viewed through the observable behaviour of an individual or group, for example through what the group eats or wears in certain countries. In addition to this, leisure habits, marriage traditions and so on are seen to be symbolic of a community’s culture. However, at times these local practices can be associated with individual personal characteristics, and this is when cultural stereotypes can develop.

A more in-depth view of culture would indicate that it is not just observable behaviour but a system of symbols and meanings that are underpinned by rules, meanings and beliefs that are not always obvious or observable (Oxford and Anderson, 1995). The metaphor of the ‘cultural iceberg’ also suggests that there are many aspects of culture, indeed the majority of its aspects, which are subconscious and invisible, lying below the waterline. Beliefs, perceptions and values, against the more obvious aspects such as clothes and certain behaviour, all make up a complex picture of a concept that is as difficult to observe as it is to define (ibid.). Having said this, there are also key aspects of culture that are observable and recordable, such as language, and which provide profound insights into the culture of the individual and the group.

Definitions of culture indicate that it is structured and learned, and that it changes and develops as groups interact with each other, this change being to some extent a conscious one (Kroeber and Kluckhorn, 1952). Culture is also defined as ‘situated cognition’, which entwines it with activity, setting or context. In this sense culture cannot be detached from learning and indeed culture and context become part of a learning process (Lave and Wenger, 1991). So, from this point of view, the activities and influences of culture cannot be separated from what is learned or known (Oxford and Anderson, 1995).

Culture is seen as knowledge but also as a cognitive model used to perceive and interpret the world around us. Learning culture is similar to learning a language, and, just as language defines our ability to understand and explain what we observe, so culture is a means of framing both propositional (‘know-that’ types of statements) and procedural (‘know-how’ statements) knowledge of that which surrounds us (Duranti, 1997).

Questioning the idea of culture

It is useful to question the idea of culture, as this helps us to rethink some of our ideas about international students. For example the idea of ‘the West’ and ‘the East’ is one that orientates some of our ideas about international students. If the cultural concept of the ‘West’ is questioned it begins to become apparent that this term changes over time and also according to who is using it.

Trouillot notes that the ‘West’ is not a geographical place but a ‘fiction, an exercise in global legitimation’ (2003: 1). In addition to its not actually being located in the West but rather in the North Atlantic, the idea of the ‘West’ has a central focus which shifts to include, or more importantly exclude, certain nations. The ‘West’ can mean America and/or Central Europe and may or may not include Eastern Europe or Latin America. More recently Japan has been included as a ‘Western’ nation, not necessarily because of any shared value system but perhaps for socio-economic reasons.

Trouillot (2003) notes that the idea of the West is a ‘default category’ that works only when it is considered in opposition to an ‘East’, and there is the implication of superiority versus inferiority in these terms (Holliday, 2007a). In other words, th...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• Series Editors’ Preface
• Preface
• Part 1: The Context
• Part 2: The Research
• Part 3: Discussion
• Postscript
• Appendix 1: More Details of the Research Study
• Appendix 2: A Reflective Account of the Researcher
• References
• Index