Support for Overseas Students: Tips for Supervisors - University of ...

Support for Overseas Students: Tips for Supervisors
The general problems experienced by all postgraduate students from abroad were highlighted
in Gemma Geoghegan’s 1983 research results in her thesis ‘Non-native Speakers of English
at Cambridge University: Linguistic Difficulties and Social Adjustment.’ More than 20 years
on, overseas students at Cambridge encounter similar linguistic difficulties and often find it
hard (and even at times impossible) to adjust socially. Furthermore, overseas students often
experience the shock of total immersion in an academic culture, which is quite unlike the one
with which they have grown up. All of them (and, in particular the candidates on one-year
courses) are expected to ‘hit the ground running’ alongside peers who are used to the British
University system.
1. Linguistic Difficulties
International students encounter difficulties in all the four language skill areas:
In Listening
• Understanding lectures
• Understanding work instructions
• Following informal conversations
• Understanding regional and foreign accents in English
• Understanding jokes, sarcasm, idiomatic expressions and colloquialisms
In Speaking
• Participating in seminars
• Giving accurate presentations
• Using English in social contexts
• Using jokes, sarcasm, idiomatic expressions and colloquialisms
• Making inquiries
In Writing
• Taking lecture notes
• Writing papers (style, register, conventions; a big problem here is plagiarism)
In Reading
• Understanding reading matter
• Understanding technical terms
• Reading at adequate speed
The Language Centre’s experience of English for Academic Purposes (EAP) courses has
made us more aware of the factors that contribute to the complexity of linguistic and cultural
issues experienced by overseas students. These factors are linked to students’ previous
English experience, their first language and also their cultural background.
• Students’ previous English experience: The students’ background knowledge of
English and cumulative years of English-language instruction 1 are not necessarily
proportional to their performance in the language;
• Students’ first language: Students with non Indo-European language backgrounds,
particularly Asian students, are faced with greater challenges, due to the differences
in the way their first languages are structured in comparison to English;
• Students’ cultural background:
* The way in which students learn English in their own countries affects their
perception of learning strategies (e.g., rote learning, dependency on teacher-led
1 EAP students average 12 years of previous English study, both those who met their English language condition
and those with an outstanding condition
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environments, the development of descriptive skills versus communicative teaching
and critical thionking, etc.)
* Students’ perceptions of social norms as well as concepts of respect,
solidarity, reflection, etc. are affected by how these notions are perceived in
students’ own countries.
2. Social Adjustment
Overseas students are expected to adjust to their new surroundings almost immediately. Quite
apart from having to cope with the course material, they must understand quickly ‘how
Cambridge works’, be able to differentiate knowingly between the function and role of a
college versus a department and grasp confidently their supervisors’ expectations and
departmental demands.
It is important to note that the most common phases of social acculturation follow a similar
pattern to linguistic adjustment, which confirms the view that language and cultural issues
cannot be separated in the establishment of varied avenues of support:
o
o
o
o
o
Phase 1: enthusiastic introduction to a new culture and environment marked by
determination, dedication, energy and high expectations of performance (self and
other), and typically known as the ‘honeymoon stage’;
Phase 2: frustration upon facing the unknown and feelings of uncertainty about how
to interact appropriately; can be marked by a loss of confidence;
Phase 3: pressure to perform and be accepted;
Phase 4: succumbing to the pressures combined with building a certain resistance
against new values, identities, and ways of expressing oneself;
Phase 5: learning to cope and coming to terms with one’s new environment; building
an understanding of the language and environment; building a new language and
cultural identity.
Students who have previously been abroad are less likely to experience phases 2 and 4.
However, all students experience phases 1, 3 and 5.
Problems with social and cultural adjustment can take various forms. A student could have
difficulty making himself or herself understood or in understanding how to participate in
conversations in English. S/he could therefore remain isolated from English native speakers.
In addition, differences in social customs, cultural traditions, ways of interacting with others
and societal values can cause gaps in students’ understanding of their host culture and vice
versa, and possibly lead to other common features of study abroad experiences, such as
homesickness, rejection of the host culture, depression, de-motivation and isolation. These
cultural and social factors influence every aspect of the international students’ daily lives,
from accommodation and dietary needs to their study and social interaction.
Added to these factors is the discrepancy between expectations in the University and students’
own expectations.
3. Expectations in the University
Expectations in the University are high. They come from all corners, departmental and
collegial, parental and self-imposed. These expectations can be explicit or implicit, open or
tacit. Overseas students are expected not only to be high achievers in their respective subjects,
but also to adapt seamlessly to the British educational system in general and Cambridge in
particular. However, there are discrepancies between these expectations and reality.
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Students’ expectations of themselves as learners often encounter difficulties due to:
• Their unrealistically high expectations of themselves upon arrival at Cambridge and
their Supervisors’ and tutors’ high expectations of their rate of progress. This can
hamper their own success and increase their rate of failure.
• Their opinions of their strong and weak areas in English, which may conflict with
reality. For instance, they often believe their writing to be a strength 2 , when, in fact, it
often proves to be a weakness.
There are also discrepancies between students’ test performance and true language ability:
• In certain cultures, where studying to the test is common, students tend to achieve
average to good marks on an English test, but perform at a much lower level in daily life;
• In contrast, a student may perform badly on an English test, but an informal
assessment of academic presentation and writing styles shows a much deeper and
more advanced command of English.
Perhaps the biggest discrepancy is in the widespread assumption in the University that if
students have the English proficiency test required, it means that their level of English is
good enough for them to follow their particular field of study. Even when their level of
English is necessary for their University subject, this does not necessarily mean that it is also
sufficient.
Support is less effective if students themselves are not ‘culturally’ geared to getting the help
and support they might need. Some of our overseas students are not ‘culturally’ programmed
to ‘go and get’ the help and care that is available.
4. EAP
The Language Centre’s English for Academic Purposes programme is designed to meet the
needs of the growing population of incoming postgraduate overseas students to Cambridge
University:
http://www.langcen.cam.ac.uk/courses/courses.php?c=3
The objectives of the summer Pre-sessional course (August-September) are to enable its
participants to:
• follow courses and undertake research at the University;
• become independent within the academic context of the University;
• feel comfortable with the cultures of the University, Cambridge and the UK.
The main course objective of the EAP In-sessional course is to provide continued language
and cultural support to postgraduate overseas students during the academic year. Students
may join the In-sessional programme, either voluntarily or be referred by their Faculty or
College:
http://www.langcen.cam.ac.uk/courses/courses.php?c=14
The In-sessional course is delivered through:
• termly workshops focusing on practical problems and strategies relating to integrated
skills practice and
2 Another concern, particularly amongst students from the Far East, is that of plagiarism. To Japanese or Chinese
students it is a mark of respect to the scholars they read to ‘use’ their writings in a way which does not distinguish
between the scholars’ writings and their own. To our Western ways, this is plagiarism.
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• termly one-to-one or two-to-one supervisions concentrating on individual needs and
the details of academic writing.
• online learning opportunities.
There is also continued self-access support throughout the academic year. Small group
tutorials, a student-initiated online discussion forum, regular informal conversation hours for
sustained oral practice and vocabulary building as well as additional social gatherings enrich
the In-sessional course.
5. Recommendations for supervisors
Although students’ linguistic problems vary, the following are a set of useful tips that EAP
supervisors have found helpful:
1) If a student is suffering from listening difficulties, it is likely that they are focusing
too much on listening word for word. They need to be reminded of the purpose for
listening (i.e. listening for gist versus specific detail)
2) If a student is suffering from reading problems, it is likely that they are reading word
for word. They need to understand that the reading process mirrors the listening
process.
3) If a student is having trouble speaking, it is usually related to their lack of practice
and level of confidence in performing orally in the language.
4) If a student is having trouble with academic writing, it is usually because they have
not developed their command of English for academic writing, both on the levels of
structure and register, especially if they come from an Asian or Eastern European
culture, where a circular rather than linear style of writing prevails. Logical flow and
the gradual build-up of ideas need to be encouraged and papers tackled in manageable
chunks.
In terms of reviewing students’ work, it is in their interest if the supervisor underlines or
highlights grammatical problems and poses questions in the margins, such as ‘what do you
mean here?’, ‘why?’, ‘why is this important?’ and ‘how?’ in early drafts in order to stimulate
the students’ reflective processes and self-editing skills. Later revisions can be commented on
in more detail, once the structure of a paper is clear and the main ideas have been welldefined
by the student him/herself. This process may be pain-staking for the first paper, but
well worth the time saved on later papers, once the student knows ‘how to’ approach an
academic paper in English.
The Language Centre can provide more detailed advice on all the above areas to supervisors
and students. Please contact Nicola Cavaleri by email (nch23@cam.ac.uk) with any questions
or concerns.
Thank you for your support of Cambridge’s overseas students!
Anny King, Executive Director
Nicola Cavaleri, Language Learning Adviser / EAP Director
Language Centre, University of Cambridge
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