The challenge of academic writing for Chinese students within ...

having them completed as soon as possible and have sufficient time to prepare.
Normally they start to write the report three days before the deadline, which
makes me very nervous. I would normally start to write 15 days earlier. (Ridi,
interview)
English language competence is often thought to be the biggest challenge for international
students to communicate with UK students. However, in this study, participants stated that
the lack of shared common topics were more an issue than the language. Many Chinese
students found that they did not share similar interests and topics with UK students. For
instance, they reported that sometimes local students liked to watch TV dramas but the
Chinese students did not find these programmes very interesting. Another instance that was
often referenced was the British drinking culture among home students which Chinese
students did not cherish. For them, drinking was simply not encouraged in their prior
education and culture. It is not suggesting there is no drinking culture in China. In their home
country, it is a different kind of drinking culture related to enjoying a good meal and being
hospitable, with grain spirits rather than beer.
I have found that we Chinese students have very different interests from UK
students. There is a lack of shared interests and topics between us. As a result,
it‘s not easy to start up a conversation with home students. (Holly, interview)
In my experience, home students are happy to communicate with you but this
communication is limited. For example, if there is a shared topic, we will then be
able to have a decent conversation. However, if they change to another topic
with cultural conditions, I will then be speechless because I don‘t know much
about the topic. Let me give you an example. When they talk about the best bar
and best drink in the town, I will know nothing about it. You know as a Chinese
student, we don‘t have a drinking and bar crawling culture. I think difficulties of
communicating with home students lie in the cultural difference rather than
linguistic issues. (Max, interview)
Culture differences were the main factor in this study that deterred Chinese students from
getting to know UK students well. For many Chinese students, study was always given top
priority during their time in the UK. In the interview, Mia observed a different attitude
towards studying between Chinese students and home students. She believed that many
British students would rather enjoy themselves first and think about study later. It was
difficult for her to accept this based on her culture and education values. She did not endorse
or want to adapt to this particular aspect of British culture. However, she thought it was worth
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