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

are synthesised with new experiences in order to construct new knowledge, skills and beliefs.
Social interaction is integral to this process of construction. HEIs can play a vital role in
facilitating this interaction with a view to enabling Chinese students to acquire a deeper
understanding of UK culture and of higher education practices. The conceptual underpinning
for the following discussion of the implications and recommendations is shown in Figure 9.2.
Context of origin
Space for institutional
support
Context of destination
Figure 9.2: Conceptual justification for recommendations
Chinese students come from a context of origin where learning is associated with
dependency, while their context of destination in the UK emphasises independent learning. In
order to help transform these Chinese students‘ learning, there is the need for a space in
between – a space of learning. This involves developing a ‗third place‘ between the context
of origin and context of destination and between the international students and HEIs. In order
to develop this ‗third place‘, each party should value and appreciate each other‘s learning
context. This ‗third place‘ is where students‘ experiences of learning are formed and
developed and where HEIs need to provide student support.
Based on the theoretical framework and the findings of this study, a number of implications
are identified in relation to organisational structures and professional practices. The
implications for UK HEIs are profound in providing quality support to international students.
The findings of the study suggest the need for language support, academic and pedagogical
support, and student support at the institutional level. Most UK HEIs have the basic range of
support in place. However, it is worth questioning whether the support provision currently
available has met the specific needs of Chinese students. The second set of implications,
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