International Student Struggles - American Classroom Readiness

In this ever-shrinking world, culturally diverse classrooms are becoming more of the norm than the exception.  In many U.S. schools, domestic enrollment is shrinking and universities are turning recruiting efforts beyond the border.  As schools approach this shift, and those who have been doing so for some time evaluate their progress, they are finding that international students can bring with them unique challenges that the institution might not be prepared to address.

For years, the TOEFL test has been the standard in English proficiency for international students.  There are other tests that have come along, including the IELTS, ITEP, Cambridge, PTE, and many more.  The goal of each of these tests has been to attempt to provide some indicator of college readiness.  Unfortunately, I believe that all of them have fallen short.  College readiness is not merely an issue of how many vocabulary words a student knows.  For even American students, the transition to college is very difficult for most—class sizes are different, assignments are much harder, collaboration and group projects are more the norm, and the transition into more of the “real world” can be overwhelming.  If it’s tough for American students, imagine how difficult it is for an international student whose first language is not English and whose culture does not sync with expectations in the American classroom.

For students coming from China, the thought of disagreeing with a teacher or fellow student may never even cross their mind.  They have been taught from a young age to listen to and respect the teacher, take good notes, memorize everything the teacher says, regurgitate it on a test, move on to the next unit, rinse and repeat.  In India, students are never taught that copying someone else’s work is not acceptable in America.  Plagiarism isn’t frowned upon.

Many schools that began accepting international students years ago are learning some of these differences the hard way.  They have dozens (or hundreds) of international students that are experiencing more difficulties than anticipated, and administrators don’t know how to address the issue.  So, they stop accepting students from one or more countries.  They shut off the very life-blood that can keep them going in tough times when enrollment goals are increasingly difficult to meet.  Contraction is not the answer.  Thoughtful and increased expansion is.

Brigham Young University has been accepting international students for many years.  About a year ago, when we first approached them to discuss their current international student situation, we discovered that many programs were afraid to accept international students.  Teachers spent too much time teaching English instead of teaching the subject they were hired to teach.  TA’s were inundated with requests from international students to help them just barely scrape by.  Teachers wondered how an international student sat in the corner of the class and didn’t participate, but somehow was getting good test grades.  The university wanted to be able to accept international students and know that they would be successful in the classroom.

After discovering these issues, we worked with BYU to develop a course to address the problem.  We consulted with teachers and students alike to discover what they felt were the things that international students struggled with most.  These included:

• How to function in a fast-paced English speaking classroom environment
• How to give a proper class presentation
• How to approach job interviews (for work opportunities during school and with recruiters that visited the programs)
• How to respectfully disagree with a teacher or fellow student
• How to work in groups or on group projects

The American Classroom Readiness (ACR) Course was born.  After students pass the TOEFL, IELTS, or some other English proficiency test and have been accepted to the university, they enroll in the ACR course, which is taken during the summer from their home country.  The delivery of the product is online, with the help of North American coaches that work through English3’s proprietary platform.  Throughout the course, students are presented with real life college material--whether it be an essay, an article, or a video of a classroom discussion--are given prompts, and then are asked to record videos of themselves performing college level tasks.  As they do so, they begin to feel what it’s like to participate in an American classroom.  

When it comes down to it, most of the struggles international students face have to do with participation.  They don’t participate because they are afraid their English isn’t good enough, they don’t know if they’re allowed to, or they fear that no one cares what they have to say.  After submitting over 50 videos on their own, responding to other students in the platform, and working through the ACR course, students show up to school ready to go on Day 1.  Having participated on the English3 platform and in the ACR course, when they sit down in their first real-life classroom, they keep on raising their hand!  They now understand that their opinion is valued, their teachers and classmates appreciate their international perspective, and we are all excited to have them with us here in the United States.

English3 has prepared thousands of individuals around the world to succeed in this global economy by teaching them English.  We have partnered with dozens of schools to improve the transition of international students from their home country to ours.  Every school has unique needs.  BYU’s experience is just one among many, and each campus will present its own challenges and opportunities.  We are re-defining the international student transition into the US, and we believe that a refresh is long overdue.  

Visit http://www.english3.com/education to learn more.