Student Engagement for Sustainability of Chinese International Education: The Case of International Undergraduate Students in China
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. China Context: International Student Expansion and Quality Concerns
3. Student Engagement and HE Quality Assurance
4. Environmental Factors Influencing Student Engagement
5. The Studies
6. Findings
6.1. Study 1: Exploratory Qualitative Research
- 1.
- Participants reported that host teachers were knowledgeable but failed to adequately deliver their knowledge to students. Much criticism was on traditional, didactic lecturing and that teacher was the only dominant figure in classrooms, tending to cram in the information. Participants reported that they interacted with teachers less often than they had expected or less often than they had been used to interacting with home teachers:
“… in Canada we had to do like group assignments, we had to do lab reports, it was a good mixture. Whereas here it’s more like the teacher tells you exactly what he’s teaching you and you just listen…”
- 2.
- While all participants reported few teacher-student interactions in class, some found teachers were not approachable outside the class. Most students attributed the lack of teacher-student interaction to the language barrier, reporting that the majority of their teachers had inadequate English proficiency. Some, however, perceived that teachers lacked the willingness to listen to, communicate with, or “include” international students in teaching:
“… I call my teacher. They don’t even pick up the phone. Why does that happen? One thing that came to me is that the teachers don’t want to see me or they just find it troublesome”.(Malaysian student)
- 3.
- With the weak teacher-student interaction, participants stressed the importance of the learning support from other students, particularly more experienced co-national senior students. As one said in his third-year study, “… many times they [freshmen] come to me for advice, not about Chinese, but general stuff, the medical course” (Pakistani student).
- 4.
- Dissatisfied with teaching, one participant reported that going to class was “just for the sake of, you know, attendance” (Pakistani student). Some purchased international textbooks and challenged themselves to learn subject knowledge through self-study. Many adopted the examination-oriented learning approach, studying primarily before examinations. These students were also found to study to meet minimal course requirements, i.e., handing in homework, memorizing what had been crammed in lectures, and passing examinations:
“Back home we don’t cram. You understand and you write what you understand... Here, [memorizing lecturers’ Power Point] slides, and then exactly the way it is in the slides. Before exam, we need it… just memorising everything”.(Malaysian student)
- 5.
- Much severe criticism was on course administrators, whose attitudes were often described as bureaucratic and indifferent. The negative interactions with non-academic staff resulted in frustration and a feeling of being hurt, which in turn affected students’ learning:
“I see a problem, I call four times. She [administrator] said, “OK, I’ll send someone”. She doesn’t send anyone”.(Tanzanian student)
“… XXX [administrator] used to tell us that we have to come to the office to register this and that. … We have classes from 8:00 in the morning until 9:00 in the evening. When you skip the class to go to the office, he would come and check attendance, and we are absent. When we explain to him, he is like ‘it’s not my problem’”.(Zimbabwean student)
6.2. Study 2: Quantitative Survey
6.2.1. Descriptive statistics
6.2.2. SEM Analysis
6.2.3. Student Engagement: Comparing Discipline and Institutional Differences
7. Summary and Discussion
8. Limitations
9. Conclusions
Author Contributions
Funding
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Scale | χ2 | df | P | RMSEA | CFI | TLI |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Student engagement | 2412.894 | 269 | P < 0.001 | 0.075 | 0.889 | 0.876 |
Classroom learning environment | 5246.248 | 830 | P < 0.001 | 0.061 | 0.908 | 0.899 |
Campus climate | 764.099 | 64 | P < 0.001 | 0.088 | 0.949 | 0.938 |
Category | Frequency | % |
---|---|---|
Gender | ||
Male | 750 | 52.5 |
Female | 663 | 46.4 |
Missing | 15 | 1.1 |
Total | 1428 | 100.0 |
Continent | ||
Asia | 999 | 70.0 |
Africa | 321 | 22.5 |
Other (Europe, America, and Oceania) | 85 | 6.0 |
Missing | 23 | 1.6 |
Total | 1428 | 100.0 |
Discipline | ||
Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences | 281 | 19.7 |
Sciences and Engineering | 147 | 10.3 |
Life sciences and medicine | 965 | 67.6 |
Missing | 35 | 2.4 |
Total | 1428 | 100.0 |
Institution | ||
Double-first-class university | 445 | 31.2 |
Non-double-first-class university | 983 | 68.8 |
Total | 1428 | 100.0 |
Scale | Factor | Number of Items | Example Item | α | Mean | SD |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
SE | AU | 9 | I explained methods, ideas or concepts and used them to solve problems. | 0.919 | 3.57 | 1.09 |
MAC | 6 | I asked insightful questions in class. | 0.856 | 3.52 | 1.13 | |
IF | 5 | I talked with the teachers outside of class about issues and concepts instructed in teaching. | 0.847 | 2.92 | 1.13 | |
LE (reverse-coded) | 4 | I skipped class. | 0.862 | 4.87 | 1.01 | |
EE | 4 | I worked on learning project outside of class. | 0.807 | 3.54 | 1.10 | |
CLE | TS | 6 | Teachers always try their best to help. | 0.931 | 4.27 | 1.04 |
PC | 4 | My course-mates and I compete with each other in learning. | 0.769 | 4.21 | 0.96 | |
CL | 6 | My course-mates and I help each other in learning. | 0.915 | 4.40 | 0.93 | |
CO | 5 | The programme is well organised. | 0.918 | 4.00 | 1.05 | |
TI | 4 | Teaching methods are diverse and flexible. | 0.896 | 3.92 | 1.10 | |
SA | 4 | I have the freedom to choose what I would like to study. | 0.821 | 3.98 | 1.05 | |
DL | 5 | It is difficult for me to understand what is taught in class. | 0.889 | 3.54 | 1.08 | |
IS | 4 | Teaching has inspired my enthusiasm for further learning. | 0.927 | 4.11 | 0.98 | |
CC | RD | 5 | The campus atmosphere is safe. | 0.932 | 4.15 | 1.00 |
GA | 8 | Students with my ethnic background are respected on campus. | 0.905 | 4.30 | 0.98 |
Factor | Group | N | M | SD | F/t | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
AU | Discipline | AHSS | 260 | 3.37 | 0.95 | 6.607 *** |
SEng | 130 | 3.59 | 1.05 | |||
LMed | 899 | 3.64 | 1.11 | |||
Institution | DFU | 903 | 3.57 | 1.07 | −0.129 | |
Non-DFU | 415 | 3.58 | 1.12 | |||
Discipline × institution | 0.210 | |||||
MAC | Discipline | AHSS | 259 | 3.43 | 0.97 | 2.478 |
SEng | 132 | 3.69 | 1.21 | |||
LMed | 890 | 3.54 | 1.16 | |||
Institution | DFU | 896 | 3.50 | 1.12 | −1.068 | |
Non-DFU | 413 | 3.57 | 1.16 | |||
Discipline × institution | 2.545 | |||||
IF | Discipline | AHSS | 265 | 2.96 | 1.00 | 1.902 |
SEng | 132 | 3.09 | 1.15 | |||
LMed | 914 | 2.89 | 1.16 | |||
Institution | DFU | 919 | 2.89 | 1.12 | −1.795 | |
Non-DFU | 420 | 3.01 | 1.16 | |||
Discipline × institution | 0.164 | |||||
LE | Discipline | AHSS | 267 | 4.68 | 0.96 | 20.770 *** |
SEng | 135 | 4.49 | 1.16 | |||
LMed | 894 | 4.98 | 0.97 | |||
Institution | DFU | 910 | 4.93 | 0.95 | 3.208 *** | |
Non-DFU | 413 | 4.73 | 1.11 | |||
Discipline × institution | 1.010 | |||||
EE | Discipline | AHSS | 256 | 3.22 | 0.98 | 14.469*** |
SEng | 133 | 3.61 | 1.21 | |||
LMed | 869 | 3.64 | 1.11 | |||
Institution | DFU | 881 | 3.56 | 1.08 | 0.854 | |
Non-DFU | 405 | 3.51 | 1.16 | |||
Discipline × institution | 1.211 |
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Tian, M.; Lu, G.; Yin, H.; Li, L. Student Engagement for Sustainability of Chinese International Education: The Case of International Undergraduate Students in China. Sustainability 2020, 12, 6831. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12176831
Tian M, Lu G, Yin H, Li L. Student Engagement for Sustainability of Chinese International Education: The Case of International Undergraduate Students in China. Sustainability. 2020; 12(17):6831. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12176831
Chicago/Turabian StyleTian, Mei, Genshu Lu, Hongbiao Yin, and Lijie Li. 2020. "Student Engagement for Sustainability of Chinese International Education: The Case of International Undergraduate Students in China" Sustainability 12, no. 17: 6831. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12176831