The homecoming: an investigation into the effect that studying overseas had on Chinese postgraduates' life and work on their return to China

For over a decade, 50,000 Chinese students have come to study each year in the UK, and the majority of them have since returned and settled back in China. An understanding of their return journey and how relevant their overseas learning is to their home life and work environment is a key to the re‐visioning of the internationalisation of higher education in the UK. Using in‐depth qualitative and narrative interviews carried out in China with eight Chinese postgraduates, this research explores these individuals' overall experience of homecoming, including what motivated them to return, their readjustments to life in China, and their perceptions of the impact of learning from studying overseas on their current life and work in China. This article looks particularly at the change in the graduates' sense of identity. The idea of intercultural identity is developed to explain the phenomenon of these returnees' emerging sense of self, one that is expansive and embraces sources of influence beyond the conventional cultural roots of the individual.     

ePortfolio use by university students in Australia: a review of the Australian ePortfolio Project

In October 2008, the Australian Learning and Teaching Council released the final report for the commissioned project ‘ePortfolio use by university students in Australia: Informing excellence in policy and practice’. The Australian ePortfolio Project represented the first attempt to examine the breadth and depth of ePortfolio practice in the Australian higher education sector. The research activities included: surveys of stakeholder groups in learning and teaching, academic management and human resource management, with respondents representing all Australian universities; a series of focus groups and semi‐structured interviews that sought to explore key issues in greater depth; and surveys designed to capture students’ pre‐course expectations and their post‐course experiences of ePortfolio learning. Further qualitative data was collected through interviews with ‘mature users’ of ePortfolios. Project findings revealed that, while there was a high level of interest in the use of ePortfolios in terms of the potential to help students become reflective learners who were conscious of their personal and professional strengths and weaknesses, the state of play in Australian universities was very fragmented. The project investigation identified four individual, yet interrelated, contexts where strategies may be employed to support and foster effective ePortfolio practice in higher education: government policy; technical standards; academic policy; and learning and teaching. Four scenarios for the future were also presented with the goal of stimulating discussion about opportunities for stakeholder engagement. It is argued that the effective use of ePortfolios requires open dialogue and collaboration between the different stakeholders across this range of contexts.     

Educating students with insecure attachment histories: toward an interdisciplinary theoretical framework

Middle school students with insecure attachment histories present a particular challenge for school personnel. These students frequently cause behavioural disruptions and fail to academically engage in course content. This paper draws from attachment theory, as well as literature in the fields of education, neurobiology and psychology, to establish a theoretical framework for future research on teachers and attachment. The framework illustrates conceptual linkages between research from these academic disciplines to show that teachers can play a role in the rehabilitation of students' internal working models and attachment strategies, especially during this key developmental period.     

The other voices of international higher education: an empirical study of students' perceptions of British university education in China

Against a backdrop of globalised higher education (HE) – one in which a number of British universities are setting up campuses overseas – China represents a vast and lucrative market. This paper presents data on the perceptions and experiences of 20 Chinese students who are currently studying at a British university's campus located in China. Drawing upon theoretical and empirical linkages between the expansion of British HE into overseas markets and neo-colonial (or imperialist) activities, this paper discovers that sociocultural perceptions and ideological constructs such as ‘creativity’ and ‘value’ form a vital basis for the exchange of knowledge in transnational HE.     

Students with disabilities in higher education: a biographical-narrative approach to the role of lecturers

This article presents an analysis of how lecturers respond to students with disabilities, the initial question being: do lecturers aid or hinder students? Findings pertain to a broader research project being developed by a multidisciplinary team employing a non-usual research methodology in higher education (HE) research and students with disabilities: biographical-narrative methodology. The general aim is to analyse – by listening to the students themselves – barriers and support identified as affecting access, academic performance and overall perception of the HE experience. The present paper analyses lecturer-centred data to focus specifically on one of the objectives of our research project: the role that lecturers play in the inclusive education of students with disabilities. Unlike other international research, this article explores the barriers and support differentiating between five fields of knowledge: health sciences, experimental sciences, social sciences (law and education), engineering and technology and humanities. Findings are organized in four topic areas: lecturer attitudes, practices in the classroom, curricular adaptations and faculty training. Key findings are discussed in the conclusions section, together with a discussion of contributions made by earlier studies.     

The flow of international students from a macro perspective: a network analysis

This paper provides a network analysis of the international flow of students among 210 countries and the factors determining the structure of this flow. Among these factors, bilateral hyperlink connections between countries and the number of telephone minutes (communication variables) are the most important predictors of the flow’s structure, followed by trade, the physical distance between countries, a common border between countries and a common language between two countries. The USA is by far the most central country in the flow of international students, followed by China, the UK, France, Germany, Australia and India. These results are discussed in light of World-System Theory. Future research should examine how the network of international student flows changes over time and consider additional factors to provide a better understanding of the network as an international system.     

Student perceptions of communication skills in undergraduate science at an Australian research-intensive university

Higher education institutions globally are acknowledging the need to teach communication skills. This study used the Science Student Skills Inventory to gain insight into how science students perceive the development of communication skills across the degree programme. Responses were obtained from 635 undergraduate students enrolled in a Bachelor of Science at an Australian research-intensive university. Students rated their perceptions of two communication skills, scientific writing and oral scientific communication, across the following indicators: importance of, and improvement in, developing communication skills; the extent to which communication skills were included and assessed in the degree; confidence in using communication skills; and belief of future use of communication skills. While the majority of students perceived both communication skills to be important and of use in the future, their perceptions of the extent to which those skills were included and assessed were less, with oral communication being included and assessed less than scientific writing skills. Significant differences among year levels were discerned for most indicators, signifying a lack of coherent opportunities for students to learn and develop these skills across year levels. Results are discussed through the lens of progressive development of complex learning outcomes, with suggested areas for curriculum development and future research.     

The emergence of contesting motives for student feedback-based evaluation in Australian higher education

Student feedback-based evaluation performs a significant social role in framing perceptions of the quality of teaching in contemporary Australian higher education. Yet its emergence is a relatively recent phenomenon, having only been in widespread application since the mid-1980s. The early manifestations of student feedback-based evaluation came with newly emerging academic development units with a motive to enhance the quality of local teaching and to afford student retention. However, new motives for assailing student feedback evolved with the rapid growth in student numbers, the introduction of student fees and heightened levels of inter-institutional competition for students. As a result, student feedback-based evaluation progressively became also a powerful proxy measure of teaching and curricula quality assurance at an individual, institutional and sectoral level [Blackmore, J. (2009). Academic pedagogies, quality logics and performative universities: Evaluating teaching and what students want. Studies in Higher Education, 34(8), 857–872. doi:10.1080/03075070902898664]. This generated critical tensions between the seminal motive of student feedback around quality improvement, and the rising quality assurances discourses, academic performance management demands and institutional marketing. In this paper, the complex social origins of these competing motives for student feedback-based evaluation in Australian higher education will be explored and analysed. It is argued this provides an important means of understanding the polarising effects of student feedback-based evaluation in Australian universities.     

Negotiating knowledges abroad: non-Western students and the global mobility of knowledge

Taking the Institute for Housing Studies in Rotterdam as a case study, this paper aims to theorise the ways non-Western, international students construct and negotiate knowledges in Western institutions of higher education. It describes the types of knowledges these students identify as characteristic of their learning abroad, distinguishing between the curriculum, knowledge of cultural Others and ‘critical thinking’, and the strategies of incorporation, avoidance and resistance with which students negotiate these knowledges. These knowledges, if contested, are then theorised to facilitate these students’ entry into, and mobility within, globally dispersed epistemic communities.     

Meaningful education for returning-to-school students in a comprehensive upper secondary school in Iceland

Dropout from upper secondary education in Iceland is higher than in the neighboring countries, but varied options to re-enter school have also been on offer. This article focuses on how students, who had returned to a selected upper secondary school after having quit in one or more other schools, benefited from an innovative pedagogical approach used in the school. The article draws upon interviews, in which the interviewees expressed their pleasure with the school, reporting three main assets of its pedagogy: firstly, a supportive school ethos and student–teacher relationships expressed by the ways in which teachers worked, and also in teachers’ views towards students; secondly, an online learning platform, used by all teachers, which the students could use to structure their studies; and thirdly, the use of formative assessment and no final end-of-term examinations. This pedagogy comprises a whole school approach, and the article concludes that such a school culture and practice enables teenagers and young adults to exercise their right to re-enter academic upper secondary education, which prepares for college, rather than directing them to an industry vocational or practical study program they take little or no interest in.     

Cultivating relationships with school placement stakeholders: the perspective of the cooperating teacher

The aim of this paper is to analyse Irish school placement cooperating teachers’ supervisory experiences when involved in various structures of communities and explore factors which enabled or challenged them in cultivating relationships with school placement stakeholders where there is no formal system of supervision established in schools in the Republic of Ireland. Describing learning as a social process, research implies the significance of the development of relationships, membership within communities and identity construction. Using a qualitative approach, it was found that by formally engaging in a supervisory process, cooperating teachers experienced each of these characteristics to varying extents resulting in different supervisory experiences. The different configurations of membership allowed cooperating teachers to contribute towards school placement collaboration.     

Talking of students: Tensions and contradictions for the manager-academic and the university in contemporary higher education

The paper examines data on references tostudents made by manager-academics in 16 UKuniversities whilst giving accounts of theircareers and practices, and reflecting onaspects of the current roles and priorities ofhigher education institutions. The issuesraised are of wider interest than the UK, sincethe contradictory pressures of teaching andresearch and learning versus seeking newsources of funding are common to highereducation in many countries. The focus andmethodology of the Economic and Social ResearchCouncil funded project on which the paper isbased are outlined, before discussing how thetheoretical interests of the project relate tothe student, the ways in which the student is asignificant aspect of current higher educationpolicies, and the contested status and identityof the student in higher education discourseand research. The changing nature of thestudent population, the relationship betweenmanager-academics' concerns with the studentand their institutional context, their majorpreoccupations in their roles, and how thesepreoccupations relate to level of seniority inmanagement are also considered. We concludethat whilst current UK higher education policyemphasises the student, responses atinstitutional and individual levels focus onorganisational, resource and time implicationsof the student body, rather than the studenthim/herself. Furthermore, it is noted thatsenior manager-academics roles tend to removetheir incumbents from contact with students. It is suggested that manager-academics needboth more contact with students and moreunderstanding of their situation andconcerns.     

高等院校师范生技能培养策略

教学改革是一个全面的系统工程,使高等院校师范生的技能培养变得更为重要。作为未来的教育者,在学生期间的教育技能培养将影响其未来的教育方式和方法。因此本文探讨师范生技能培养策略,重点围绕现代教育技术的培养,根据对师范生的要求,提出了相关策略以供同行参考。     

Learning with and from: positioning school students as advisors in pre-service teacher education

This article reports on an innovative pedagogical approach within the Learning Partnerships program in which school students help to ‘teach the teachers’ within pre-service teacher education. Classes of school students join with classes of pre-service teachers to provide input on how teachers can enhance school students’ engagement and wellbeing. The article draws on data collected from 125 students (aged 13–16) and 120 pre-service teachers in these workshops. Findings generated from a mixed methods study combining pre-workshop focus groups (n = Students: 38, Teachers: 33) and post-workshop focus groups (n = Students: 69, Teachers: 15) and post-workshop surveys (n = Students: 96; Teachers: 101) demonstrated that the workshops were mutually beneficial for both students and pre-service teachers. Participants found that workshopping together enhanced their belief in the possibility of positive student–teacher relationships. The pre-service teachers reported greater confidence in communicating with young people about the issues that affect student engagement and wellbeing. The school students reported that they were more willing to use teachers as a source of help. Implications include the need for increased attention to a ‘third space’ for learning in teacher development which provides opportunity for learning with and from young people about how to foster their engagement and wellbeing.     

The role of feedback in cross-cultural learning: a case study of Chinese taught postgraduate students in a UK university

Insufficient attention has been given to the role of cultural differences in feedback communication with the UK’s increasingly internationalised student body. This issue is particularly significant for international students taking short – one-year – postgraduate taught courses and we illustrate this in a study of Chinese students at a UK university. We draw on Holliday’s notion of ‘small cultures’ and Berry’s model of cultural adaptation to analyse how they perceive, react to and gradually adapt to the provision of formative feedback as a key aspect of the new academic culture. Our data reveal that such feedback presents the students with cognitive challenges and psychological and emotional struggles, especially in the early months of their courses. Avoiding culturally essentialist explanations for this, we focus on differences in the ‘small cultures’ of academia in China and the UK. Feedback is not only a part of the new academic culture itself, but can act as a bridge between norms, rules and practices of the two cultures. This bridge is often poorly constructed. Tutors need to be more aware of the nature and sources of stress that such students face and to which feedback may often be adding rather than contributing to enhanced learning.     

大学本科低年级学生实行班级导生制的思考

从当代大学的特点、大学本科学生管理工作所面临的实际情况等方面,分析了当前我国大学本科学校低年级学生实行班级导生制的必要性和紧迫性,结合自身实际工作情况阐述了导生的选拔和培养、导生的工作定位及工作内容、导生的工作考评及奖惩措施等问题,对导生中存在的问题和如何解决提出了自己的观点;导生工作需更上一个层次,需进一步锏度化、权威化,导生综合素质有待进一步提升,需加强引导和指导导生处理好与所导班级学生干部的关系及自身学习与导生工作的关系.     

浅析中国学生社团组织对营造大学国际化氛围的积极作用

中外学生广泛交流营造国际化校园环境,对加速大学国际化进程,培养具有全球意识且适应性强的国际化人才,能起到积极作用。本文从教育国际化应积极“面向国内”的视角,分析了中国学生社团组织在中外学生跨文化交流活动中无可替代的角色和积极作用,并提出今后在交流层面与水平上不断扩展、提高的一些思路。     

When the demand for educational equality stops at the border: wealthy students,international students and the restructuring of higher education in the UK

In the context of the increasing internationalisation of higher education, there is a pressing need to think through how demands for educational equality and justice, that currently tend to be framed at the national and sub-national level, should be conceptualised at a global level. This article compares two recent media and policy debates in the UK, over admitting wealthy students off-quota to university and restricting international student visas, in order to demonstrate the contradictions that are created when demands for educational equality stop at the national border. Based on a discussion of these debates, the article calls for the principle of educational equality to be extended outwards, beyond the national border, to apply to domestic and international students alike.