International students, who study a foreign language abroad, experience more adversities than their domestic peers. The social challenges they face include problems with immigration status, isolation, difficulty speaking a new language, and learning unfamiliar customs. There is limited research focused on the coping strategies of these individuals. A growing body of research suggests storytelling may provide an important role in promoting resilience, defined as an individual's ability to bounce back or recover from stress. The study investigated possible relationships between experiencing storytelling as a child and adult resilience. The sample consisted of 21 international college students studying Chinese or English. Students were examined with a survey, a narrative interview, and the brief resilience scale. Data were analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively. The quantitative results produced significant correlations between resilience scores and the survey scores for adults who reported using storytelling in their own teaching of a second language to peers and children. Qualitative results identified five protective factors for resilience:(1) social competence, (2) problem-solving skills, (3) autonomy, (4) sense of purpose, and (5) use of storytelling. Implications of the findings for research and intervention are discussed.
Numerous qualitative studies, mostly with English speaking Westerners, have shown the important role of storytelling and values in promoting resilience. However, this quantitative study helps fill the gaps in the research, by investigating the mediator effects of storytelling on values and resilience of American, German, Chinese, and Vietnamese prospective teachers. The study, using path analysis, investigated how cultural differences influenced perceptions about storytelling, resilience and values. Open to change values of stimulation, self-direction, hedonism and universalism had the largest associations in the Final Model. The results of the multiple group analyses showed that the Final Model path estimates were invariant across cultural groups, but the error variances of the mean values were not invariant. Individual differences accounted for the variance more than cultural differences. The implications for educators, desiring to leverage literacy instruction with storytelling, are discussed.
Accumulating evidence suggests that storytelling may be related to personal values and provide an important role in promoting resilience. Western (American and German) and Eastern (Chinese and Vietnamese) college students (total n = 845) were asked to respond to survey items on two predictors (storytelling experiences and value preferences) and the outcome resilience. Correlational analysis established significant relationships among storytelling, values, and resilience. The t-test comparisons of Eastern vs. Western mean scores indicated significant cultural differences for storytelling and values, but not resilience. Structural equation modeling found a significant path from storytelling through values to resilience. The final model revealed that college students of Western countries who reported having significant childhood experiences of storytelling preferred openness to change values such as Benevolence, Self-direction, and Stimulation. The results were discussed in terms of the conceptual context. ARTICLE HISTORY
Storytelling has been described as the oldest technique in second language (L2) learning. Neuroscientists contend that our minds are literally wired to comprehend best the world through narrative. Researchers have claimed that the benefits of storytelling in teaching and studying second languages include increased development of language skills, improved comprehension and classroom interaction. L2 Chinese acquisition is a relatively new area of study with scant research. This survey research explored how storytelling was used in teaching Chinese as a second/foreign language (CSL/FL) in China. Participants were 15 CSL/FL instructors and 30 adult learners enrolled at the School of Chinese Language in Shaanxi Normal University, (Xi'an, China). Participants took a teacher or student survey about their interests, the practice, benefits, and challenges of doing storytelling in the CSL/FL classroom. Results of the survey indicated that the participants were interested in storytelling because of the perceived benefits of language learning, comprehension, community building, and multi-cultural understanding. This article provides guidelines and recommends resources for using storytelling as an educational strategy in the adult CSL/FL classroom.
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