Responsible education: what engages international postgraduate students – evidence from UK

Abstract

Purpose Responsive educational approaches focus on a set of well-designed practices intended to create engaging, social cohesion, better knowledge outcomes and excellent students’ experience. Therefore, this paper aims to engage in the discourse of the intersection of psych-sociology of learning and student’s engagement, connected to the sense of belonging and theory of planned behaviour (TPB). Design/methodology/approach By applying an ethnographic approach and interviews of 45 international students from three UK business schools, it proposes that a sense of “belongingness” is a prerequisite for learning, personal and professional development. Owing to the exploratory nature of the subject, the use of qualitative methodology turned out to be particularly useful. Indeed, the conduct of in-depth semi-structured interviews, participative observation enabled us to access perceptions of students and compare different points of view. Findings The findings indicate that international students measure their experience by “sense of belonging”, integration and engagement on many interrelated and influential factors. English proficiency and employability skills are the major concerns. The kinds of support they received from their faculties and the quality of feedback from tutors are important for international studies integration and sense of belonging. Originality/value The findings of the critical elements of the engagement and experience of international students have both policy and practical implications given the high demand for UK universities by foreign students. Although, this paper is based on findings from UK higher education institutions, the insights are of relevance to many countries such as Australia, Canada, Germany, France and the USA, who have a significant proportion of overseas students.

Classroom Experiences of International Students in Canadian Postsecondary Education

“…To start, similar to many past studies (Alqudayri & Gounko, 2018;Bai & Wang, 2022a;Gomes, 2020;Heng, 2018;Hu & Gao, 2021;Igwe et al, 2020;Jackson & Chen, 2018;Ma, 2022;Ogunsanya et al, 2018;Tang et al, 2018), this research reinforces the idea many international students feel ostracized during classroom discussions, because international students need time to articulate their thoughts in English. As well, many past studies document that international students struggle with foreign English accents and/or local accents (Bai & Wang, 2022a;Gomes, 2022;Heng, 2018;Jiang & Altinyelkan, 2022;Lindner & Margetts, 2022;Matsunaga et al, 2021;McGarvey et al, 2021;Ploner, 2018).…”

“…A common challenge encountered by many international students enrolled in Western institutions is English language proficiency (Alqudayri & Gounko, 2018;Bai & Wang, 2022a;Gomes, 2020;Heng, 2018;Hu & Gao, 2021;Igwe et al, 2020;Jackson & Chen, 2018;Ma, 2022;Ogunsanya et al, 2018;Tang et al, 2018). Tavares (2021) explained that multilingualism is tied to successfully navigating within diverse social contexts and via dynamic communicative practices.…”

Editors' Critical Introduction: Conceptions of Internationalisation Challenging Dominant Knowledge Traditions

“…Arar, Beycioglu and Oplatka (2016) examine differences in its social construction in Turkey and Israel, demonstrating that both similarities of conception and practice exist and at the same time there are differences in the structures of systems, where authority is located, how roles are conceived, and sources of the ethics of social justice in different religions. There are also student supports necessary for many foreign students in the West, found by Igwe et al (2020) to consist of using techniques and approaches of integration and engagement that produces a sense of belonging that they require for a more successful postgraduate experience.…”

How to Publish Like Artificial Intelligence and Obey the Rules of the Game?

“…Has the researcher considered the risks associated with the study and how was the risks mitigated? These are critical rules that must be followed by researchers (see, e.g., a qualitative research article by Nwajiuba et al, 2020;Igwe et al, 2020aIgwe et al, , 2020b and quantitative research article by Okolie et al, 2021).…”

“…More so, many universities now place much emphasis on the provision of excellent teaching and learning more than a focus on research excellence. Moreover, there is now a shift towards "marketizing" in higher education (see, e.g., Mogaji, Maringe, & Hinson, 2020) with a strong focus on students' teaching and learning experience (Staddon & Standish, 2013;Igwe et al, 2020b).…”