InTALKnational Analysis
This winter OISS sponsored a welcome back dinner that offered a free space for international students to voice their opinions, and for us, the International Student Advisory Board, to collect data. Our research project provided a base to collect opinions and information that will help us better serve the international student community and address their needs in the coming year. Our main focus is and has always been, analyzing the climate for international students on campus and finding ways to improve it. In this paper I will mainly talk about the commonalities I have found between the responses we collected and the academic data that already exists on the topic.
In Kagan and Cohen’s research article “Cultural Adjustment of International Students” they draw a similar conclusion to our data from the InTALKnational event. They state that “ethnicity involves conscious and unconscious processes that fulfill a deep psychological need for security, identity, and a sense of historical continuity.” We asked questions like, “Describe a meaningful social experience at UCSB?” and “Describe personal strengths you wish domestic students would see in you? Is there a cultural form of communication you miss expressing at UCSB? If so, please describe.” The vast majority of responses collected can be coded into one of the “psychological needs” from Kagan and Cohen’s article.
A natural need for community, expressed as security in Kagan and Cohen’s work, was expressed by international students’ tendency to list organizations, roommates and social cohorts as entities that made them feel welcomed or part of the community. Identity was expressed in a smaller quantity than we had initially anticipated but can be seen by the correlation of a students interests and ethnicity in the groups they chose to join. Lastly, historical continuity, in my analysis, is best described in our study by language and cultural differences. Many students expressed language skills as either an inhibitor or as something they wished domestic students would see in them, therefore expressing a cultural difference. As expressed in responses that stated comments such as “I’m not shy, mean or unfriendly”, students expressed the difficulty of speaking English as an inhibitor that made it hard to connect with other students in conversation. Which leads to support that “fluency in the English language may influence cultural adjustment in the United States” (Kagan and Cohen, 133). Naturally communication in a foreign language is a difficult and trying task. International students go above and beyond, not only by learning the course material, but also by undertaking it in a language that is most often not their first language.
Some resources such as CLAS already exist on our campus but there is room for advancements in opportunities to learn and perfect a skill that may be essential for success in this community. In Higher Education, “International Students: a Vulnerable Student Population,” a social student group is recommended to “enhance the links between international students and other students on campus, potentially focusing on informal social interactions and improving the verbal communication skills of international students” (Sherry, Mark, et al.). This recommendation is based on a study of international students at The University of Toledo. In reference to our efforts, implementation of a social group has begun with international hour at Woodstock’s but could be developed further into a club that meets more regularly and requires international leadership.
In summary, much of the data collected at InTALKnational aligns with previous studies and leaves room for change and improvement in resources offered to enhance international students’ experiences at UCSB.
Kagan, Henya, and Jo Cohen. “Cultural Adjustment of International Students.” Psychological Science, vol. 1, no. 2, 1990, pp. 133–137. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/40062598.
Sherry, Mark, et al. “International Students: a Vulnerable Student Population.” Higher Education, vol. 60, no. 1, 2010, pp. 33–46. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/40784044.
In Kagan and Cohen’s research article “Cultural Adjustment of International Students” they draw a similar conclusion to our data from the InTALKnational event. They state that “ethnicity involves conscious and unconscious processes that fulfill a deep psychological need for security, identity, and a sense of historical continuity.” We asked questions like, “Describe a meaningful social experience at UCSB?” and “Describe personal strengths you wish domestic students would see in you? Is there a cultural form of communication you miss expressing at UCSB? If so, please describe.” The vast majority of responses collected can be coded into one of the “psychological needs” from Kagan and Cohen’s article.
A natural need for community, expressed as security in Kagan and Cohen’s work, was expressed by international students’ tendency to list organizations, roommates and social cohorts as entities that made them feel welcomed or part of the community. Identity was expressed in a smaller quantity than we had initially anticipated but can be seen by the correlation of a students interests and ethnicity in the groups they chose to join. Lastly, historical continuity, in my analysis, is best described in our study by language and cultural differences. Many students expressed language skills as either an inhibitor or as something they wished domestic students would see in them, therefore expressing a cultural difference. As expressed in responses that stated comments such as “I’m not shy, mean or unfriendly”, students expressed the difficulty of speaking English as an inhibitor that made it hard to connect with other students in conversation. Which leads to support that “fluency in the English language may influence cultural adjustment in the United States” (Kagan and Cohen, 133). Naturally communication in a foreign language is a difficult and trying task. International students go above and beyond, not only by learning the course material, but also by undertaking it in a language that is most often not their first language.
Some resources such as CLAS already exist on our campus but there is room for advancements in opportunities to learn and perfect a skill that may be essential for success in this community. In Higher Education, “International Students: a Vulnerable Student Population,” a social student group is recommended to “enhance the links between international students and other students on campus, potentially focusing on informal social interactions and improving the verbal communication skills of international students” (Sherry, Mark, et al.). This recommendation is based on a study of international students at The University of Toledo. In reference to our efforts, implementation of a social group has begun with international hour at Woodstock’s but could be developed further into a club that meets more regularly and requires international leadership.
In summary, much of the data collected at InTALKnational aligns with previous studies and leaves room for change and improvement in resources offered to enhance international students’ experiences at UCSB.
Works Cited
Sherry, Mark, et al. “International Students: a Vulnerable Student Population.” Higher Education, vol. 60, no. 1, 2010, pp. 33–46. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/40784044.
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