Foreign students and their experiences - Coursework Example

Download file to see previous pages... The researcher states that foreign students, otherwise known as international students, continue to form a greater percentage of the learning elite in countries with world-renowned educational systems in the West. Over the last one decade, the number of foreign students in the world has more than doubled, and analysts expect the figure to reach about 7 million by the year 2020. Some of the key destinations for international students are the major English speaking countries: UK, US, and Australia, which enrol nearly 1.5 million students every year, according to 2009 statistics. The major sources for the international students are the emerging economies, where improvement in the economic situations in has led to an unprecedented rise in the number of enrolments in western higher learning institutions. Major non-native English speaking source countries for the foreign students are India and China. Given the differences that exist in the English proficiency between non-native and native English speakers, many analysts believe that English proficiency affects the way students relate with their supervisors. A number of factors push the demand for foreign education. Likewise, a combination of issues and challenges are attributable to non-native English students. Besides issues to do with visa acquisitions, student loans, and cultural clashes, foreign non-native students face significant hardships adjusting to the use of native English as the dominant mode of instruction. (Wehrly, 1986). The challenges of non-native speakers and their use of English language defines the premise for this research, with a particular bend on understanding how English language proficiency affects the way students relate to their supervisors. Consequently, the cultural inclinations of native English speaking supervisors with regard to their teaching methods have overarching implication on the process, and effectiveness of learning for non-native English speaking students (De Wit, 2004). With such an intricate interplay of factors the significance of English language use, against a backdrop of other factors forms an area of concern for many researchers on the subject. The goal of this report is to discuss the importance of English language for non-native students in their communications with their supervisors. Literature Review Previous research on the issues on foreign students and their experiences in Western higher learning institutions offer a good backdrop for subsequent research interest on the subject. For instance, Schmitt (2005) observes that non-native English speaking university students have about 10% the English vocabulary native speakers possess. On the other hand, non-native Englis ...Download file to see next pagesRead More