Communication with Chinese International Students: Understanding Chinese International Students’ learning difficulties and communication barriers

The problems of communication with Chinese international students are reported in many academic publications related to international students in higher education in the UK. Majority of these problems links to teaching and learning activities: Chinese international students are quiet in classroom, not active in group discussion or group work, and passive in tutorials etc. Such problems not only cause misunderstandings between Chinese international students and their tutors but also have negative influence on their learning outcome. This article is based on an empirical study on Chinese international students’ learning experience in University of Huddersfield. 34 Chinese international students from foundation to PhD participate in focus group discussion and personal interview. The participants generally have learning difficulties to some degree, which associate to their communication problems. English proficiency is not a primary factor cause their learning difficulties. External and internal communication and cultural barriers are the key factors behind Chinese international students learning difficulties. The findings of the research can help academic tutors in higher education understand where the communication problems with Chinese international students come from and how to resolve these problems.