I NTERNATIONAL S TUDENTS : ONE SIZE DOES NOT FIT ALL Mr Phil Lewis – Coventry University Dr Gill Cooke – Coventry University

The Aim This paper presents the results of a comparative study that investigated the prior learning experience of groups of international students and evaluated the student expectation within an activity based UK Higher Education Institution.

The Problems Large cohort of international students Short block teaching method Poor student attendance Little staff/student interaction Many issues masked due to format

Delivery Method Restructured Long and thin delivery format Adjustment of formal lecture sessions Introduction of Activity Led Learning Development of Passport system Introduction of a cross section of different assessment methods

Passport to Learning During the Quality journey you will need to bring a passport to gain entry onto HMS M29EKM. You will be told exactly what the passport is! No passport then NO ENTRY into the classroom!

Passport for week Three You are required to bring a hard copy of ISO9001:2008 to week three seminar. Review ISO9001:2008 and detail the clauses which relate to you as a student at Coventry University.

Research Methodology Based on earlier work. Cooke et al(2011) Question distributed to whole cohort Undertaken anonymously Closed and open questioning Establish region of education – regional coding system base on continents. Complied to CU ethical procedures

Q1. In what way were the face-to-face sessions different to those you were used to? 66% of students found the sessions different. 31% identified interactive nature 24% identified lecturer responsiveness More positive comments Even with minor rewording up to 30% of students did not answer the question how we wanted it answering. IT emerged as different.

Q2. What do you find helpful about the way you are taught and expected to learn? Consistent agreement that guided learning was helpful. Started to see regional differences of preferred teaching methods. –African Students - learning by doing –European students identified guided learning – Asia–East students noted improved understanding. These regional differences contradicted the regional differences from the previous academic year. Student satisfaction went up with more positive comments.

Q3. In what way has this module changed the way you study & the way you prepare for class ? 72% identified guided learning had changed their preparation for class. Equally weighting across regions High number of non-classifiable comments focused on how the topic had changed their views. No negative comments about too much work. The passport has affected students preparation for class positively.

Q4. What do you find challenging about the way you are taught & expected to learn? Produced extensive regional variation. 20% found guided learning challenging BUT supplied positive comments. (Africa region) Too much work halved from 20% to 9% Only ONE comment on passport Generally time management was highlighted as challenging BUT noted as a benefit 25% highlighted language barriers (Asia-East)

Conclusions and Recommendations Activity Led Learning was identified as being different to students prior learning. Evidence showed that different regions preferred particular elements of ALL. Ensure that ALL Activities are visibly relevant to the assessments. Module team observed a noticeable reduction in student drop in and random contact.

Further Development What are international students sold before they arrive in the UK Follow a more statistical route with data via SPSS and/or Minitab Address non classifiable comments via questionnaire design

Thank You Any Questions