Hitting the Ground Running: Helping International Postgraduate Students to Succeed in Higher Education
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.32674/jcihe.v16i1.4886Keywords:
Postgraduate international students, academic integrity, culture shock, academic integrity violations, plagiarismAbstract
This essay examines potential barriers to the academic success of international master’s students studying in higher education in the UK and identifies key elements that draw together university policy and culture and classroom practice to enable this group of students to ‘hit the ground running’. These barriers are viewed through the lens of academic shock and academic integrity. Key themes are discussed including the importance of factors such as language barriers, misunderstandings, and anxiety, as well as the importance of providing clear definitions of what constitutes academic integrity violations in UK universities. The timeframe of one academic year, in which full-time international master’s students are required to acquire new knowledge and skills often impedes the successful completion of early assignments set during their first term. Solutions for addressing these barriers are proposed and aimed at supporting the achievement of international master’s students.
References
Adhikari, S. (2018). Beyond culture: Helping international students avoid plagiarism. Journal of International Students, 8(1), 375–388. https://doi.org/10.32674/jis.v8i1.170
Bai, L., & Wang, Y. X. (2022). Combating language and academic culture shocks – International students’ agency in mobilizing their cultural capital. Journal of Diversity in Higher Education. https://doi.org/10.1037/dhe0000409
Barrett, R., & Cox, A. (2005). “At least they’re learning something”: The hazy line between collaboration and collusion. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 30(2), 107–122. https://doi.org/10.1080/0260293042000264226.
Bertram Gallant, T., Binkin, N. & Donohue, M. (2015). Students at risk for being reported for cheating. Journal of Academic Ethics, 13(3), 217–228.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10805-015-9235-5
Bird, E. (2017). Student and staff perceptions of the international postgraduate student experience: A qualitative study of a UK university. Journal of International Students, 7(2), 329–346. https://doi.org/10.32674/jis.v7i2.384
Bista, K. (2011). Academic dishonesty among international students in higher education. In J. Miller & J. Groccia (Eds.), To improve the academy: Resources for faculty, instructional, and organizational development. Vol. 30 (pp. 159-172). Jossey-Bass.
DiPietro, M. (2010). Theoretical frameworks for academic dishonesty: A comparative review. In L. Nilson & J. E. Miller (Eds), To Improve the academy: Resources for faculty, instructional, and organizational development (pp 250–262). Jossey- Bass. http://jistudents.org/doi:10.5281/zenodo.570026
Evans, J. (2000). The new plagiarism in higher education. Interactions, 4(2), 54-71.
Fass-Holmes, B. (2017). International students reported for academic integrity violations: Demographics, retention, and graduation. Journal of International Students, 7(3), 644-669. http://dx.doi.org.libezproxy.open.ac.uk/10.5281/zenodo.570026
Garwood, K. (2022). Supporting academic integrity in the writing centre: Perspectives of student consultants. In S. Eaton & j Christensen Hughes (Eds.) Academic Integrity in Canada: An enduring and essential challenge (pp.431-447). Springer.
George, S., Costigan, A., & O’Hara, M. (2013). Placing the library at the heart of plagiarism prevention: The University of Bradford experience. New Review of Academic Librarianship, 19(2), 141–160. DOI10.1080/13614533.2013.800756
Haitch, R. (2016). Stealing or sharing? Cross-cultural issues of plagiarism in an open-source era. Teaching Theology & Religion, 19(3), 264–275. https://doi.org/10.1111/teth.12337
Helgesson, G., & Eriksson, S. (2015). Plagiarism in research. Medicine, Health Care and Philosophy, 18(1), 91–101. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11019-014-9583-8.
Hernandez Lopez, E. (2020). Challenges facing Mexican students in the United Kingdom: Implications for adaptation during the early stage. Journal of International Students, 10(4), 1005–1022.
Hofstede, G. (1986). Cultural differences in teaching and learning. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 10, 301–320.
Hofstede, G. (1991). Culture and organizations: Software of the mind. McGraw Hill.
Hofstede, G., & Hofstede, G. J. (2005). Cultures and organizations: software of the mind. McGraw-Hill.
ICAI (2021). The fundamental values of academic integrity (3rd ed). International Center of Academic Integrity, www.academicintegrity.org/the-fundamental-values-of-academic-integrity.
Isbell J., Chaudhuri J., & Schaeffer D. (2018). “It just messes your mind”: U.S. international students’ perspectives of and experiences with academic text sourcing. Journal of International Students, 8(1), 308–331. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.1134309.
Kaktins, L. (2014). Appraising plagiarism policies of Australian universities. Text & Talk, 34(2), 117–141.
1515/text-2013-0040
Kaur, D. (2019). Academic experiences of Indian international students in the U.S. higher education. American Journal of Creative Education, 2(1), 1-12.
https://doi-org.libezproxy.open.ac.uk/10.20448/815.21.1.12
Kim, Y. (2001). Becoming intercultural: An integrative theory of communication and cross-cultural adaptation. Sage.
Kinzelbach, K., Saliba, I., Spannagel, J., & Quinn, R. (2021). Free universities: Putting the academic freedom index into action, Global Public Policy Institute (GPPi) Report.
Larkham, P., & Manns, S. (2002). Plagiarism and its treatment in higher education. Journal of Further and Higher Education, 26(4), 339–349, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/0309877022000021748.
Macdonald, R., & Carroll, J. (2006). Plagiarism—a complex issue requiring a holistic institutional approach. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 31(2), 233–245, https://doi.org/10.1080/02602930500262536
Mangue, C., & Gonondo, J. (2021) Academic culture and talent cultivation: The Chinese experience. Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education, 13(1), 133¬–150, https://doi.org/10.32674/jcihe.v13i1.3133
Montgomery, C. (2010). Universities into the 21st Century: Understanding the international student experience. Palgrave Macmillan
Morgan, C., Dunn, L., Parry, S., & O’Reilly, M. (2004). The student assessment handbook. Routledge Falmer.
Newton, F., Wright, J., & Newton, J. (2014). Skills training to avoid inadvertent plagiarism: Results from a randomised control study. Higher Education Research & Development, 33(6), 1180–1193. https://doi.org/10.1080/07294360.2014.911257.
OECD (2016). Education at a glance 2016: OECD Indicators. OECD Publishing, https://doi.org/10.1787/eag-2016-en.
Oyeniyi, O., Smith, R., Watson, J., & Nelson, K. (2021). A comparison of first-year international students’ adjustment to college at the undergraduate and graduate level. Journal of Comparative and International Higher Education. 13(2), 112–131. ERIC
ORI (2022). Avoiding plagiarism, self-plagiarism, and other questionable writing practices: A guide to ethical writing. The Office of Research Integrity. https://ori.hhs.gov/avoiding-plagiarism-self-plagiarism-and-other-questionable-writing-practices-guide-ethical-writing
Oxford English Dictionary Online. (2021). Plagiarism. https://www-oed-com.ezproxy01.rhul.ac.uk/view/Entry/144939?redirectedFrom=plagiarism#eid.
Park, C. (2003). In other (people's) words: Plagiarism by university students--literature and lessons. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 28(5), 471–488. https://doi.org/10.1080/02602930301677.
Park, C. (2004). Rebels without a clause: Towards an institutional framework for dealing with plagiarism by students. Journal of Further and Higher Education, 28(3), 291-306. https://doi.org/10.1080/0309877042000241760
Payne, S., & Nantz, K. (1994). Social accounts and metaphors about cheating. College Teaching, 42(3), 90–96. 10.1080/87567555.1994.9926831
Pennycock, A. (2016). Reflecting on borrowed words. TESOL Quarterly, 50(2), 480–482. 10.1002/tesq.294
Pecorari, D. (2003). Good and original: Plagiarism and patchwriting in academic second-language writing. Journal of Second Language Writing, 12(4), 317–345. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jslw.2003. 08.004
Pecorari, D., & Petrić, B. (2014). Plagiarism in second-language writing. Language Teaching, 47(3), 269–302. 10.1017/S0261444814000056
Ramachandran, N. T. (2011). Enhancing international students’ experiences: An imperative agenda for universities in the UK. Journal of Research in International Education, 10(2), 201–220. http://doi.org/10.1177/1475240911413204
Rhoden, M., & Kinchington, F. (2021). Examining the challenges faced by international women with preschool children studying for a postgraduate built environment degree in the UK. Journal of International Students, 11(4), 970–987. OJED
Rogerson, A. M., & McCarthy. G. (2017) Using internet based paraphrasing tools: Original work, patchwriting or facilitated plagiarism? International Journal for Educational Integrity, 13(1), 1–15. 10.1007/s40979-016-0013-y.
Ryan, J. (2005). The student experience: Challenges and rewards. In J. Carroll, & J. Ryan (Eds.), Teaching international students: Improving learning for all (pp. 147–51). Routledge.
Sanni-Anibire, H., Stoesz, B., Gervais, L., & Vogt, L (2021). International students’ knowledge and emotions related to academic integrity at Canadian postsecondary institutions. International Journal for Educational Integrity, 17(21), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40979-021-00088-4.
Stappenbelt, B. (2012). Plagiarism in mechanical engineering education: A comparative study of international and domestic students. International Journal of Mechanical Engineering Education, 40(1), 24–41. http://dx.doi.org/10.7227/IJMEE.40.16.
Sutherland-Smith, W. (2011). Crime and punishment: An analysis of university plagiarism policies. Semiotica, 187(4), 127 –139. 10.1515/semi.2011.067.
Tan, E., & Carnegie, S. (2020). “It’s not plagiarism, it’s a bad use of power phrasing”: Assessment of home and international student (mis)understandings of citation practice. Innovations in Education and Teaching International. https://doi.org/10.1080/14703297.2020.1844779.
Thomas, M. (2000). Eschewing credit: Heywood, Shakespeare and plagiarism before copyright. New Literary History, 31(2) 277–294. https://doi.org/10.1353/nlh.2000.0025.
Tran, L., & Vu, T. (2018). “Agency in mobility”: Towards a conceptualisation of international student agency in transnational mobility. Educational Review, 70(2), 167–187. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131911.2017.1293615
UUKi (2021). International facts & figures. Universities UK international.
Vij, R., Makhdumi, G., & Soni, N.K. (2009). Encouraging academic honesty through anti-plagiarism software. http://ir.inflibnet.ac.in:8080/ir/bitstream/1944/1068/1/55.pdf
Walker, J. (2010). Measuring plagiarism: Researching what students do, not what they say they do. Studies in Higher Education, 35(1), 41–59. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075070902912994
Ward, C., Bochner, S., & Furnham, A. (2001). The psychology of culture shock (2nd ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0147- 1767(02)00037-8..
Wu, W., & Hammond, M. (2011). Challenges of university adjustment in the UK: A study of East Asian master’s degree students. Journal of Further and Higher Education, 35(3), 423–438. http://doi.org/10.1080/0309877X.2011.569016
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2024 Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
The findings, interpretations, conclusions, and views expressed in Journal of Comparative and International Higher Education (JCIHE) are entirely those of the authors and should not be attributed in any manner to CIES, HESIG, or the sponsoring universities of the Editorial Staff. These works are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 License. Readers are free to copy, display, and distribute articles that appear in JCIHE as long as the work is attributed to the author(s) and JCIHE, it is distributed for non-commercial purposes only, and no alteration or transformation is made in the work. All other uses must be approved by the author(s) or JCIHE. By submitting a manuscript, authors agree to transfer without charge the following rights to JCIHE upon acceptance of the manuscript: first worldwide serial publication rights and the right for JCIHE to grant permissions as its editors judge appropriate for the redistribution of the article, its abstract, and metadata associated with the article in professional indexing and reference services.
