International Students and the Politics of Vulnerability

Authors

  • Andrew Deuchar University of Melbourne

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.32674/jis.v13i2.4815

Keywords:

international students, vulnerability, agency, deficit thinking, educational research

Abstract

A significant amount of educational research has foregrounded the challenges international students face while living and learning abroad. While “challenge centric” research has been productive for highlighting the needs of international students, it has tended to reify international students as a vulnerable group in need of intervention. This approach has often downplayed international students’ agency and has not fully moved beyond the boundaries of deficit thinking. This article discusses the implications of framing international students as a vulnerable group before offering some conceptual starting points that might orient future research in more productive directions. It suggests that foregrounding the agency of international students offers a promising mode of reanimating research, and briefly discusses the methodological, conceptual, and political implications of doing so.

Author Biography

  • Andrew Deuchar, University of Melbourne

    Andrew has conducted ethnographic research with young people in India and has more recently conducted research with international students in Australia. He is particularly interested in how educated young people navigate changing educational landscapes, the challenges and opportunities that mobility affords young people, and with highlighting the positive contributions that young people make to societies.

References

Andrade, M. S. (2006). International Students in English-Speaking Universities: Adjustment Factors. Journal of Research in International Education, 5(2), 131–154. https://doi.org/10.1177/1475240906065589 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1475240906065589

Bourdieu, P. (1984). Distinction: A Social Critique of the Judgement of Taste. Boston: Harvard University Press.

Davis, L. & Museus, S. (2019). What Is Deficit Thinking? An Analysis of Conceptualisations of Deficit Thinking and Implications for Scholarly Research. Currents, 1(1), 119-129. http://dx.doi.org/10.3998/currents.17387731.0001.110 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3998/currents.17387731.0001.110

Deuchar, A. 2022. The problem with international students’ ‘experiences’ and the promise of their practices: Reanimating research about international students in higher education. British Educational Research Journal, 48(3), 504-518. doi.org/10.1002/berj.3779 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/berj.3779

Forbes-Mewett, H. (2020). Vulnerability and Resilience in a Mobile World: The Case of International Students. Journal of International Students, 10(3), ix-xi. https://doi.org/10.32674/jis.v10i3.2002 DOI: https://doi.org/10.32674/jis.v10i3.2002

Heng, T. T. (2017). Voices of Chinese international students in USA colleges: ‘I want to tell them that...’. Studies in Higher Education, 42(5), 833–850. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2017.1293873

Heng, T. T. (2020). Examining the Role of Theory in Qualitative Research: A Literature Review of Studies on Chinese International Students in Higher Education. Journal of International Students, 10(4), 798–816. DOI: https://doi.org/10.32674/jis.v10i4.1571

Hong, J. E. (2021). Korean Female Graduate Students’ Experiences in the United States. Journal of International Students, 12(3). https://doi.org/10.32674/jis.v12i3.3835 DOI: https://doi.org/10.32674/jis.v12i3.3835

Khanal, J., & Gaulee, U. (2019). Challenges of International Students from Pre-Departure to Post-Study: A Literature Review. Journal of International Students, 9(2), 560–581. https://doi.org/10.32674/jis.v9i2.673 DOI: https://doi.org/10.32674/jis.v9i2.673

Lo, W. Y. W. (2019). Beyond competition: a comparative review of conceptual approaches to international student mobility. Globalisation, Societies and Education, 17(3), 261-273. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/14767724.2018.1525283

Lomer, S., and Mittelmeier, J. (2021). Mapping the research on pedagogies with international students in the UK: a systemic literature review. Teaching in Higher Education. DOI: 10.1080/13562517.2021.1872532 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13562517.2021.1872532

Lomer, J. (2017). Resilience, moorings and international student mobilities – exploring biographical narratives of social science students in the UK. Mobilities, 12(3), 425-444. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/17450101.2015.1087761

Montgomery, C. (2010). Understanding the International Student Experience. London: Palgrave Macmillan. doi:10.1007/978-0-230-36500-1 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-230-36500-1

Peters, M. A. et al. (2020). China’s Internationalized Higher Education During Covid-19: Collective Student Autoethnography. Postdigital Science and Education, 2, 968-988. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s42438-020-00128-1

Schatzki, T. (2001). Introduction: Practice theory. In R. Schatzki, K. Cetina, & E. von Savigny (Eds.), The practice turn in contemporary theory (10–23). Routledge.

Tannock, S. (2018). Educational Equality and International Students: Justice Across Borders? London: Palgrave Macmillan. doi:10.1007/978-3-319-76381-1_9 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-76381-1_9

Willis, P. (1978). Learning to labour: how working class kids get working class jobs. London: Routledge.

Zhang-Wu, Q. (2018). Chinese International Students’ Experiences in American Higher Education Institutes: A Critical Review of the Literature. Journal of International Students, 8(2), 1173-1197. DOI: https://doi.org/10.32674/jis.v8i2.139

Downloads

Published

2022-08-25

How to Cite

International Students and the Politics of Vulnerability. (2022). Journal of International Students, 13(2), 206-211. https://doi.org/10.32674/jis.v13i2.4815