pressures in their lives can affect the possibility of them meeting deadlines or
targets.11 Supporting learners away from home
If you are teaching in an English speaking country then many of your learners
could be visitors from abroad, and may be joining your institution for a short
period only. If you work in a dedicated language school, then the administrative
and pastoral support systems of the institution should be geared up to this: if you
work in another type of educational institution, your international students could
be a minority group. In either case, the following suggestions should help you to
assist your learners to make the most of their stay.
1 Encourage your institution to arrange specialist induction provision for
international students. Pre-sessional meetings addressing aspects of
cultural acclimatization, and looking at good study skills, can be of enormous
benefit in helping international students get the most from their course.
2 Produce clear information for your international students. Try to ensure
that they receive good documentation about their courses and about the
institution and its environs, ideally before they arrive. International students
are more likely to need to revisit such information again and again until they
have tuned in to their new situation, and they can often do this more
successfully when the information is in print rather than in easy-to-forget
face-to-face formats.
3 Help learners from other countries or cultures to understand what you
will expect of them in assessments. Assessment cultures vary widely
around the world, and what is regarded as normal practice in some places is
seen as cheating or plagiarism in others. It is important that all learners are
aware of the ways they are expected to behave in preparing for and
undertaking any kind of assessment. It can be particularly important to help
learners adjust to those parts of their courses involving independent study,
and about how to prepare for any assessment associated with such studies.
4 Search for ways of lessening the isolation of international students.
Encourage them out of the institution, so they can absorb more of the local
culture and make new contacts and friends. On the other hand, avoid putting
them under any pressure to break their normal links with fellow learners
from the same background.
5 Be sensitive on issues of religion. Some religions require followers to pray
at specific times and in particular settings. This can be a problem for
learners required to fit in with tight timetabling, and sensitive flexibility
needs to be shown regarding their needs and rights.
6 Help learners with special food requirements. Learners visiting a foreign
country may well be interested in trying out its food, but equally there could500 TIPS FOR TESOL 21