Welcome to This Course!
Student Development and Support is a course designed to highlight practical tips and strategies for holistically supporting international students. This course explores common challenges faced by international learners in the realms of community, mental wellness, accessibility, and more. Effective and specific approaches are proposed for educators who desire to support international students not only in academic achievement, but also in obtaining a sense of belonging and safety at school.
Chapter 1 investigates challenges experienced by international students as identified in research, and perspectives of international learners on their own academic experiences. Topics include social isolation, mental wellness, disorienting experiences, language barriers, limiting constructions, and the varied degrees of preparedness experienced by international students. Each of these challenges is explored with attention to root causes, and practical steps for educators to mitigate risks and support student success. International student voices are put forth to provide further insight into specific supports from teachers and institutions that are valued most by students.
Chapter 2 is dedicated to outlining clear, practical steps and strategies for teachers, policy makers, and institutions to support international students. Specific, research-informed practices are discussed to promote the success and resilience of international students in the realms of community, academics, student-teacher interactions, and language. Helpful programmatic supports and policies are recommended for institutions to best meet the needs of international students.
We hope that upon completing this course, you will feel more confident in your interactions with international students and better prepared to meet the diverse needs of your students.
Welcome to This Course!
Student Development and Support is a course designed to highlight practical tips and strategies for holistically supporting international students. This course explores common challenges faced by international learners in the realms of community, mental wellness, accessibility, and more. Effective and specific approaches are proposed for educators who desire to support international students not only in academic achievement, but also in obtaining a sense of belonging and safety at school.
Chapter 1 investigates challenges experienced by international students as identified in research, and perspectives of international learners on their own academic experiences. Topics include social isolation, mental wellness, disorienting experiences, language barriers, limiting constructions, and the varied degrees of preparedness experienced by international students. Each of these challenges is explored with attention to root causes, and practical steps for educators to mitigate risks and support student success. International student voices are put forth to provide further insight into specific supports from teachers and institutions that are valued most by students.
Chapter 2 is dedicated to outlining clear, practical steps and strategies for teachers, policy makers, and institutions to support international students. Specific, research-informed practices are discussed to promote the success and resilience of international students in the realms of community, academics, student-teacher interactions, and language. Helpful programmatic supports and policies are recommended for institutions to best meet the needs of international students.
We hope that upon completing this course, you will feel more confident in your interactions with international students and better prepared to meet the diverse needs of your students.
Just like domestic students, international students face challenges with mental health. While this is a common experience amongst young people, unique circumstances experienced by international students can increase students’ vulnerability to mental health difficulties (Zabin, 2022). Many international students experience culture shock when adjusting to a new country. Navigating a new set of cultural values that may conflict with students’ domestic culture contributes to psychological difficulties that are referred to as acculturative stress (De Moissac et al., 2020)
Heightened feelings of fear and uncertainty are often experienced by students studying abroad. These feelings can be related to a variety of worries about school, including academic achievement, fear of expulsion, uncertainty around program or career choices, and more (Glass, 2015). Additionally, negative emotions may be associated with students’ experiences prior to arriving in the country. For example, students who are refugees may experience uncertainty around their survival needs and the permanency of their educational experience, having experienced inconsistency in previous settings (Mupenzi, 2022). Despite experiencing stressful circumstances, international students may be less likely to access institutional and personal supports for managing mental health difficulties. This hesitancy may exist for a variety of reasons, including shame, cultural perceptions of mental health and supports, fear of disappointing others, or lack of awareness about the resources available to them (De Moissac, 2020) Additionally, international students are less likely than domestic students to engage in coping mechanisms and confiding in others to relieve stress (De Moissac, 2020).
To help international students build resilience and overcome mental stress, consider how students can be supported at school, while maintaining professional boundaries:
- Connect students with representatives for local or campus cultural groups and centres to improve access to resources and community
- Provide reassurance, referrals, and support to help students with academic and career stress
- Inform students of available on-campus or community mental health supports. If possible, consider incentivizing seeking supports (ie: students get extra credit for workshop attendance)
- Foster positive and confidence boosting interactions between international students, teachers, and domestic students. Normalize conversations about mental wellbeing to challenge stigmatic beliefs that may prevent students from seeking support.
