What are the most effective teaching and / or learning styles for international students? Are these different from those for domestic students?
Introduction
Relocation has been cited as one of the major causes of decline in the academic performance of many international students (Altbach, & Knight, 2007). Research by psychologists indicate that relocation to new countries affect the performance of international students as they are faced with cultural shock and have to struggle to keep up with the country’s education system(Rienties, Beausaert, Grohnert, Niemantsverdriet, & Kommers, 2012). In order to tackle this challenge, educators and psychologists have been developing better ways and techniques that International students especially those in University can use to learn. For a learning technique to be effective it has to take into consideration the learning conditions which the student is in, the students attributes, the learning materials available to the student, and the criterion tasks. The effectiveness of different learning techniques are ranked in terms of utility of which there are three levels namely high, moderate and low utility (Dunlosky, Rawson, Marsh, Nathan, & Willingham, 2013). High utility techniques are those learning techniques, which are deemed to be most effective. Currently only two types of learning techniques are regarded as high utility learning techniques namely practice testing and distributed practice. Elaboration interrogation, self-explanation, interleaved practice and are all regarded as moderate utility techniques. On the other hand, summarization, keyword mnemonics, use of imagery, rereading and underlining are considered to be low utility learning techniques (Hounsell, 1979). It is essential to note that high utility learning techniques are largely based on moderate and low utility learning tech are largely based on moderate and low utility learning techniques. This paper will provide a discussion on the two high utility learning techniques and how international University students use them.
Practice testing is a learning methodology where an individual repeatedly attempts to answer different questions regarding the subject he or she is learning. Studies have indicated that this method significantly helps to familiarize students with how tests are set. Through the implementation of this learning technique, the foreign students get acquainted with the testing style of the country where he/she is learning. The knowledge that a student gains from practice testing is helpful because it exposes the student to how a particular country’s education system requires questions to be answered making the student adept with the country’s education system (Hawtrey, 2007). Some common methodologies of practice testing involve the use of flashcards and through completing practice problems. Research has showcased that practice testing is effective due to the fact that it rewires the student’s brains to provide answers in a specific way when faced with certain types of questions (Hawtrey, 2007). In attempts to explain why practice testing is one of the most effective methods of learning for most students and especially international students, two theories have been developed. The first theory holds that practice testing helps to enhance a student retention capabilities by triggering the students elaborative retrieval process through accessing his/her long term memories and retrieving all the information that is associated with the particular topic (Roediger, & Karpicke, 2006). The second theory regarding the effectiveness of practice testing holds that the process of practice testing helps to encode our brains with cues and targets that make our brains to easily understand challenges and how they can best be tackled (Roediger, & Karpicke, 2006). Studies into the technique have revealed that practice testing helps to improve the student’s ability to mentally organize the information they acquire thus increasing their level of efficiency and speed in the information retrieval process (Roediger III, Putnam, & Smith, 2011). Thus based on the information provided in this paragraph, we have been able to prove that practice testing is indeed very effective learning technique.
Distributed Practice
Another method that is highly used by international University students because of its efficacy is distributed practice. Distributed practice can be defined as a learning technique where a student divides his or her studies and does them in specific timed intervals rather than doing it all at once (Cepeda, Coburn, Rohrer, Wixted, Mozer, & Pashler, 2009). Most international students who prefer using this method for learning indicate that its most essential attribute is the fact that it provides them with short breaking periods that they can use to reflect on the information learnt and try to correlate it with their studies back home thus enabling them to further grasp the concept that is presented (Benjamin, & Tullis, 2010). The students also cite the fact that these methods of learning provides them with the opportunity to plan their studies as they deem fit thus making them more comfortable with the learning process (Benjamin, & Tullis, 2010). Research has proven that distributed practice is much more effective for information absorption and retention than cramming (Cepeda, Coburn, Rohrer, Wixted, Mozer, & Pashler, 2009). This is because the methods provides the student with the opportunity to internalize the information acquired, this is done by enabling the students brain to switch back and forth between diffused and focused mode of thinking. Evidence derived from different studies also indicates that the spacing of studies is very essential to memory recollection. One study conducted in the year 1979 revealed that those students who divided their studies into six study sessions across an interval of thirty days between each session performed best when a test was issued thirty days after the final session (Hovland, 2008). The study also indicated that the students who performed worse were those who distributed 6 study sessions in one day (Hovland, 2008). Based on the information provided in this paragraph one can logically conclude that distributed practice is also another effective methodology of learning.
Personal Preference
Even though the two methods of learning discussed above have been cited as being the most effective methods of learning for students of all ages at all levels of academia, they both have their own set of advantages and disadvantages. Some cut across the board while others depend on the individual using the method and what circumstance, they are utilized in. From a personal perspective, practice testing is the better of the two because it compels an individual to conduct research so as to get the answers to the practice questions. This process enables the person utilizing the technique to read more on a particular matter as he/she looks for an answer. The researching process also exposes the student to different variations of a solutions to a particular problem thus enabling his to pick the solution that best fits him/her; this attribute of the technique is extremely helpful to international students as they are able to see how a particular question is answered in both their home country and in the country where he/she is learning thus enabling him or her to better understand the learning process of the new country. For example, when an individual is utilizing practice testing and comes across a question he/she cannot answer, he/she will be forced to conduct research on the question so as to find the answer. This research will expose him/her to even more information than originally intended thus broadening his understanding of the subject matter. Practice testing is a better method of learning than distributed practice is because of it provides an individual with the capability to start on the easy questions and proceed gradually to the difficult questions. Individuals can start with the easy question and proceed progressively to the difficult questions thus providing for progressive knowledge acquisition.
Conclusion
In conclusion it is essential to indicate that International students especially those in Universities should pick the learning method that bests suits the environment in which they are in. The learning method they opt to pick should take into consideration their personal academic strengths and weaknesses. University education is regarded among the most complex levels of education therefore the learning method picked should be able to handle highly complex materials. It should also be easily adaptable to the student’s native practices and easy to use by the student. The more familiar a learning method is to a student the easier it will be for him or her to easily adopt it and implement it effectively thus significantly improving the students learning capabilities ( Dunlosky, Rawson, Marsh, Nathan, & Willingham, 2013).
References
Altbach, P. G., & Knight, J. (2007). The internationalization of higher education: Motivations and realities. Journal of studies in international education, 11(3-4), 290-305.
Benjamin, A. S., & Tullis, J. (2010). What makes distributed practice effective?. Cognitive psychology, 61(3), 228-247.
Cepeda, N. J., Coburn, N., Rohrer, D., Wixted, J. T., Mozer, M. C., & Pashler, H. (2009). Optimizing distributed practice: Theoretical analysis and practical implications. Experimental psychology, 56(4), 236-246.
Dunlosky, J., Rawson, K. A., Marsh, E. J., Nathan, M. J., & Willingham, D. T. (2013). Improving students’ learning with effective learning techniques promising directions from cognitive and educational psychology. Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 14(1), 4-58.
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Hawtrey, K. (2007). Using experiential learning techniques. The Journal of Economic Education, 38(2), 143-152.
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Roediger III, H. L., Putnam, A. L., & Smith, M. A. (2011). 1 Ten Benefits of Testing and Their Applications to Educational Practice. Psychology of Learning and Motivation-Advances in Research and Theory, 55, 1.
Roediger, H. L., & Karpicke, J. D. (2006). The power of testing memory: Basic research and implications for educational practice. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 1(3), 181-210.
Rienties, B., Beausaert, S., Grohnert, T., Niemantsverdriet, S., & Kommers, P. (2012). Understanding academic performance of international students: the role of ethnicity, academic and social integration. Higher education, 63(6), 685-700.
