15 months ago in Christchurch, concern about a perceived increase in anecdotal reporting of incidents of racial/cultural harassment in public places triggered an ongoing collaboration between staff members from the above institutions. To date this collaboration has produced 3 related but distinct initiatives – an early dialogue with the Christchurch Press (the city’s large daily newspaper), a Welcome poster campaign, and the development of anonymous online reporting. The presentation will outline the collaborative process involved, briefly cover the main outcomes, and future directions.
Individual staff members from CCC, UC, HRC, NZP (and later Ngai Tahu and CPIT) met regularly to workshop issues, sharing responsibilities and institutional resources. Key elements contributing to the success of this collaboration were the focus on achievable goals, and similar commitment to highly democratic collaboration shared by all the individuals involved. This created a small network capable of facilitating access to the strong support and existing goodwill in the relevant institutional structures.
Significant outcomes of this collaboration include the development of a research and marketing campaign by a UC intern at CCC (as a graded UC academic project, funded by CCC), which in turn led to the hongi welcome poster campaign and the development of a reporting form. The intern’s report suggested a culture of harassment in public places. UC international students perceived a failure, by city institutions, to provide clear statements of guidance over this issue. Students were also confused about reporting processes, and favoured a single, clear online reporting option. The poster campaign features the hongi with welcome statements in different languages, so attempting to address the first two findings with a positive message from the biggest city institutions. An online reporting website is currently under development, as is a phased ongoing rollout of the poster campaign, supported by ongoing research.
Negotiating trust and respect: relationships between staff members at La Trobe
University International College and Middle Eastern Students
Usha Rao
Abstract: This presentation is based on a very small action research project undertaken by the author at
La Trobe University International College (LTUIC) early this year when there were over 200
students from the Middle Eastern countries in ELICOS at LTUIC. The findings were first
presented in May, 2008 at the NEAS Management Conference. Since then numbers of Middle
Eastern students has increased at LTUIC, and some of the issues identified continue to present
themselves, and attempts are made to resolve them systemically as well as on a case by case
basis.
Abstract: The main aim of this paper is to investigate the ways in which language is used in the
discursive construction of national identities. Specifically, the object of analysis is interview
data in which six international students from Germany and Japan enact their early study
abroad experiences to a young (mid-twenties) New Zealand researcher. It has been found that
the students often construct their experience in terms of perceived sociocultural differences
between their “home country”, Japan or Germany, and chosen place of exchange, New
Zealand. The way in which participants of this study position themselves as a member of a
social, cultural, and/or linguistic ‘Other’, or perceived outsider (cf. Bucholtz & Hall, 2005, p.
586) is discursively underscored by the use of “extreme” language. In conversation analysis
this language is referred to as Extreme Case Formulations or ECF’s, expressions such as ‘no
one’, ‘never’, ‘absolutely’, which are used to justify or defend a position (see Pomerantz,
1986; Edwards, 2000). Although there exists a wide range of scholarship on linguistic
constructions of national identity (e.g. Miller 2000; Yamaguchi 2004), it is the author’s
contention that few (if any) studies have specifically addressed the current research context,
viz. comparing the perceptions of Japanese and German students who are studying in New
Zealand, while employing a combination of conversation analysis and other discourse
analytic techniques in the analysis of data.
Abstract: The University of Newcastle has taken a proactive approach in promoting interactions between international
Muslim students, staff of the University and members of the broader community. The development of networks
has been integral to a number of projects and has been vital in connecting students to the community.
Through these networks, three resources were collaboratively developed. Their focus was on assisting
international Muslim students to integrate into the local community and to assist the broader community to
better understand Muslim beliefs and practices.
The development of these resources led to requests for training. Training for the Faculty of Health focused on
building knowledge and skills for staff. The content of this training was developed into two further resources.
These resources and training continue to develop intercultural interactions and aim to build connections for
international Muslim students in academic and social environments.
Keywords: Muslim, teaching, cross-cultural, medical, students, community
This paper has been accepted for publication by Focus on Health Professional Education and will appear in a forthcoming issue.
Abstract: This program developed and trialled structured sustainable program to enhance NESB student experiences in their first year at QUT. The project focused on improving access and participation in learning activities in order to increase the success rate for NESB students on a unit requiring teamwork. That is, by addressing communication carriers, providing practical strategies and raising awareness of the broader social ssues, this program aimed to increase the awareness of all students of the benefits of a multi-cultural university experience. This presentation will provide background nformation about the project and the key factors in its success.
Keywords: International students, learning, NESB, multi-cultural student experiences
