The Dissonance between Insider and Outsider Perspectives of the ‘Chinese Problem’: Implications for One of the UK’s Largest Undergraduate Programmes

Abstract

This chapter problematises perceptions of mainland Chinese undergraduate students on a large broad-based social sciences course at a large northern university which admits large numbers of Chinese students. With the number of international students likely to increase, and Chinese students as the largest ‘minority’ group at this university, issues around academic support become increasingly important. There is a recognised ‘Chinese problem’ in the department in question surrounding issues such as academic culture, proficiency in English language, and diversity. In this study, focus group and interview data was obtained from students and staff about their perceptions of these students’ needs. The two sets of perceptions were compared to ascertain how much of a ‘good fit’ there was. The exploration of data was undertaken from the perspectives of insider-Chinese and outsider-institution (by the Chinese researcher); outsider-host and insider-institution (by the UK researcher). In the light of Holliday’s ‘small culture approach’ (1999), the ‘Chinese students’ were viewed in relation to the influences of a variety of cultures, such as national, institutional, and disciplinary cultures. It was concluded that the ‘Chinese problem’ did not inhere in common concerns such as retention or the student experience, but was rather related to how their approach to their studies cohered with notions of a UK education.