Linguistic understanding

As mentioned above linguistic proficiency plays a fundamental role in students’ ability to fully integrate into their new context. Below you will find a selection of international students' perspectives on linguistic considerations from Jenkins and Wingate (2015).

Student 1

IELTS is about giving your opinion, like you have a topic and you write an introduction, a body and a conclusion, and you come up with your ideas and that’s fine. And then you think you should do the same in your university essays.

Student 2

The assignments they gave us were always for evaluation, for marking. But they might give us different types of assignments, just to give feedback.

Student 3

But the problem is the time […] and I don´t look at it [i.e. grammar problems] as something that I really need to improve because I´ve got other priorities, I need to submit coursework, I need to do my assignment, so that problem doesn´t get resolved.

Student 4

If you are disabled they give you some allowances, they give you some empathy, they give you some you know credits [...]. If you are dyslexic they give you some, they give you some exemption as well, right? When you´re a foreign student you almost like a dyslexic person, I mean, not literally the same but you´re almost fulfilling the disabled criteria […] so what I would suggest is if universities look at the point these people are making […] and the ideas and the knowledge that the foreign students have got to impart or put, that should be marked in terms of criteria.

Key research on the role of linguistic proficiency and the challenges international students face, (Gatwiri G. 2015):
• There is a discourse about whether traditional standardised language tests and grammar methods inadequately prepare students (Wu and Hammond 2011). Even when students’ English language skills are good when they arrive at university, they find that their linguistic proficiency is insufficient to cope with the demands of an English-speaking environment.
• Challenges also lie in the subtleties embraced by academic writing. The level of language competence to identify these differences and model them in their writing can be demanding.
• Reviewing sources for reliability and validity and the language used and context can be less accessible to students creating barriers for those students who are not English first language speakers. (Ramachandran 2011: Ecohard and Fatheringham 2017).
It is not just the academic language proficiencies that can cause a challenge but the communication with native speakers and the pace of the speaker, dialect, accent, and use of idioms and metaphors that are culturally dependent can create a sense of isolation that can impact both academic and socio-cultural integration. (Wu and Hammad 2011, Akanwa 2015).

Considerations need to be made about:
• How English was taught in the home country and to what level of acquisition, the application of informal English in the UK, the use of idioms, metaphors, and culturally specific references, and lastly the specific academic language associated with the discipline.
• Whether the student has learned English from a native English speaker or someone who has English as an additional language (Ramachandran 2011).

Many nuanced factors contribute to how a student acquires language and it would be unrealistic to expect international students to arrive in the UK using fluent English, and a knowledge of contextual references, metaphors, and idioms to communicate effectively (Echochard and Fotheringham 2017).
This view undermines the complex nature of applied linguistics and acquiring another language. Many international students choose to study in the UK as they understand the value of immersing themselves in the language to improve their linguistic ability. Therefore, it is important to acknowledge the challenge of linguistic proficiency and be mindful of its impact on the learning environment