Image sourced from theaustralian.com.au
Intercultural encounters in Australia, particularly between local and international university students, are in need of significant improvement. The cultural competence of Australian students is limited, mostly due to ethnocentric and parochial attitudes towards international students. This affects the experiences of international students in Australia and in turn the international education industry and is changing the education landscape in Australia.
In a world that is becoming increasingly global—in industry, in the workplace, and in education—it is important to improve the experiences of all students at university, particularly international students. This is essential in Australia where 80% of the country’s student population consists of students from Asia (Marginson 2012). It is important to improve student’s experiences in order to improve cultural competence and negotiation throughout the education system and to help all students “expand their world view” (Khorana 2015) and gain a better understanding of the world. Cultural competence is a person’s ability to interact effectively and respectfully with people from a different culture and having the ability to understand different points of view. Marginson argues that international education is “not the rich intercultural experience it could be” (Marginson 2012), primarily because the majority of local students are not interested in interacting with students from abroad. This is evident in the Australian context where students are often seen as being highly ethnocentric and parochial, or as Marginson implies “trapped within an Australian-centred view of a diverse and complex world” (Marginson 2012). This is a problem for the international education system, particularly in Australia where education is the “third or fourth largest export industry” (Marginson 2012).
These issues were exacerbated in 2009 after a number of attacks on Indian students which were thought to be racially motivated. The attacks attracted the attention of the Indian government and cast a shadow over Australia’s reputation for a country with a low crime and violence rate, and according to the Beyond the Lost Decade report “cost Australia billions of dollars and thousands of jobs”. These attacks increased concerns and difficulties facing international students in Australia who, contrary to popular stereotypes surrounding international students, are expert cultural negotiators and generally highly motivated to study abroad and immerse themselves in different cultures. Marginson explains that this is due to a number of strategies for ‘self-formation’ (Marginson 2012). These strategies, such as multiplicity and hybridity, enable international students to navigate through a new cultural setting and improve their skills in cultural competence and negotiation. Through using these strategies international students develop a better understanding of cultural reflexivity and are better equipped to deal with uncertainty and ambiguity in situations they face through studying in a foreign country. More importantly, as Marginson explains, it is up to local students to rethink the ways in which international students have been positioned in Australian culture and be willing to step out of their comfort zones in order to improve intercultural encounters and the overall experience for international students.
References
‘Attacks on Indian students a ‘problem’’, Sydney Morning Herald Online, 31 May, accessed 29 August 2015, http://www.smh.com.au/national/attacks-on-indian-students-a-problem-20090531-brgk.html
Garran, A M & L Werkmeister Rozas 2013, Cultural Competence Revisited, Journal of Ethnic and Cultural Diversity in Social Work, vol 22, issue 2, 2013, accessed 29 August 2015, http://dx.doi.org.ezproxy.uow.edu.au/10.1080/15313204.2013.785337
Lecture, Khorana S 2015, ‘Internationalising education and cultural competence’ lecture, BCM111, University of Wollongong, viewed 28 Augusut 2015
Marginson, S (2012) ‘International education as self-formation: Morphing a profit-making business into an intercultural experience’, Lecture delivered at the University of Wollongong, 21 February 2012, accessed online 29 August 2015, http://focusonteaching.uow.edu.au/content/groups/public/@web/@cedir/documents/doc/uow119828.pdf
Rosenberg, J & M Wade 2012, ‘Repairing the road to Oz’, Sydney Morning Herald Online, 30 July, accessed 29 August 2015, http://www.smh.com.au/national/education/repairing-the-road-to-oz-20120729-2365d.html
Wade, M 2009, ‘Top Indian court buys into attacks on students’ Sydney Morning Herald Online, 30 June, accessed 29 August 2015, http://www.smh.com.au/world/top-indian-court-buys-into-attacks-on-students-20090629-d2mi.html
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