There is no question that everyone benefits when students come to the U.S. to learn, but having international students is not without challenge. International students bring many wonderful things to a school environment, but often the language barrier presents unique obstacles.
Before we get to some tips on how to support your international students, I do think it is important to acknowledge the difficulty and added time it takes to learn in a different language. Learning is a challenge in of itself. How do we learn best is a topic that has been wrestled with from the Ancient Greeks to modern Brain Scientist, and to date a clear answer has not presented itself. When the challenge of learning in a different language is presented a seemingly obvious layer of difficulty is added.
This post will outline 6 tips designed to support your international students while supporting your native students. In no way should these tips have a negative impact on any students, which is what makes them worthwhile.
6 Tips for teaching in a global classroom:
1. Keep it safe
– Educators need to be in the habit of reading faces, they don’t lie. If a student looks scared they probably are. Also, unless that student was just accosted in the hallway, or there is a shadowy figure in the corner the reason they are scared, more than likely, has to do with you. Take the time to slow down and comfort your class. Revisit the ways you have and will support them, ask them for other suggestions. If all else fails, crack a joke.
2. Follow up
– Nothing says I want you to succeed like following up with a student. Rotate though the students asking each one to stay after class. In that time have a 2-minute conversation about their experience in class. In these 2-minutes you will get a lot of standard answers (at first), but you will also open the door for communication down the road when it counts.
– Following up also supports tip 1 and that is important especially for international students.
3. Signage
– Having signs in the classroom in multiple languages sends a clear message to your international students that you are open and understanding. Also, if the signs can contain common phrases used in your course, it will alleviate unneeded pressure to think of exact wording on the fly for international students.
4. Hurry up and Wait
1. The time for rapid response is over the model doesn’t work (at least for the majority). Students need time to process the question. Also, when a question is asked and a student responds immediately other students shut down and stop thinking about the answer. So, what can we do?
2. Ex 1: Give at least 30 seconds after each question is asked for silence. This not only allows for processing time or what I have started calling language lag, but it allows for more students to answer the question and engage in the class.
3. Ex 2: Have students keep a sheet of paper on their desk just for answering questions (I do not recommend collecting this sheet). Having a non-verbal outlet allows your students to feel as though they are participating in class even if they are not the student chosen to share his/her answer. This also supports your international students because they can write an answer in their native language. This can take pressure off quick responses, because students can divvy up the work. First, seeking understanding, then thinking of how to answer in English.
5. Be Non-verbal
1. Humans communicate non-verbally embrace it. Don’t believe me? Watch your TV on mute for 5 minutes see if you understand what is happening in the show, then turn on the volume and be amazed.
2. By setting up non-verbal cues, your class will process what you are going more efficiently.
– Ex 1: I teach using a white board I can assign different colors to different expectations. I could then hang a sign next to the board as a legend (written in multiple languages).
o Red = homework
o Blue = classwork
o Black = important notes
o Green = sample problems
o Purple = essay question
o Get it?
– Ex 2: Have a class signal for confusion. At the beginning of each class hand out a two-sided card one side green one side red. Instruct students to leave the green side up if they feel they understand what you are communicating and turn the card over if they are feeling confused. This is an easy and safe way for teachers to keep a beat of the class, and adjust their teaching accordingly.
6. Use Technology
– Don’t fear the technology.
– We tend to be great with translators and what not, but why not explore some different tactics? Pulling videos from the Internet or creating a flip lesson is a great way to support students, because it allows them to re-watch as many times as needed (and on their time!).
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