International Student Academic Support: A comparison of the motivations of a Chinese international student and his instructor

Abstract

The foremost resource in helping non-native students to navigate western academia is the teacher. Therefore, this study attends to the expectations of an English composition teacher and his Chinese international student through a comparative analysis of their perspectives and strategies. This research finds many commonalities of expectations between the two, and a few dissimilarities, which affect motivation. Additionally, it discovers coping strategies used by the student to meet teacher expectations and strategies used by the instructor to help the student meet expectations. Finally, this study calls for more research into the available resources for internationals, and more training for teachers.