Tao, Xi;
(2022)
Becoming a Global Citizen Through Study Abroad:
A Longitudinal Study of Chinese Postgraduate Students’
Experience in the UK.
Doctoral thesis (Ph.D), UCL (University College London).
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Abstract
Given the dramatically increasing number of Chinese students who study abroad following the evolution of globalisation, a new era of China’s development calls for international higher education with the aim of cultivating global citizens who are able to learn, participate and contribute to an interconnected world of diversity, complexity and uncertainty. However, there is little evidence for understanding the relationship between Chinese students’ global citizenship and their experiences studying abroad. This research explores how Chinese international students perceive themselves as global citizens and examines the specific skills they have developed while studying in the UK. Global Citizen (GC) is interpreted through three lenses as neoliberal (working in a global economy), cosmopolitan (engaging people from different cultures) and critical pedagogy (making sense of the globalised world). The research applies a qualitative approach within a longitudinal study consisting of questionnaires and in-depth interviews undertaken at the beginning, middle and end of nineteen students’ postgraduate programmes from September 2019 to July 2020. Based on Transformative Learning Theory, the findings demonstrate that overseas study can enhance students’ global outlook, improving their understanding of global issues, cosmopolitan value, intercultural competence, critical thinking, life skills, academic skills, social participation and digital literacy. The participants’ change of perspectives and development of global skills were triggered by six types of experiences, including being out of their comfort zone, encountering otherness, pedagogical adjustment, social participation, accessing global media and COVID-19. The study challenges previous stereotypes towards Chinese students and highlights the learners’ agencies on self-reflection, frequent intercultural engagement, and proactive social participation as the fundamental driving forces towards becoming global citizens. The recommendations from this research could inform policymakers and educators to offer better global education practice and support for international students.
| Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Qualification: | Ph.D |
| Title: | Becoming a Global Citizen Through Study Abroad: A Longitudinal Study of Chinese Postgraduate Students’ Experience in the UK |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | Copyright © The Author 2022. Original content in this thesis is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0) Licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/). Any third-party copyright material present remains the property of its respective owner(s) and is licensed under its existing terms. Access may initially be restricted at the author’s request. |
| UCL classification: | UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education > UCL Institute of Education UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education > UCL Institute of Education > IOE - Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education UCL |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10150522 |
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