Students’ perceptions and experiences of teaching and learning in transnational higher education in China: implications of the intercultural dialogue framework

Abstract

Despite the rapid development of TNHE over the past decade, research studies on students' perceptions and experiences of teaching and learning at TNHE programmes in China are very limited. Using both surveys (328) and follow-up interviews ( 40) from students at two Anglo-Sino programmes, this study explores students' perceptions and experiences of teaching and learning in TNHE in China. Drawing on the five components of the intercultural dialogue framework, this paper reveals that Chinese students' experience of teaching was fragmented not least through a mixture of cultural approaches to pedagogy including a teacher-centered approach by the local Chinese teachers and a student-centered approach by the foreign teachers, with the latter generally preferred by the students. The findings yield several important implications for contextualised curriculum and careful consideration of the TNHE learning environment in China.

Students’ Learning Experiences in the Foundation Year of a Sino-Foreign Joint University

“…Contextual differences between China and Australia, as well as the obstacles learners met when they went overseas have been reported. Also, [3] explored the gap between two education systems, which brought a difficult adjustment to students. However, there is a lack of the detailed teaching styles and approaches adopted in TNHE programs from students' perspectives, which requires specifying.…”

“…Generally 'effective teaching' can be interpreted as teaching that pays attention to students and their study [14]. However, within the TNHE context, it is more complex and requires considering more elements, including people, cultures, contexts and modes of teaching [3]. As a result, to gain comprehensive understanding of whether TNHE achieve effective teaching, students' learning experiences will be investigated.…”

“…Although TNHE has developed rapidly over the past decade, there is still concern about its sustainability for which is considered as a second choice, compared with domestic and overseas higher education [2]. As mentioned by [3], the learning experiences of students is the principal factor affecting their satisfaction and achievement, and even the reputation of their school. Hence, if TNHE would like to remain competitive in the higher education market in China, it is vital to understand and improve students' learning experiences.…”

“…Hence, if TNHE would like to remain competitive in the higher education market in China, it is vital to understand and improve students' learning experiences. Nevertheless, previous studies mainly researched the academic experiences of international students, only very few focused on joint programs [3]. Furthermore, nearly no research specifically examined joint universities from the perspective of students' experiences.…”

Exploring undergraduates' experiences of teaching and learning in a Chinese-Australian programme: An intercultural dialogue perspective

“…China has 2,447 transnational programmes and institutions approved by the Ministry of Education (2022), with 500,000 students on campus and 16,000,000 graduates (Wang and Devarajoo, 2022). Despite the huge number, studies on students' experience of teaching and learning are limited (Wang, 2016) and students' voices have largely been overlooked and underresearched (Liu et al, 2021). Recent studies (Chen, 2021;Dai et al, 2019;Liu et al, 2021) took a closer look at lecturers' and students' teaching and learning experiences of transnational institutions and programmes.…”