Theory, The Chinese Student, And Western Higher Education

Abstract

The internationalization of Western universities means that Chinese students often comprise a significant group of international learners. Instructors realize that knowledge about these students’ learning backgrounds and cultural and social contexts enables them and their institutions to meet these students’ learning needs. The authors discuss frameworks such as Leininger’s transcultural theory, Bhabha’s “Third Space” in postcolonial theory, and Callero’s “Globalized self,” all of which offer a hybridized perspective on identity formation with which to understand the international student, their place within an International M.Ed. Program at a Western university, and the learning and teaching that promotes success for the student, instructors, and the university.