Whenever people switch countries, a lot takes place behind the scenes. The most notable and consequential challenge faced by international students is cultural acclimatization. It’s the process of disengaging from one culture and adopting a different culture in the host country. Culture is a full-bodied way of living. It’s everything we know because it’s how we were raised.
Culture is defined by the Concise Oxford Dictionary as: The customs, ideas, and social behavior of a particular people or group. The concise definition does not do justice to the impact of experiencing culture shock, particularly as a young or adolescent student abroad. It can be brutal, because everything that was taken for granted is now foreign. Even things that appear similar are nuanced and quite different in the host country. Much the same is true within English-speaking countries; major cultural differences certainly exist. There is no easy way to avoid culture shock.
How International Schools Cushion Against Culture Shock
Culture shock is a reality faced by people who move from one culture to another. It often hits home harder when moving from a free society like Western Europe to a more conservative society like Eastern Europe, or between certain countries in the Middle East and Western countries. Every distinct group of people has a unique culture that defines its way of life. International schools serve as a bridge for mitigating cultural difficulties.
There is a clear impact of culture shock on foreign learners in a host country. In fact, the best international schools worldwide place tremendous emphasis on foreign student acclimatization since it is one of the most important determinants of success in these programs. Many of the finest international schools have dedicated teams of experts working to smooth the transition. These include counselors, teachers, school managers, coaches, and assistants to help deal with these issues.
How Important is Language Learning as Part of Cultural Immersion?
Language is incredibly important; it’s actually sacrosanct. It is the communication medium in any given country. As soon as students arrive at an international school abroad, language quickly becomes the focal point. It’s the way that everyone communicates, often through the world’s dominant lingua franca (English).
Consider several dominant European languages – Portuguese, French, Italian, Spanish, or German – and how they may function at international schools in Asia. Students may find themselves in a host country where the dominant language is not their mother tongue. This is when effective language learning becomes crucial. And it’s also the one area that international schools shine – because it’s their specialty.
There are four components to language study. These include reading, listening, speaking, and writing. There are productive and receptive skills. Language is multifaceted and is learned through engagement, interaction, and immersion, both in the classroom and outside of the classroom. International schools can facilitate language instruction and learning in many different ways. And they do precisely that with their robust programs.
Much the same as true of TEFL instruction, where English is taught as a foreign language to non-English speakers. It begins with a series of warmers, often games or teacher-led activities with students. These are followed by student group activities and engagements. The goals of each language learning lesson are set in advance, as part of the curriculum, for language instruction.
The Four Pillars of Fluency: Moving Beyond the Textbook
Teachers then begin assessing the proficiency of students in the foreign language. These tests serve as guidelines for determining placement, and the level of instruction needed. A combination of authentic learning materials, realia, books, articles, videos, and classroom activities provide the necessary direction for advancing language learning.
Each international school can adopt a different approach, but all methods are geared towards real learning. Formal instruction and casual engagement between students help to drive learning activity. Cultural immersion is the process by which new students from abroad are exposed to all aspects of the host country’s culture. This includes cuisine, social activities, sports, festivals, holidays, the arts, the education system, and so forth.
The more exposure students have, the more familiar things become. The finer international schools can accelerate language learning through dedicated programs that pair local students with foreign students. By forging friendships and close relationships between students and mentors, or fellow students, it’s possible to fast-track the learning process. It can certainly help to minimize the impact of culture shock, and deliver improved overall academic results down the line.