NGUYEN_Tien_Cuong-thesis_nosignature

Work Integrated Learning: A Case Study of Chinese Students in an Australian University By Tien Cuong Nguyen Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education College of Arts and Education Institute of Sustainability and Liveable Cities Victoria University Melbourne, Australia 2020 Acknowledgements First of all, I sincerely thank my principal supervisors, Dr Margaret Malloch and Dr Gabriella Pretto for their unlimited support, timely advice and high quality feedback Appreciation goes next to my former supervisor, Dr Ian Ling, for his guidance on forming the research idea and turning it into a research proposal I would also like to acknowledge the assistance provided by Chinese graduates and Victoria University‟s staff Their participation and honest responses in the online surveys, semi-structured interviews, and follow-up telephone calls provided me much needed information for the research Thanks also to Dr Rachel Le Rossignol for her invaluable editing and proofreading services provided prior to submission This thesis has been professionally copy edited according to the Australian Standards for Editing Practice Specifically the standards applied included D1, D3 to D5 and E1, E2 and E4 These standards relate to appropriate academic editing, including clarity of expression, spelling, punctuation and grammar, and ensuring the document meets the examining university's format, style and sequencing requirements Finally, to my lovely wife Xuan and our four beautiful children – Alexandra, Anthony, Arianna and Ashley, thank you very much for being so supportive throughout the years I would not have been able to complete this research without your understanding and encouragement i Declaration of authenticity I, Tien Cuong Nguyen, declare that the EdD thesis entitled Work Integrated Learning: A Case Study of Chinese Students in an Australian University is no more than 60,000 words in length including quotes and exclusive of tables, figures, appendices, bibliography, references and footnotes This thesis contains no material that has been submitted previously, in whole or in part, for the award of any other academic degree or diploma Except where otherwise indicated, this thesis is my own work Signature: Date: 05 March 2020 ii ABSTRACT International students make a major contribution to Australia, financially and through adding to human capital for a skilled workforce Given the significant role that international students play in Australia‟s education, their employment and an understanding of their related issues requires further examination In response to the demand for greater employability and graduate attributes, Australian institutions have increasingly embedded Work Integrated Learning (WIL) into their curricula In order to conduct successful WIL programmes, it is of great importance to gain an insight into the experience and perceptions of key stakeholders, especially international students who are a valuable student cohort in Australian Universities In designing WIL models, Australian institutions largely assume that students, regardless of their background and context, desire the same certain outcomes which are often common to most, a „one size fits all‟ solution To date, the effectiveness of a uniform application of WIL models has attracted little attention, especially from the perspectives of international students who, on completion, return to their country where they encounter different working environments, and business protocols This study employs a qualitative approach to data collection and analysis and uses two instruments for collecting data, namely an online survey and semi-structured interviews The two groups of stakeholders who participated in the study were Chinese graduates from Victoria University (VU) who undertook some form of WIL or work placement in Australia as part of their coursework, and VU staff who were engaged in the management, supervision, development or delivery of WIL programmes Chinese students represent the largest international student cohort at VU; therefore, this particular student cohort was identified as a key focus of the study This study explores and interprets the experiences and perceptions of international students and staff from VU regarding the value of WIL programmes in terms of graduate attributes, graduate employability, challenges and institutional support It reveals several main themes regarding the experience and perceptions of WIL by VU international students and staff These themes revolve around the contribution of WIL to the development of international students‟ language, interpersonal skills, technical knowledge, cultural awareness, and personal attributes For each theme, the study iii analyses the expectations of international students, the development of relevant skills through WIL, and the extent to which these skills are transferrable to the work settings in their home country The study also examines the challenges that international students face as a result of their international student status, the lack of prior work experience, the lack of an understanding of the Australian labour market, and their financial constraints It also explores the extent to which the University provides support for WIL and provides suggestions to improve the development and implementation of WIL programmes These themes are discussed with specific reference to VU‟s Chinese student cohort Graduate employability for international students is the running concept that informs and connects emerging themes for the key findings of the study It is found that VU‟s placement models have, to a large extent, been implemented in alignment with the University‟s core values and missions for graduate employability However, mostly the same approach has been used to facilitate the delivery of WIL to students while the practical needs and circumstances of international students are not always attended to The findings of the research reinforce those of previous studies, which acknowledge the positive benefits of WIL to the outcomes of international graduate students On the other hand, it also raises concerns over the multiple challenges that international students face during their WIL participation These include language and communication barriers, inadequate knowledge of the workplace, cultural differences, and international student status The study shows that there are some differences between the employment culture in Australia and China that suggest the WIL models for international students in general, and Chinese students in particular, by VU should be developed and implemented with more attention to the particular needs of students and take into account their possible context of employment following their graduation The findings indicate that more support needs to be allocated to international students since the challenges they face are specific in nature, differing from those needs of domestic students iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgements i Declaration of authenticity ii ABSTRACT iii TABLE OF CONTENTS v LIST OF TABLES x LIST OF FIGURES xi PREAMBLE xii CHAPTER INTRODUCTION 1.1 Problem statement 1.2 Aim 1.3 Scope 1.4 Research questions 1.5 Overview of the investigation into WIL for international students in Australia CHAPTER LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Introduction 2.1.1 Changing agendas for higher education institutions 2.1.2 Work Integrated Learning as an educational imperative 2.1.3 Different forms of Work Integrated Learning 10 2.1.4 Theoretical framing of Work Integrated Learning 12 2.1.5 Aims of Work Integrated Learning programmes 15 2.2 Australia’s higher education context for Work Integrated Learning 16 2.3 Graduate attributes and employability 19 2.3.1 Graduate attributes 19 2.3.2 Graduate employability 21 2.4 Work Integrated Learning benefits for domestic and international students 23 v 2.4.1 Career benefits 23 2.4.2 Academic benefits 24 2.4.3 Personal benefits 25 2.5 Challenges for Work Integrated Learning implementation and for international students 25 2.5.1 Challenges for Work Integrated Learning implementation 26 2.5.2 Challenges for international students participating in Work Integrated Learning 28 2.5.3 Good practices 30 2.6 Conclusion 32 CHAPTER RESEARCH DESIGN 32 3.1 Introduction 33 3.2 Research methodology 33 3.2.1 Qualitative research 33 3.2.2 Case study approach 34 3.2.3 Evaluation approach 38 3.2.4 Research setting 39 3.3 Sampling and participants 40 3.4 Ethical considerations and ethics approval 44 3.5 Research instruments 46 3.5.1 Research instrument 1: Online survey 46 3.5.2 Research instrument 2: Semi-structured interviews 50 3.6 Analysis of data 51 3.7 Representativeness and generalisability 59 3.8 Rigour and trustworthiness of data 60 3.9 Conclusion 63 CHAPTER FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 64 4.1 Introduction 64 vi 4.2 Work Integrated Learning and the development of students’ English language skills 64 4.2.1 Language needs and expectations of Chinese students from Work Integrated Learning 65 4.2.2 Work Integrated Learning’s contribution to language development for Chinese students 67 4.2.3 Challenges in language development for Chinese students through Work Integrated Learning 70 4.2.4 Recommendations for Victoria University 78 4.3 Work Integrated Learning and the enhancement of cultural awareness 80 4.3.1 Chinese students and cultural expectations 82 4.3.2 Work Integrated Learning’s contribution to Chinese students’ cultural awareness 83 4.3.3 Cultural challenges in the Australian workplace 88 4.3.4 Chinese returnees and the issue of workplace culture fit 92 4.3.5 Recommendations for Victoria University 96 4.4 Work Integrated Learning and the enhancement of interpersonal communication 100 4.4.1 Work Integrated Learning’s contribution to interpersonal communication skills 101 4.4.2 Interpersonal communication challenges in the Australian workplace 104 4.4.3 Interpersonal communication challenges as Chinese returnees 107 4.4.4 Recommendations for Victoria University 109 4.5 Work Integrated Learning and the development of technical skills 111 4.5.1 Chinese students and expectations for graduate employability 112 4.5.2 Work Integrated Learning’s contribution to technical skill development 113 4.5.3 Technical skills and knowledge transfer to Chinese workplace 118 4.5.4 Recommendations for Victoria University 123 vii 4.6 Work Integrated Learning and the development of personal attributes 124 4.7 Chinese students’ readiness to connect with the Australian workplace 128 4.7.1 The issue of international student status 129 4.7.2 The issue of prior work experience 132 4.7.3 The issue of understanding the Australian labour market 133 4.7.4 The financial issue 134 4.8 Institutional support for Work Integrated Learning international students 138 4.8.1 Institutional support for international students during placements 139 4.8.2 Challenges in implementing Work Integrated Learning from an institutional perspective 144 4.9 Conclusion 150 CHAPTER CONCLUSION 152 5.1 Introduction 152 5.2 Summary of investigation into Chinese students and Work Integrated Learning programmes 152 5.3 Research questions and key findings 153 5.3.1 Research question - What are the Work Integrated Learning programs implemented at Victoria University? 153 5.3.2 Research question - Opportunities as experienced by onshore Chinese students and Victoria University staff in Work Integrated Learning programmes 154 5.3.3 Research question - Difficulties as experienced by onshore Chinese students and Victoria University staff in Work Integrated Learning programmes 155 5.4 Recommendations for practice 157 5.4.1 Improving Work Integrated Learning administration 158 5.4.2 Improving the support structure for international students 160 5.4.3 Providing simulated and authentic professional settings 162 viii 5.4.4 Enhancing international students’ language skills and cultural competence 164 5.4.5 Maintaining industry partnership and supporting industry partners 165 5.4.6 Connecting with students’ home employment 167 5.5 Limitations of the study 168 5.6 Contributions of the study 170 5.7 Future research 171 5.8 Conclusion 172 REFERENCES 174 APPENDICES 196 Appendix Survey sample for graduates in English 196 Appendix Survey sample for graduates in Chinese 213 ix 215 216 217 218 219 220 221 222 223 224 225 226 227 228 229