1. Elisabeth L. Chan
TESOL 2013 Dallas, TX

2. Agenda
Background
• Motivation
• Definitions
Studies
• 2008
• 2013
Results
• Discussion & Implications
• Limitations & Future Research

3. Acculturative Stress
“Sources of acculturative stress often include
• English language difficulties,
• academic struggles, “Perceived
• cultural adaptation, discrimination is
• problematic perfectionism, a unique source
• lack of social supports, of stress that is
different from
• homesickness,
general stress”
• and perceived discrimination”
(Harrell, 2000;
Meyer, 2003; as cited in
(Tung, 2011) Wei et al., 2008)

4. Effects on Success
(such as gender, race, ability)
(Grant & Zwier, 2011)

5. Student Retention
• “The most important influence leading a
student to recommend the host university to
others was the perception of receiving fair and
equal treatment.” (Lee, 2010)
“Compared with U.S. counterparts, international
students are at greater risk of perceiving or
experiencing discrimination”
(Poyrazli & Lopez, 2007)

6. Define: Linguicism
“ideologies, structures and practices which are
used to legitimate, effectuate, and reproduce
an unequal division of power and resources
(both material and immaterial) between
groups which are defined on the basis of
language”
(Phillipson, 1992; as cited in Bleichenbacher, 2012)

7. Linguicism
indicators of low
particular intelligence
language
varieties and
relational
accents, speech disharmony
dysfluency, and
nonstandard
grammar and social
unacceptability
(Clement & Gardner, 2001, and Lippi-Green, 1996; as cited in Ng, 2007)

8. Define: Neo-racism
“Rationalizes the subordination of people of
color on the basis of culture, which is of
course acquired through acculturation within
an ethnic group, while traditional racism
rationalizes it fundamentally in terms of
biology. Neo-racism is still racism in that it
functions to maintain racial hierarchies of
oppression.”
(Spears, 1999; as cited in Lee & Rice, 2007)

10. 2008 Study
• 5 participants
• 4 males, 1 female
• Ages 18 - 32
• Japanese
• International students at a mid-south university
• Bachelor’s, Master’s, and Ph.D. students
• Biology, Sports Management, Business, Music
• Studied in the US for 1 – 3 years

11. 2008 Study
Student Enrollment by
Ethnicity
3% 3%
Mid-south city
White Population 676,646:
Black 62.2%
Black
White 31.7%
Foreign Hispanic 5%
Asian Asian 1.7%
36% 56% Hispanic Mix 1.2%
Unknown American Indian 0.2%
Other 2.7%
American Indian
Pacific Islander 0.1%
Alaskan
20,214 Total Students

12. Primary Questions 2008
BEFORE STUDYING IN THE U.S.
1. What did they know or were they worried
about racism?
WHILE STUDYING IN THE U.S.
2. What racism had they experienced or seen?
3. How were they treated differently based on
language and culture?
4. What were their perceptions of Americans’
opinions about their language and culture?

13. Prior to Studying Abroad
“I was not aware of racial
The majority discrimination because I
worried, while others thought it turned into a thing
of the past. I did not clearly
did not know of racism understand what it is
or thought it no longer like, especially because there
existed in the U.S. was no such thing in Japan.”
[S2]
“I didn’t really worry… we learned that the US is based
on equality and I thought the racial issues were already
past histories… Additionally, American TV programs…
give us impression that people are equal.” *S1+

14. Experiencing Discrimination
“…when I went to the gym
100% of participants to play basketball, black
experienced some form people did not like to play
of discrimination based with me. I thought they
rejected me because I was
on race or language. Asian.” *S4+
“I felt *discrimination+… in the “people treat me better than
first semester as a graduate before because I speak English
student when a white professor and know how to act right. So
treated me wrong like I was a people might have treated me
baby… maybe because I was differently not because of my
Asian and could not speak race, but because of my
English well.” *S2+ English.” *S1+

15. What Americans (Don’t) Know
All reported that “most people in [mid-
south city] really don’t
Americans knew
know Japanese
very little or nothing cultures and language”
about their culture. [S1]
“[people] think Chinese, Korean, and
Japanese are all the same and understand
Chinese and Korean culture as Japanese
culture.” *S3+

17. 2013 Study
• 56 participants
• 24 males, 32 females
• Ages 17-30+
• African, Asian, Middle Eastern, European, Central
& South American, Caribbean
• International students at a southern university
• 18 Bachelor’s, 17 Master’s, and 21 Ph.D. students
• 40 different majors: arts, sciences, business, etc.
• Studied in the US for 1 – 11 years (exc. 21 years)

18. Student Enrollment
Southern University: Ethnicity
1%1%
White Southern city
6% Population 707,304:
8% Hispanic
White 81.0%
African-American Hispanic 18.7%
Black 8.9%
13%
Non-resident Alien Asian/Pacific 6.9%
55% Mix 2.3%
Asian/Pacific Islander American Indian 0.9%
16% Other 2.7%
American Indian
Other
35,778 Students Total

19. Top 5
Top 5 % of Int’l Top 5 % of
Countries Pop. Participants Participants
China 11.2% India 14%
India 8.9% China 11%
Korea 5.8% Mexico 9%
Saudi Arabia 4.6% Taiwan 5%
Nepal 3.5% Malaysia 5%
3020 Students Total 56 Participants

20. Primary Questions 2013
BEFORE COMING TO THE U.S.
• What perceptions of racism and America did
students have?
WHILE STUDYING IN THE U.S.
• What types of differential treatment (positive or
negative) do students encounter because of
racial, linguistic, and/or cultural differences?
LOOKING TO THE FUTURE
• What can we learn from these encounters to
improve students’ experiences?

21. THEMES
• Significant change in students’ perceptions of
1 Americans’ knowledge and opinions of their countries
• Students’ lack of accurate knowledge and awareness of
2 discrimination
• Challenges to students’ acceptance & intelligence
3
• On campus discrimination
4

22. What Americans Know About Your
1 Country, Language, and Culture
Before coming to the U.S. I thought Americans…
4% 7% 11% Know nothing/little
13%
Have a negative view
Have a positive view
66%
Have a positive &
negative view
Other/unclear

23. 66% of students believed that Americans had a
1 negative view of their country, language, and/or
culture
“I thought that they feel contempt to people from
my country. It made feel fear, because I would have
to study with them.” (Mexican Male)
“I thought that they think Arabs are terrorist and
very conservative. I was afraid that I not gonna be
accepted by *this+ culture.” (Saudi female)

24. What Americans Know About Your
1 Country, Language, and Culture
“*Ghana is+ just one of the poor countries in Africa”
(Ghanian Male)
“I thought Americans would say that we ride
elephants to go to school, and do farming all day
long” (Malian female)
“we… never take shower, we are very selfish… and disapprove
war… Indeed, I came to the US with particular thoughts about
the American way of life.” (French Female)
“people think we are still poor” (Korean female)

25. 1 How did their perceptions change?
75% of participants
How No Mind How did it change?
changed their views on
BEFORE STUDYING IN THE U.S. many? Change Changed 0 - + +/- ?
Americans’ knowledge of
Americanstheir country, language,
know nothing/little
and culture once they 6 0 6 3 2 1
about my country
began studying in 21 (50%) added a
Americans have a negative view 37 10 27 7 8 9 3
America positive view
Americans have a positive view 7 2 5 4 1
Americans have positive & 7 (17%) added a 8 (19%) now
2 negative view
1 1 1
think
negative views
Americans
Other/unclear 4 1 3 1 2
know nothing
TOTAL 56 14 42 or very 1 13 15 5
8 little

26. 1 How did their perceptions change?
“People seem to be very polite and to follow
all the "politically correctness" that the
system forces them to follow.” (Greek female)
“after I came, I feel that Americans are very
sensitive about racism than I thought
before.” (Turkish female)
Americans have a "dark ages" impression of my country… Their
thoughts on my language and culture showed how ignorant and
uneducated they mostly were. People thought my language and
culture was barbaric and restrictive. (Nigerian female)

27. Students’ lack of accurate knowledge and
2 awareness of discrimination
International students…
9% Knew nothing/little of
19% racism
16%
Knew some, didn't affect
Knew some, affected
30%
26%
Thought racism no longer
exists
Other/Unclear

28. Students’ lack of accurate knowledge and
2 awareness of discrimination
“I obtain the information about racism in
America from media that showed everything
is "peace". However, some of my friends who
had ever studied in U.S. told me that this is
not true.” (Taiwanese male)
“I knew about the whole history of slavery and racism
in the U.S. but thought that things had completely
turned around. So, I was excited. It wasn't until I got
my visa that a consulate officer told me that things
were still not 100% perfect in Mississippi, where I was
headed and I freaked out a little.” (Cameroonian
female)

29. 35% of students had no/little knowledge of
2 discrimination before studying abroad or
believed it to be a thing of the past.
“I didn't know anything about racism in
America. I was too young and naive.”
(Mexican male)
“It was before in the 19th Century but it has been
removed after 1960. Eradication of racism makes
comfortable for us to study in peace environment.”
(Nepalese male)
“I didn't know what level it could reach and
most of all,i didn't know it was still present.”
(Italian female)

30. Students’ lack of accurate knowledge and
2 awareness of discrimination
“*acts of discrimination are+
Those who reported not
experiencing discrimination often invisible to the casual
were unaware of racism or observer, and they are
knew little and did not worry sometimes not even
about it prior to studying articulated as forms of
abroad. oppression” (Eriksen, 1992)
“One can be oppressed unknowingly but offense
requires (logically or conceptually) the
awareness and acknowledgment of its victim”
(Gay, 1998)

31. 2 Looking at the Numbers
Discrimination By race By Language By Culture
YES
NO
32
18
37
10
47% 22
18
Other 3
reported linguistic
7 13
Did not answer 3 2and/or cultural
3
discrimination as racism
Race reported as Linguicism Neo-racism Unclear
racism reported as racism reported as racism
16 8 10 8

32. 2 Looking at the Numbers
Discrimination By race By Language By Culture
YES 32 37 22
NO 18 14 (78%) experienced
10 18
Other 3 differential treatment
7 13
Only 4 (7%)
Did not answer 3 2 3
based on language reported
experiencing
and/or culture no differential
treatment
NO RACISM NO RACE, LANGUAGE CULTURE ONLY LANGUAGE
LANGUAGE, ONLY AND CULTURE
CULTURE
18 4 5 2 7

33. Racism is used as an umbrella term for any
2 type of discrimination
“some fewer others took advantage of my
initial inability of speaking and
understanding English well enough to make
fun of me and my home country with
stereotypical jokes.” (Italian female)
R “I had a few guys who kept distant
after learning I was gay. I have also
been asked about killing Jesus
Christ. (I'm Jewish)” (Israeli male)

34. 3
Challenges to Acceptance & Intelligence
“But the rest are not that understanding at
all and look at us when we are talking in
our own language like we are so strange
and unacceptable.” (Iranian male)
“Every time I was placed in a group project, I
always had to prove my intelligence to the other
Americans. Even as a graduate student. Many
other international students or my friends had
the same experience.” (Barbadian female)

35. 3 Looking at the Numbers
% Reported Discrimination by Race
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
White Black Asian Latino Middle West
(n=8) (n=6) (n=30) (n=7) East (n=4) Indian
(n=1)
Racial Linguistic Cultural Any

36. Non-white students were less accepted and
3 faced more racial and overall discrimination
“I have heard and witnessed many
situations, which relate or somehow relate
with the racism matter. Most of them are
about the black people, Hispanic, and
Asians. But most of cases are black people.”
(Vietnamese female)
“Luckily for me I'm white (not meant in a racist
way, but I think it makes life easier here), so people
don't really see I'm foreign and even when they
know they don't really mind… Even though it's
convenient for me I think it's bad for people I'm
friends with.” (Dutch male)

37. 3
Non-acceptance by Race
“Jokes about being asian.” (Thai female)
“Name callings, hiring process on
campus, being scolded at the supermarket”
(Malaysian male)
“People calling me racist names a few times
or people like me (from Hispanic/Latino
origin).” (Mexican female)

38. 3
Non-acceptance by Language
People would not talk to me as often as with other
local people. They might not understand what I said
sometimes. (Hong Kongese male)
“I have experienced a hidden racism… they have shown
intolerance to my difficulties with the language even
when they knew that I was coming to study English.
(Chilean male)
“A few people sometimes ask very rudely for me to repeat
what I say like I'm speaking some alien language. Others seem
to like my accent… Either way, I feel like an animal on display”
(Cameroonian female)

39. 3
Non-acceptance by Culture
“In Russia women are not very emancipated, it makes me
look like immature and [dependent] person in the US.
Some people like it and think that it is charming, other
think that it is ridiculous.” (Russian female)
“And they use to make fun of me because I use knife
and fork to eat that. Sometimes one person or
another would talk about my clothes” (Brazilian
female)
“People not wanting to shake your hand. People not
wanting to sit next to you. And people condemning
our meals/foods.” (Nigerian female)

40. 3
Challenges to Intelligence
“when… they know I am not an native speaker, they don’t
take my talking seriously… they… think like "oh they
would not do anything good". They do not say that, but I
am sensitive enough to understand. (Vietnamese female)
“I had a lady in the Student Accounting Department
treat me like an idiot once I started talking and she
heard the accent. I was mad walked
away…”(Barbadian female)
I've been treated as if I was mentally incapacitated, I
was made fun of both in a bad and in a good way.
(Italian female)

41. 4
On Campus Discrimination: Students
When I go to the class, it is really hard… Especially the group
discuss, the member might think I am an international
student so I might not have a great answer to contribute the
assignment . (Taiwanese female)
In my English class we formed small groups to work…
my group pretty much ignored me and any
comments I had to make. I could see they thought
my input was valueless. (Mexican female)
“people [in class] show surprise at my knowledge and
experience with technology because they did not expect that
we have ‘such things’. Americans really think that life in my
country is like living in hell.” (Nigerian female)

42. 4
On Campus Discrimination: Professors
“once (here, [Southern University]) a professor thought my
Asian education didn't work with her taste.” (Taiwanese
female)
“Also, some people have been impolite when I have reached
their office with an appointment: I was not invited to have a
sit, but I had to talk from the door.” (Chilean male)
I got all As with one C, then I don't need to explain why I got
that C in that class. Racism is real…” (Chinese female)
Professors like those who talk fluently.... and they easily pass
viva exams just because of that... But though we are good in
subject... we fail... This is not fair (Indian male)

43. 4
On Campus Discrimination: Jobs
“I only had one bad experience that was when I got a job
at school and the person… asked my boss: "are you sure
you want to hire an international student?". (Brazilian
female)
I attended a university in Mississippi and I believe
that I wasn't given an assistantship because of my
nationality. (Cameroonian female)
“…the racism which is here is mainly from the white
Americans and I couldn't get a proper on campus job due to
this. It's a cliched mind that they have got thinking we don't
speak proper English and we are not so very good in getting
things done.” (Indian male)

44. Implications
Reform pre-orientation and cultural orientation
• Unmet expectations = poorer adaptation
and increased depression levels
(Smith & Khawaja, 2011)
• Present realistic expectations regarding jobs
(Khawaja & Stallman, 2011)
• “Stress the importance of appropriate
preparation, both at the stages of pre-
departure and on arrival”
(Ramburuth & Tani, 2009)

45. Provide special designated support
systems and student led systems
• Often don’t trust professional avenues or only in
emergencies (Lee & Rice, 2007; Ly, 2008)
• Implement buddy programs tailored to specific
cultural backgrounds, which won’t work unless
ELLs are “considered active members of the
classroom community” (Lee & Rice, 2007; Curran, 2003)
• Include “coping skills, aiding adjustment to USA
culture, offering culturally sensitive
counseling, addressing acculturative stressors, and
normalising students’ experiences” (Smith &
Khawaja, 2011)

46. Educate faculty and staff on critical language
teaching & intercultural communication
• Overemphasis on communicative competence causes a
“lack of comprehension of language as a collection of
meanings that plays an important role in how people
interpret themselves and the world in which they live.”
(Pennycook, 1990; as cited in Pessoa & Freitas, 2012)
• Don’t expect the students to “adapt” alone;
faculty, staff, and students have to reflect and be aware
(Lee, 2007)
• Target the fears that American students have and
educate faculty in intercultural awareness”
(Charles-Toussaint & Crowson, 2010; Hung & Hyun, 2010)

47. Incorporate diversity and intercultural
issues into curriculum
• Campus-organized diversity discussions, interact with…
diverse cultural backgrounds, take courses with materials
on race and ethnicity = greater levels of learning and
development (Glass, 2012)
• Implement anti-racist pedagogy. Changes in
attitudes, behaviors and achievement occur only when
the entire school environment changes to demonstrate a
multicultural atmosphere (Curran, 2003)
• Another study suggests that sharing counter narratives of
strategies for navigating the educational system =
educational success through the graduate level
(Briscoe, 2003; as cited in Grant & Zwier, 2011)

48. Limitations
Number of
Participants
Follow-up Needed
Proportion of
Country
Participation

49. Summary
Majority
Experience
Discrimination
A Lack of
Knowledge and
Perceived Awareness
Negative
Perceptions
Change

50. • Bleichenbacher, L. (2012). Linguicism in Hollywood movies? representations of, and audience
reactions to multilingualism in mainstream movie dialogues. Multilingua, 31, 155-176. doi:
•
10.1515/multi-2012-0008
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Contact Info: References & Handout available at:
ElisabethLChan@gmail.com http://www.slideshare.net/ElisabethChan
University of Hawai’i at Manoa – Second Language Studies Department
University of North Texas – UNT-International