With growing numbers of Chinese students seeking Western education, there is an increasing need for British teachers to have a good understanding of how to develop resilience in Chinese students as well as Western students. Hence, this is a PGCE research project investigating the types of techniques Western teachers use to promote resilience in Chinese students and the effectiveness of such strategies.

1. O P E N I N G
R E S I L I E N C E :
A C R O S S -
C U L T U R A L
P E R S P E C T I V E
M E G A N N G

2. Resilience
BACKGROUND CONTEXT
§ The potential and ability to handle, manage and adapt
to adverse conditions (Windle, 2011)
§ Linked to many positive life outcomes:
Superior academic performance (Mwangi et al., 2015)
Better mental health (Rajabi et al., 2014)

3. M E G A N N G
H O W
S T U D E N T S
A C R O S S
C U L T U R E S
D E V E L O P
R E S I L I E N C E
Western (British)
§ Praise and positive feedback to improve
students’ self-efficacy (Shu and Lam, 2016)
§ Social support acts as a secure base to
return to in times of failure (Bowlby, 1969)
Chinese (China)
§ Constructive feedback (Shu and Lam,
2016)
§ Social support acts as a motivator
(Chen and Wong, 2014) or a source of
pressure (Ni, Li and Zhao, 2014)

4. Research
Questions
1. What techniques do Western
teachers use to promote
resilience in Chinese students?
2. How effective are these strategies
in developing Chinese students’
resilience in the short term?

5. Method
• Observed a class of 8-12 Chinese students (15 to 17 years
old) with low English language ability
• In English, Science, Business, Humanities and Pastoral
Lessons
• Paid attention to every time a student showed lack of
resilience

6. Method
• One week of observations Might not be a fair evaluation
• Provided questionnaires to all 5 British teachers who were
observed teaching this class
• Informed Consent and Debrief Forms

7. W h a t t e c h n i q u e s d o W e s t e r n t e a c h e r s
u s e t o p r o m o t e r e s i l i e n c e i n C h i n e s e
s t u d e n t s ?
R E S U LT S
“Try in English please”
“We are going to try in English now”
“£1 every time you speak Chinese.”

8. W h a t t e c h n i q u e s d o W e s t e r n t e a c h e r s
u s e t o p r o m o t e r e s i l i e n c e i n C h i n e s e
s t u d e n t s ?
R E S U LT S
• 38 techniques
• Most widely used are General Praise,
Instruc9on, Encouraging
Determina9on/Persistence,
Modelling, Scaffolding and Peer
Support
Techniques Used
Number of 3mes observed
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50

9. W h a t t e c h n i q u e s d o W e s t e r n t e a c h e r s
u s e t o p r o m o t e r e s i l i e n c e i n C h i n e s e
s t u d e n t s ? ( Q u e s t i o n n a i r e )
R E S U LT S
Percentage of Teachers who Use this Technique
Types of Techniques
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Praise Scaffolding
(transla9on;
sentence
starters)
Encouraging
determina9on
and persistance
Rephrasing
what they have
said
Providing
second chances
Knowing the
students
Modelling
resilience
Approaching
those who
struggle
General
encouragement
Ques9oning Providing
differen9ated
learning
objec9ves
Cogni9ve
reframing
Locus of control
awareness

10. REPORT USING
THE SAME
TECHNIQUES TO
PROMOTE
RESILIENCE IN
CHINESE AND
WESTERN
STUDENTS
100%
Interestingly…

11. H O W E F F E C T I V E A R E T H E S E S T R A T E G I E S I N
D E V E L O P I N G S T U D E N T S ’ S H O R T - T E R M
R E S I L I E N C E ? ( Q u e s t i o n n a i r e )
R E S U LT S
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Posi9ve Mixed No effect
Western
Chinese
Percentage of teachers’ responses
Types of pupil responses to the techniques

12. H O W E F F E C T I V E A R E T H E S E S T R A T E G I E S
I N D E V E L O P I N G S T U D E N T S ’ S H O R T - T E R M
R E S I L I E N C E ? ( O B S E R V A T I O N S )
R E S U LT S
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
Posi9ve Response
No Effect/Nega9ve Response
Types of Techniques
Number of Responses Observed
Highly effec9ve: Modelling,
Scaffolding and Correc9ve feedback
Highly ineffec9ve: General Praise

13. Conclusion
1. What techniques do Western teachers
use to promote resilience in Chinese
students?
• A wide variety of techniques
• Mainly praise, encouraging ‘trying
again’, scaffolding
2. How effective are these strategies in
developing Chinese students’ resilience in
the short term?
• Mixed effectiveness
• Highly effective: Modelling, Scaffolding
and Corrective Feedback
• Least effective: General Praise

14. Implications
Increased CPD or Teacher Training Workshops
on:
• How students across cultures develop
resilience
• Which techniques best suit students of
different cultural backgrounds
Important when:
• Increasing numbers of Chinese students
are seeking Western Educa9on (Zhao, 2016)

15. Evaluation
Mixed-methods approach
Ideal opportunity for research:
Students had compara9vely low
mo9va9on during this period as
the holiday was drawing near
How are the resilience-promo9ng techniques
different across subjects and how effec9ve
are these techniques on Chinese students?
Small student numbers as many went home early
Sampling bias – Students in acendance
had greater mo9va9on than those who
started their holiday early

16. THANK YOU!

17. R E F E R E N C E S
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Rajabi, S., Assareh, M., Shiri, E., Keshvari, F., Mikaieli, F. and Nikdast, S. P. (2014) ‘Evalua9on of Students’ Mental Health and
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Zhao, Y. (2016) ‘A narra9ve inquiry into foreign teachers’ perplexes in mixed-cultural classes’, Cogent Educa$on, 3(1244027),
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R E F E R E N C E S