Relational Barriers and Benefits of Peer Mentoring Programs: Focusing on International Social Work Students in Australia
Keywords:
International student support, Social work education, Peer mentoring, Cultural differencesAbstract
The growing number of international students in Australia calls for increased attention to these students’ adjustment to ensure their transition experiences are smooth and supported. This study investigates the impact of peer mentoring on international student transitional experiences by focusing on a pilot Peer Mentoring Program (PMP) which was implemented in a social work graduate program in Australia. Data obtained from focus groups with students revealed that differences in cultural backgrounds and languages caused relational challenges in peer mentoring groups. Additionally, it was found that the PMP is beneficial for both mentors and mentees. Through peer mentoring relationships mentors not only reflected on their social work profession principles, learning and values, but also developed their social work skills.
References
Arthur, N. (2004). Counseling international students: Clients from around the world. New York, NY: Kluwer Academic/Plenum. Australian Association of Social Workers. (2010). Code of ethics. Retrieved from https://www.aasw.asn.au
Australian Association of Social Workers. (2012). Australian social work education and accreditation standards. Retrieved from https://www.aasw.asn.auAustralian Bureau of Statistics. (2016). Migration (No. 3412.0). Canberra, ACT: Author.
Australian Trade Commission. (2015). Australian international education 2025: outcomes from AIE2025 consultation workshops April 2015. Retrieved from http://www.austrade.gov.au/ArticleDocuments/5758/AIE2025%20Consultation%20Workshop%20 Report%20EXEC%20SUM.pdf.aspx
Babbie, E., & Benaquisto, L. (2010). Fundamentals of social research. Toronto, ONT: Nelson.
Baird, S. L. (2016). Conceptualizing anxiety among social work students: Implications for social work education, Social Work Education, 35(6), 719–732. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02615479.2016.1184639
Beltman, S., & Schaeben, M. (2012). Institution-wide peer mentoring: Benefits for mentors. The International Journal of the First Year in Higher Education, 3(2), 33–44.
Blackmore, J., Gribble, C., Farrell, L., Rahimi, M., Arber, R., & Devlin, M. (2014). Australian international graduates and the transition to employment, Melbourne, VIC: Deakin University.
Brisset, C., Safdar, S., Lewis, J. R., & Sabatier, C. (2010). Psychological and sociocultural adaptation of university students in France: The case of Vietnamese international students. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 34(4), 413–426.
Cheng, C. (1986). The concept of face and its Confucian roots. Journal of Chinese Philosophy, 13(3), 329–348.
Colley, H. (2003). Mentoring as an inclusive device for the excluded: Black students’ experience of a Mentoring scheme. Social Work Education, 19, 597–607.
Colvin, J. W., & Ashman M. (2010). Roles, risks, and benefits of peer mentoring relationships in higher education. Mentoring & Tutoring: Partnership in Learning, 18(2), 121–134.
Cook, I., & Crang, M. (1995). Doing ethnographies. London, UK: Institute of British Geographers.
Department of Education and Training. (2015a). 2014 Student summary. Retrieved from https://docs.education.gov.au/system/ files/doc/other/2014_student_summary.pdf
Department of Education and Training. (2015b). The value of international education to Australia. Retrieved from https:// internationaleducation.gov.au/
research/research-papers/Documents/ValueInternationalEd.pdf
Department of Education and Training. (2016). International student data. Retrieved from https://internationaleducation.gov.au/ research/international-student-data/pages/default.aspx
Department of Immigration and Border Protection. (2016). Skilled occupations list, Retrieved from https://www.border.gov.au/ Trav/Work/Work/Skills-assessment-and-assessing-authorities/skilled-occupations-lists
Engstrom, C., & Tinto, V. (2008). Access without support is not opportunity. Change: The Magazine of Higher Learning, 40, 46–50.
Ensher, E. A., Thomas, C., & Murphy, S. E. (2001). Comparison of traditional, step-ahead, and peer mentoring on protégés’ support, satisfaction, and perceptions of career success: A social exchange perspective. Journal of Business and Psychology, 15(3), 419−438.
Foa, U. G., & Foa, E. B. (1974). Societal structures of the mind. Springfield, IL: Thomas.
Furnham, A., & Bochner, S. (1982). Social difficulty in a foreign culture: An empirical analysis of culture shock. In S. Bochner (Eds.), Cultures in contact: Studies in cross-cultural interaction (pp. 161–198). New York, NY: Pergamon Press.
Gelman, C. R. (2004). Anxiety experienced by foundation-year MSW students entering field placement: Implications for admissions, curriculum, and field education. Journal of Social Work Education, 40(1), 39–54.
Gelman, C. R., & Baum, N. (2010). Social work students’ pre-placement anxiety: An international comparison. Social Work Education, 29(4), 427–440.
Gursansky, D., & Le Sueur, E. (2012). Conceptualising field education in the twenty-first century: Contradictions, challenges and opportunities. Social Work Education, 31(7), 914–931.
Kambouropoulos, A. (2014). An examination of the adjustment journey of international students studying in Australia.
The Australian Educational Researcher, 41(3), 349–363.
Khawaja, N. G., & Dempsey, J. (2007). Psychological distress in international university students: An Australian study. Australian Journal of Guidance and Counselling, 17(1), 13–27.
Liamputtong, P. (2012). Qualitative research methods (4th ed.). South Melbourne, VIC: Oxford University Press.
Menzies, J. L., Baron, R., & Zutshi, A. (2015). Transitional experiences of international postgraduate students utilizing a peer mentoring program. Educational Research, 57(4), 403–419. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00131881.2015.1091202
Neuman, W. L., & Robson, K. (2012). Basics of social research: Qualitative and quantitative approaches (2nd ed.). London, UK: Sage.
O’Reilly, A., Ryan, D., & Hickey, T. (2010). The psychological well-being and sociocultural adaptation of short-term international students in Ireland. Journal of College Student Development, 51(5), 584–598.
Outhred, T., & Chester, A. (2013). Improving the international student experience in Australia through embedded peer mentoring. Mentoring and Tutoring: Partnership in Learning, 21(3), 312–332. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13611267.2013.851499
Ozer, S. (2015). Predictors of international students’ psychological and sociocultural adjustment to the context of reception while studying at Aarhus University, Denmark. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 56(6), 717–725.
Park-Saltzman, J., Wada, K., & Mogami, T. (2012). Culturally sensitive mentoring for Asian international students in counseling psychology. The Counseling Psychologist, 40(6), 895–915. doi:10.1177/0011000011429831
Patrick, C. J., Peach, D., Pocknee, C., Webb, F., Fletcher, M., & Pretto, G. (2008). The WIL (Work Integrated Learning) report: A national scoping study. Australian Learning and Teaching Council (ALTC) Final report. Brisbane: QL. Retrieved from http:// eprints.qut.edu.au/44065/1/WIL-Report-grants-project-jan09.pdf
Poyrazli, S. (2015). Psychological symptoms and concerns experienced by international students: Outreach implications for counselling centers. Journal of International Students, 5(3), 306–312.
Ragavan, S. K. (2014). Peer Mentoring for international students in a UK law school: lessons from a pilot case study. Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 51(3), 292–302. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14703297.2013.785254
Robinson, E., & Niemer, L. (2010). A peer mentor tutor program for academic success in nursing. Nursing Education Perspectives, 31(5), 286–289.
Taylor, J. S., Faghri, S., Aggarwal, N., Zeller, K., Dollase, R., & Reis, S. (2013). Developing a peer-mentor program for medical students. Teaching and Learning in Medicine, 25(1), 97–102.
Tinto, V. (1998). Colleges as communities: Taking research on student persistence seriously. The Review of Higher Education, 21, 167–177.
Topping, K. J., McCowan, P., & McCrae, J. (1998). Peer mentoring of students in social work education. Social Work Education, 17, 45–56.
Ugrin, J. C., Odom, M. D., & Pearson, J. M. (2008). Exploring the importance of mentoring for new scholars: A social exchange perspective. Journal of Information Systems Education, 19(3), 343–350.
Yamada, Y., Klugar, M., Ivanova, K., & Oborna, I. (2014). Psychological distress and academic self-perception among international medical students: The role of peer social support. BMC Medical Education, 14(1). Retrieved from https:// bmcmededuc.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12909-014-0256-3
Zane, N., & Yeh, M. (2002). The use of culturally-based variables in assessment: Studies on loss of face. In K. S. Kurasaki, S. Okazaki, & S. Sue (Eds.), Asian American mental health: Assessment theories and methods (pp. 123–138). New York, NY: Kluwer Academic/Plenum.
Zhang, Y. B., Lin, M., Nonaka, A., & Beom, K. (2005). Harmony, hierarchy and conservatism: A cross-cultural comparison of Confucian values in China, Korea, Japan, and Taiwan. Communication Research Reports, 22(2), 107–115.
Zuchowski, I., Hudson, C., Bartlett, B., & Diamandi, S. (2014). Social work field education in Australia: Sharing practice wisdom and reflection. Advances in Social Work and Welfare Education, 16(1), 67–80.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2017 Australian and New Zealand Social Work and Welfare Education and Research
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Advances in Social Work & Welfare Education by Australian and New Zealand Social Work and Welfare Education and Research (ANZSWWER) is licensed under CC BY 4.0