Evaluating the Effectiveness of a Bilingual Peer Assisted Learning Program for Chinese Students in the Higher Education Context
Year: 2020
Type: dissertation
Abstract: International students are vital to the Australian education sector, particularly students from China who comprise the largest international student cohort (Department of Education, 2019). In order to cater to the learning needs of these students, peer mentoring programs are often used by Australian universities. This thesis evaluates the effectiveness of one such program using Kahu’s (2013) student engagement framework. The program CABLE offers bilingual peer-assisted learning workshops (B-PAL) and social activities in the business faculty of a regional Australian university. A mixed methods approach is used to collect and analyse data, including surveys, interviews, and student grades. The results show that the CABLE program positively influences students’ psycho-social attributes, hence assisting Chinese students to achieve better academic performance. This thesis contributes to the literature concerning the higher education sector by extending Kahu’s (2013) student engagement framework. In addition, it fills a gap in the literature by evaluating the B-PAL approach as an integration of the peer-assisted learning (PAL) philosophy, bilingual education, and social networks for international students. It also demonstrates that the B-PAL program can be implemented by higher education institutions as a means to better engage international students, assist student transition, and hence improve retention.
Author: Jin Cui
Language: English
Subfield: Communication
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
SDG: Quality education
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W3193249001