Knowing and Meeting the Needs of Diverse Learners
Introduction & Background
I am the Year Leader for BA1 Textile Design.
This year (2024/25), we have seen a significant rise in the number of international students in our cohort. The year group consists of 87 students, and the international student population has increased from 40% to over 70%. Most students come from mainland China or are Malaysian Chinese.
Evaluation of Challenges
Several challenges have arisen due to the proportion of international students. While international students now make up the majority within their year, they still feel like outsiders within both UAL and London.
- Integration Challenges: There is a challenge in creating connections between international and home students.
- Settling In: International students face difficulties settling into their first year and accessing support.
- Building Confidence: There is a need to build confidence within the group to share and collaborate.
- Exclusion of Home Students: Home students sometimes feel excluded and isolated within the group (some shared this in 1-1 tutorials).
- Social Events: Social events have been poorly attended, with students hesitant to integrate beyond initial connections.
- Language Barriers: Language levels are low with some students, and they are hesitant to openly discuss this or seek support.
- Course Budget Limitations: The course budget does not allow for support with additional staff, events, or training. There is limited allocation (1 hour per week) for language development classes, and my fractional role leaves little time for additional support.
Reflections on 2024/25
- 1-1 and Small Group Tutorials: These have worked well. Students respond positively in an intimate setting, sharing their thoughts, feedback, and ideas. They feel comfortable sharing with one another.
- Skills-Based Activities: The group is eager to make and collaborate. Previous sessions that involved making and sharing have been successful.
- Small Groups: Small groups have been less overwhelming, though language barriers remain, with groups often reverting to a common language and excluding minority members.
- Information Repetition: Repeating information through different media (e.g., paper timetables, group lists on the studio wall) has been effective.
- Resources in the Studio: Providing materials, equipment, and encouraging students to work onsite has helped build a studio culture.
- Group Trips: These have created connections and fostered conversations in non-teaching environments.
- Seeking Advice: I sought advice from staff within CCW, Student Experience, Academic Enhancement, Academic Support, and Language Development.
Key Plans and Recommendations
Re-welcome to the Cohort (Term 3):
- Key UAL services, ISA follow-up, social events, and inclusion of other year groups.
- Positionality workshop.
Additional Academic Support & Language Development:
- Focus on reading, professional practice, and collaborative skills.
Plans for 2025/26:
- Mandarin support for enrolment in the upcoming academic year.
- Further intercultural training: Team workshops and meetings with the intercultural team.
Seeking Advice:
- Consult other year leaders/peers on effective communication strategies.
- Collect student feedback and peer input to improve my communication with the group.
Student Rep Feedback:
- Icebreakers: Consider organizing activities with 3rd-year students (e.g., CSM’s welcome party).
- Language Barrier: Suggest having someone available to translate emails and documents for students whose first language isn’t English.
- Teams Chat for Unit 4: Create a dedicated space for quick reminders or questions, as students sometimes feel overwhelmed by information overload in emails.
Moving Forward: Units 3 & 4, and Next Academic Year (2025/26)
To further enhance the support and integration for international students, I plan to:
- Collaborate with UAL Staff: Reach out to the wider UAL academic and staff communities for advice, collaboration, and support.
Unit 4:
- Positionality workshop with Jason Forest.
- Group outings in small groups.
- Collaborative aspects within tutorials and work-in-progress shows.
- Show and tell with Year 2 & 3.
- Pastoral support drop-ins.
Unit 3:
- Additional language support, as this is a CPP Unit requiring reading academic texts and writing essays.
Transition to Year 2 & Planning for 2025/26:
- End-of-term collaboration between year groups: Graduate Show.
- Welcome week structure with a focus on community building, integration, and inclusion.
- Share research and key documents with the staff team.
- Explore translation tools further.
- Integrate language development into the curriculum with more planning on how to incorporate it.
Personal Projects:
- Year Group Projects: Develop a rough guide project and student-led Reuse Store.
Final Reflections
This year, I have focused on the integration within the group and my ability to foster connections among the students. Through this challenge, I’ve had the opportunity to evaluate our approaches, seek advice, and dedicate time to research. While it has been difficult to keep this case study focused without listing every action, this process has allowed me to think through the challenge in a more practical way.
I believe that as a university, we need to reconsider the level of support provided to international students when they move to the UK and begin their courses at UAL. While these discussions are ongoing, and some changes are planned—such as the introduction of Madeiran speakers for orientation weeks—I feel that more needs to be done.
For our environment to be truly inclusive, we must all work to foster a deeper understanding of the diverse communities within it. I am committed to focusing on community building in my role and creating more opportunities for students to engage with one another. Alongside the wider team, I aim to integrate our approaches and expand our understanding of our student communities.
References
Potier, R. (12 Nov 2024) ‘Working with Multilingual groups’, Academic practice. Available at: https://canvas.arts.ac.uk/documents/sppreview/e8091f71-9833-4357-8723-c7a09524b05c
Potier, R. (11 July 2024) ‘Addressing new students’, Academic practice. Available at:https://canvas.arts.ac.uk/documents/sppreview/87547dd8-cfaf-4db3-bff7-2e140d7a275f