CHANGING PEDAGOGY FOR INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS

When seeking to understand the process and why the instructors specifically chose the methods they do, a qualitative case study is the most appropriate model (Maxwell, 2012). Using a Flexible Pedagogies Framework, Maxwell (2012), the study will seek to understand why some instructors are more willing than others to adapt their pedagogy for international students. For those that do, this study will seek to identify what they are doing and why they chose those methods. The data collection will consist of an initial interview of professors currently teaching at a small, private, four-year degree granting university serving both domestic and international students. Follow-up questions generated from analysis of the initial interviews will be addressed in follow-up interviews (Merriam and Tisdell, 2016). The use of Pacific International University (PIU) pseudonym in this study to identify the site is to help protect the identity of the institution and the subjects participating in the study.

This university was purposefully chosen because of its higher percentage of international students compared to the other tertiary institutions in the area. PIU is a 4-year, private, not-for-profit, medium-sized, primarily nonresidential institution, Liberal Arts University with a population of over 5,000 students (Carnegie Foundation, 2015). A large part of the university’s philosophy comes from their mission statement which states “Students from all continents seek admission with us for an American education (Pacific International University, 2018). ” The main campus is located in downtown Honolulu with additional sites located in the foothills of the Ko'olau mountain range (sciences and nursing) and bordering the ocean (marine sciences). In Ladson Billings (1994a) study, the instructors were nominated by those American parents of African origin who attended a church in the locality.

Essentially, it means that the community members aimed at nominating good teachers. My research is different from hers by the fact that my nominees came from specialists in the field of CRP who had worked with the tutors that they nominated. The experts are not part of the University staff now but made part of a community that moment they worked with these professors. The experts will be resourceful in helping me get tutors who understood the concept of cultural diversity and also demonstrated such characteristics of a culturally responsive teacher. The case study in this research will be best suited to explain and bring out an understanding of the case I will be investigating. Zonabend (1992, in Tellis, 1997) stated that “case study is done by giving special attention to completeness in observation, reconstruction, and analysis of the cases under study.

A case study is done in a way that incorporates the views of the "actors" in the case under study” (p. Schwandt (1997) argued that “…a case study strategy is preferred when the inquirer seeks answers to how and why questions” (p. While trying to explain the why and how in my research, I will be bringing out an argument that shows my case study is most suited to answer the questions I set out to address earlier on in my research. Case selection and unit analysis development are undertaken in the same criteria as in other varieties of case studies. In my research, the case studies I will undertake are fully descriptive. Stake (1994) added more varieties of case studies: intrinsic studies, collective and instrumental.

The instrumental study is undertaken to create an insight to a problem or arrive at a more refined theory to a particular case which was undertaken before. Instrumental case study facilitates the understanding of a previous concept, thereby playing a supportive role in the study. The most common aim of an interview is to establish what someone thinks. Interviews are one of the best methods of extracting knowledge on experiences of people. Interviews assist researchers to understand the lived experiences of respondents and the use of the experiences. To understand important ideas and themes, researchers should use comprehensive interviewing (Browne, 1960). In-depth interviewing will involve questions and responses; Well structured and open-ended. For non-English speaking locals, transcription will be hard and the communication of the interviewer and respondent will be repetitive for each party to understand the other (Browne, 1960).

The difference in phonetics will, therefore, necessitate recording of interviews for future clarification of information. Semi-structured participant interview. I will send emails to the participants to collect information on their backgrounds before conducting the first interview. This background information would include educational background, ethnicity, previous work experience and hometown which will facilitate the interview and enable me to better know the participants. Maxwell, (2012), defined observation as the noting and recording of events and behaviors in the social setting of the study. The researcher writes notes describing the setting that was observed, activities that took place and the people who participated in those activities and the meaning of what was observed. Johnson, Avenarius, and Weatherford, (2006) noted that observations are quite advantageous in that, they maximize the ability of the researcher to grasp interests, beliefs, motives, customs and unconscious behaviors.

Nonparticipant observation requires the researcher to avoid any interactions with the participants being studied. Events or activities may be recorded as soon as they occur hence maximizing descriptions and discoveries. I will observe each participants class four times for the entire class period (two hours) to gather information about the instructors’ CRP practices. I will then create an observation timesheet to record my data. I will also write detailed field notes regarding the interactions between and among the instructors and students, pedagogical activities, verbal and nonverbal communications. I will then connect particular instructor-student interactions and classroom activities with the study questions. During and after the observations, I will write memos about personal feelings, reflections, confusions, initial interpretations and ideas (Blessing and Block, 2009).

The curriculum will contain information about courses and proficiency. Course syllabus, assignments, and in-class handouts contain information about learning activities, course content, grading policies and objectives. Data analysis Data analysis is an ongoing engagement and process that start when the first data is collected. In the research data, collection and analysis will take place simultaneously. To embrace this process I will personally transcribe the interview tapes and immerse myself in the data. To achieve a high-quality case analysis, I will attend to all evidence, rival interpretations while focusing on the most significant aspects of the study (Gibbs, 2012). Document analysis will be done through comparison process to establish the central themes in the curricula and syllabi which will be related to those obtained from the interviews and observations.

Trustworthiness Researchers can’t deviate from the influence of underlying theories or assumptions about their investigations. As the primary tool for collecting and analyzing data, what the researcher will be seeing from the data will be his/her interpretation. Still, the researcher will have to apply techniques in his operations so as to win trust about the investigation (Gibbs, 2012). Peer debriefing will assist to raise questions which might be related to the research mainly on design and methodology. Groups which have previously done similar research should be the main target group that will inform the researcher on the most possible mistakes that he can make and through their response to the variety of questions asked, the researcher will learn to perfection.

Still, peer debriefing is aimed at keeping researchers authentic throughout the course of interpreting data (Handouts Ed P&L 800, 2004). Throughout the study, I will continuously debrief my fellow managerial student from the University of Austria on research design, a method of data collection and data analysis. Triangulation This is a researchers’ tool which is not limited to the stated perspectives or methods in qualitative research (Patton, 1990). The researcher should avoid power imbalance during interviews by ensuring that he/she avoids asking leading questions, sharing personal thoughts, and disclosure of sensitive information (Creswell, 2014). In the participant’s observation, the risk would come from Hawthome effect. The Hawthome effect is the attempt to present “good face” by the interviewee to the interviewer, by trying to behave differently knowing that they’re being studied.

The long a researcher stayed in the field and attended activities with the participants, the less the Hawthome’s effect and the establishment of a rapport. The anonymity of my participant’s and their private information shared will be assured and maintained during and after the research. Research in Comparative and International Education, 10(2), 185-201. http://dx. doi. org/10. 1177/1745499915571707 Blessing, D.  ILR Review, 13(2), 311-312. doi: 10. 1177/001979396001300230 Carnegie Foundation. Carnegie Classifications. Retrieved from http://classifications. Different Approaches to Coding.  Sociological Methodology, 42(1), 82-84. doi: 10. 1177/0081175012460853 Handouts Ed P&L 800 Research class (2004). Columbus, Ohio: OSU. html Institute of International Education. Open doors report on international educational exchange: International student enrollment trends, 1948/49-2016/17. Retrieved from http://www. iie. org/opendoors Johnson, J. G. Naturalistic inquiry. California: Sage publications.