As international graduate students, many ITAs are often highly challenged by oral discussions in the classes they take. Studies show that participating in class discussions is quite challenging for second language speakers:

• A survey of 946 teachers at four U.S. universities concluded the three biggest obstacles for international students to academic success were the lack of engagement in class discussions, conversing with native speakers, and answering questions (Ferris & Tagg, 1996).

• Leading group discussions, speaking in class discussions, and breaking into conversations were all ranked as the most challenging speaking tasks in a quantitative study of 33 undergraduate and graduate Japanese students conducted in Australia (Yanagi & Baker, 2016).

• Yanagi & Baker (2016) led a qualitative study of five students which determined that participation in group and whole-class discussions was one of the major difficulties of studying in another language and culture.

Reasons international graduate students are challenged by class and group discussions:

• Academic topics have complex vocabulary. Classroom discourse can be quite difficult compared to everyday conversations because its discourse is often based on readings from the textbook. Thus, both advanced vocabulary and critical thinking skills are needed.

• There is little or no time to prepare. Second language learners must communicate extemporaneously, whereas they have time to prepare written communication.

• Cultural differences in classroom participation impede many international students. Many East Asian cultures value silence, and speaking in large classes may not be the norm. In fact, some students have commented that asking a simple question is more discouraged in their home countries than in North America.

• International students fear making errors and losing face. Many worry about how their comments and questions are perceived by others. Fear and anxiety, not cultural differences and pronunciation, were the major factors that negatively impacted oral participation in classes in a study of 131 international Asian students from China, Japan, Taiwan, and Korea at small-sized Midwestern universities in the United States (Lee, 2007).

Nevertheless, group discussions are an excellent opportunity for international graduate students to interact with classmates, increase listening comprehension, better comprehend class material, practice speaking, and increase their academic discourse socialization, which Ho (2011) defined as “a process through which students learn about the conventions and practices of their field while carrying out academic oral tasks” (p. 438). Group discussions also help one acclimate to Western-style education. In a study of seven Korean business students at a U.S. university (Kim, 2016), group work led the students from being less dependent on the instructor for learning, as is common in Asian cultures, to being more independent in their learning. The students also grew more confident when explicitly offering their opinions.

Though ITA instructors have limited class time, they should incorporate group discussions skills into the curriculum to help students practice leading a discussion, turn-taking, adding comments, and asking questions for clarification. The speakers also may increase their fluency, audience awareness, and learning to monitor for clarity, all valuable skills for teaching. The ITA Seminar I teach at the University of Missouri–St. Louis meets weekly for 2 hours across one semester. I have two activities in which the ITAs must lead a group discussion, which I describe here.

Discussion of Nonverbal Behavior

At the beginning of the semester, usually the second class, we have a class discussion or large group discussions on nonverbal communication: gestures, eye contact, time, and other culturally related behaviors. Students share their observations of these features in the United States and their home countries. This conversation is less challenging than an academic discussion because it is not based on written text and offers a great ice breaker for the students to interact with one another. It is also a fun and fascinating discussion.

In the previous class period, each student is assigned one aspect of nonverbal behavior. There are nine listed in our textbook, Communicate: Strategies for International Teaching Assistants,by Smith, Meyers, and Burkhalter (1992, pp. 12–13). I ask each student to observe behaviors of his or her topic for 1 week and to prepare to lead a discussion the following week. If the class is fewer than 10 students, the discussion is conducted with the whole class.

During the group discussion, each student takes turns leading the talk by

• discussing observations of the assigned nonverbal behavior both in his or her home culture and in the United States,

• eliciting comments from the group, and

• calling on quieter students.

We discuss all the questions in the textbook and these behaviors outside the class. For instance, everyone enjoys talking about various gestures and their meanings and how eye contact varies across cultures.

Discussion of Academic Articles

The second group discussion is toward the end of the semester. Students write both a formal and informal summary of an academic article in their field. The informal one is intended for a general audience, so it requires everyday vocabulary, paraphrases, and examples. The ITAs must bring the summaries to class and discuss them in small groups of three or four members. Listeners are required write notes about what they learn, which they turn in for participation points; this ensures students will negotiate for meaning if they do not understand the speaker or a point being made. Each person is told to interrupt others as needed, which is appropriate in the U.S. culture, and the presenters are suggested to paraphrase technical information in everyday language or give examples. If time allows, I have students rotate groups and present their articles again; this repetition offers additional practice. After the discussions, I allow the students to further edit their informal summary and then submit it to me.

In conclusion, using group discussions helps ITAs build verbal fluency and audience awareness, both important components of teaching. Also, switching speaking activities from presentations creates variety in your curriculum. Most important, because group discussions and projects occur in regular academic courses and present a major challenge for international students, providing opportunities for them to practice leading a discussion will prepare them for when they must do so in other classes.

References

Ferris, D., & Tagg, T. (1996). Academic listening/speaking tasks for ESL students: Problems, suggestions, and implications. TESOL Quarterly, 30, 297–320.

Ho, M. (2011). Academic discourse socialization through small-group discussions. System: An International Journal of Educational Technology and Applied Linguistics, 39(4), 437–450. doi: 10.1016/j.system.2011.10.015

Kim, J. Y. (2016). Group work oral participation: Examining Korean students' adjustment process in a US university. Australian Journal of Adult Learning, 56(3), 400 - 423.

Lee, E. L. (2007). Linguistic and cultural factors in East Asian students' oral participation in U.S. university classrooms. International Education, 36(2), 27 - 46.

Smith, J., Meyers, C., & Burkhalter, A. J. (1992). Communicate: Strategies for international teaching assistants. Long Grove, IL: Waveland Press.

Yanagi, M., & Baker, A. A. (2016). Challenges experienced by Japanese students with oral communication skills in Australian universities. TESOL Journal, 7, 621–644.

Denise C. Mussman teaches English for academic purposes at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, where she developed its ITA Seminar. She is a board member of MIDTESOL and the editor of New Ways in Teaching Writing, Revised, published by TESOL Press in 2014.