Melanie Parris and Dr Patricia Pye
Melanie Parris, Senior Lecturer in Social Work,
Bucks New University
Dr Pat Pye, Study Skills Tutor, Bucks New
University
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Internationalization of UK education
Social Work Task Force and Social Work
Reform Board: drive to improve standards
within the profession
Diverse nature of Social Work student
intake at Bucks New University
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The initial study was carried out in
2010/2011 by Melanie and Pat
Funded by Bucks New University Learning
Enhancement Project (LEPS)
A second funded study was carried out in
2012/13 to determine whether the results of
the first study were replicated with a further
student cohort
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Sample for both studies comprised
20 final year BSc (Hons) Social Work students
14 students originally from Zimbabwe
I student originally from Pakistan
1 student originally from the Democratic
Republic of Congo
1 student was born in the U.K.
3 students originally from Kenya
15 female and 5 male students
Age range between 22 and 49 years
All resident in the U.K. for a minimum of 7 years
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Individual semi-structured interviews carried
out by Melanie using a questionnaire
Pilot survey prompted modifications to
questionnaire
Interviews transcribed verbatim by a speech
to text reporter
Data thematically analysed
Systematic literature review conducted by Pat
Three major themes:
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Culture, attitudes and values
Language barriers, group-work and
perceptions of success
Take-up of support
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Overarching themes of loss and opportunity
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1. Lack of linguistic confidence
2. Time needed to attune to the difference
between the grammatical English of textbooks
and idiomatic English in context (the ‘rules
versus the reality’)
3. ‘Self-censorship’ (Hyde and Ruth, 2002)
4. Time needed to become fluent in, to use
Gee’s (2008) terms, a ‘secondary discourse’
5. Encountering a culture which may devalue
bilingualism and associate less fluent powers
of expression with poor powers of thought
(Harrison, 2006)
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It is important not to merely interpret a lack of
participation in cultural terms (e.g. students from
some cultures may be perceived as quiet or
‘passive’ learners)
In our study, participants mentioned selfconsciousness about their accents and
comparative lack of fluency.
‘Lack of confidence and poor language skills are
a primary limitation on the articulation of
questions and answers in an open setting such as
a classroom or a public discussion’ (Valiente,
2008, p.81).
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‘So I am quiet in class .. sometimes you don’t
find the words to express yourself when you
have other students that …have that extra…
they’ve got a positive of English as their own
first language and they are more confident in
that.’
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Students with ESL may encounter a mismatch
between their own assessment of linguistic skill
and the views of others.
The range of
idiomatic English used by their peers can be
bewildering. Students are then dismayed to be
referred for language support (Schmitt, 2005).
Participant comment: ‘In Zimbabwe it [English]
is the official language…But.. there are nuances
in language …you can imply certain things that
people from a different culture don’t
know…those kind of things need to be taken
into consideration’.
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In multi-cultural group-work, Social Work
students need to feel free to express ideas.
Research by Hyde and Ruth (2002) in the USA
suggests students may ‘self-censor’ for fear
of raising racially or culturally sensitive
issues.
The expression of these issues requires a
familiarity with the cultural and social
nuances of language.
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‘ One is not in a Discourse unless one has
mastered it, and mastering comes about through
acquisition, not learning …. ‘ (Gee, 2008, p.179).
The Social Work student with ESL has to negotiate
the gulf between their learned ‘primary
discourse’ and the ‘secondary discourse’ of
British HE.
The Social Work teacher needs to recognise this
challenge: ‘Teaching for acquisition alone leads
to successful, but “colonized” students’ (Gee,
2008, p.179).
Participant comment: ‘at times other students who were
born here they don’t take your answer as valuable’.
‘Mono-lingualism’ is often valued more than ‘bilingualism’
in the social work academy (Harrison, 2006). New Social
Work students need to be encouraged to see bilingualism as
a cultural advantage which can enhance seminar
discussions.
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‘There are certain ideas that because you speak with an
accent, you think with an accent, you work with an
accent’ (comment from primary research undertaken by
Harrison, 2006, p.407).
Participant comment from our own research:
‘it’s … a complex, feeling a bit inferior because English is
not your first language …It’s just that you might not
express it as fluent as they can, it doesn’t mean that you
don’t know’.
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Change terminology of language ‘support’ (see Peelo and Luxon, 2007)
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Practical support: allow extra time for note-making etc. (see Smailes and
Gannon-Leary, 2007)
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Take a bilingual perspective, valuing multilingual environments (Harrison,
2006)
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Use language itself as the focus for a seminar: for example, a discussion of
idiomatic English expressions may be related to intrinsic socio-cultural values.
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Greater awareness of the centrality of communication to social work practice
(Parris, 2012)
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Gee, J.P. (2008) Social linguistics and literacies: ideology in discourses. 3rd ed. London: Routledge
Harrison, G. (2006) Broadening the conceptual lens on language in social work: difference, diversity
and English as a global language. British Journal of Social Work. 36, pp.401-418
Hyde, C.A. and Ruth, B.J. (2002) Multi-cultural content and class participation: do students self-censor?
Journal of Social Work Education. 38 (2), pp.241-256
Parris, M. (2012) An introduction to social work practice: a practical handbook. Maidenhead: Open
University Press
Peelo, M. and Luxon, T. (2007) Designing embedded courses to support international students’ cultural
and academic adjustment in the UK. Journal of Further and Higher Education. 31(1) , pp.65-76.
Schmitt, D. (2005) Writing in the international classroom. In: Carroll. J. and Ryan, J. (eds) Teaching
international students: improving learning for all. London: Routledge, pp.63-74
Smailes, J. and Gannon-Leary, P. (2007) Inclusive approaches in learning and teaching. Widening
Participation and Lifelong Learning. 9 (1), pp.37-47
Valiente, C. (2008) Are students using the ‘wrong’ kind of learning?: A multi-cultural scrutiny for
helping teachers appreciate differences. Active Learning in Higher Education . 9 (1), pp.73-91
We can be contacted at:
Melanie Parris: melanie.parris@bucks.ac.uk
Pat Pye: patricia.pye@bucks.ac.uk