Abstract
The purpose of this study was to investigate the subjective schooling experience of exchange students from China in Taiwan. Another aim was to find out an appropriate support channels for prospective exchange students from China and the findings can further help university administrative staffs with policy-making and resource-providing that address the needs of exchange students. Phenomenological orientation was adopted in the research. Data analysis followed the approach of phenomenological content analysis. The results were as followings: 1. There are four factors of motivation and expectation for coming to Taiwan, including enriching their academic knowledge, curiosity about Taiwan, significant others and interpersonal support, and promoting independent living skills. The worries or concerns before coming to Taiwan were high relevant to the pressure from duration of their studies in Taiwan and life adjustment. 2. The schooling experience had five phases, adapting the new environment, increasing academic knowledge, limited interpersonal relationship, a lack of time for travel, and unclear political status. 3. The adjustment issues they encountered included academic life, social life, and execution level for travel. The difficulties in academic and social life especially had greater impact on them. 4. The gains of studying in Taiwan included academic growth, fostering positive interpersonal relationship, multicultural immersion, and developing independent life skills. Their expectation placed more emphasis on their academic achievement. In brief, academic performance and social life were two major importance of exchange students' schooling experience. Further suggestions based upon the research findings were addressed as regards future research.
Author Information
Yi-Ju Ke, Xi-Men Primary School, Taiwan
Li-Li Chang, National Pingtung University, Taiwan
Paper Information
Conference: ACP2015
Stream: Qualitative/Quantitative Research in any other area of Psychology
This paper is part of the ACP2015 Conference Proceedings (View)
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