Teaching Journal 1

Reference:
Abukhadrah, Dr. Qutaiba A. 2015. The Difficulties of Learning English as Perceived by a Group of International Students: A Case Study. International Journal of English Language Teaching, December, Vol.3, No.8,( p.40-48)

Review:

The aim of the research is to know the challenges of learning English by a group of international students while learning in an intensive English program at a large Midwestern American University. Twenty students (9 graduate and 11 undergraduate), were chosen randomly from the intensive English program to take part in this study. Their ages ranged between 19-26 years, and they came from different countries, including Saudi Arabia, China, Pakistan, India, Jordan, Ghana, Nigeria and Algeria. The major difficulties that confront international students while studying in English speaking countries can be categorized into two groups: academic and non-academic demands. It was found that students who came from countries where English is not a medium of instruction have difficulty in speaking, comprehension, pronunciation, and using the correct lexis. Students may not have been exposed to enough English conversation inside the classroom where teaching was devoted only to grammar. Some of the students, said that they face a number of problems that relate to using the basic language skills particularly writing and reading comprehension. This study uses information gathered by means of the qualitative research method of Interviewing. From all of the interviews conducted, it can be seen that one of the major difficulties confronting international students learning English is the topic of social interaction. According to them, they rarely have enough chances to mingle with native speakers and practice the spoken language outside the classroom.

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Teaching Journal 1 Arini