Working with Linguistically Diverse Classes across the Disciplines: Faculty Beliefs

Abstract

The rapid growth of international students at United States universities in recent years (Institute of International Education, 2013) has prompted discussions about how best to serve this population in and out of the classroom. This article reports on faculty cognitions (Borg, 2006) regarding internationalization and the teaching of international students who are emergent multilinguals. Researchers surveyed faculty members on one campus about their beliefs regarding internationalization, techniques for instruction in culturally and linguistically diverse classrooms, and their own efficacy in teaching international students. Results indicate a theory-reality split in beliefs about internationalization and techniques for teaching international students along with relatively low levels of self-efficacy in working with emergent multilinguals. The article discusses implications for faculty-administration collaboration and faculty development in linguistically-responsive instruction.

Keywords

• international students
• university internationalization
• linguistically-responsive instruction
• teaching multilingual students