Date of Award
Fall 8-13-2020
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Education (EdD)
Department
Education
First Advisor
Dr. John Henschke
Second Advisor
Dr. Sherrie Wisdom
Third Advisor
Dr. Paul J. Wilmarth
Abstract
Understanding the needs of international learners seeking English writing skills has been an ongoing challenge for educators working in the field as support systems to this group of learners (Carlson, 2005; Hayes & Lin, 1994). In addition, the research (Halic, Greenberg, & Paulus, 2009; Hayes & Lin, 1994) reveals that when international learners move to another country, for the first time to learn, they may initially experience a profound sense of loss. Therefore, providing a sense of support and balance for this group of learners is an important part of the educational process. This qualitative study looked at nine undergraduate international learners’ perceptions of their learning experiences, learning desires and needs they would like to have met, and how they defined their learning styles and needs. In this research, each participant was interviewed. During the interview process, two primary open-ended questions were asked. The first question looked at the extent in which each participant believed his / her learnings needs were met. The second question had seven parts. The parts were taken from Billington’s (2000) Seven Characteristics of Highly Effective Adult Learning Programs. Each part of her article addressed andragogical and adult education areas. The nine-person participant group was interviewed during a three-month timeframe. All nine volunteer participants were learners in EPP classes taught by the researcher, and all participants completed the study. The findings showed a variety of learning perceptions, learning desires and needs, and ways they defined their learning styles and needs. Additional research is recommended in the area of undergraduate non-native English speakers’ learning perceptions, needs, and learning styles.
Recommended Citation
Lundry, Susan L. Ph.D., "An Investigation of the Learning Perspectives of Non-Native English Speakers in an ESL / EPP Writing Program" (2020). Dissertations. 52.
https://digitalcommons.lindenwood.edu/dissertations/52
Rights
Copyright 2020