The present study investigated the key determinants of Chinese students’ academic success in terms of GPA and the number of credit hours earned. The determinants investigated included gender, age, prior academic performance, academic self-efficacy, the TOPIK score, self-perceived Korean and English proficiency, and the previous length of Korean and English study. This study specifically focused on three research questions concerning the prediction of Chinese students’ academic success in Korean universities, the additional contribution of Korean and English language proficiency, and the examination of prediction patterns for undergraduate and graduate students. A questionnaire was issued and collected from 138 undergraduate and 63 graduate Chinese students studying in 27 different Korean universities. The questionnaire consisted of four sections: demographic information, academic background, language proficiency and psychological factors. Correlation and multiple regression analyses were conducted to address the proposed research questions. The findings demonstrated that traditional factors, including gender and prior academic performance, were effective predictors of academic success. However, academic self-efficacy did not play an influential role in participants’ academic success. Language proficiency had a moderate effect on Chinese students’ academic success, which is consistent with previous studies that reported a positive statistically significant relationship between language proficiency and academic success. In this study’s context, Korean proficiency contributed to undergraduate GPA and graduate credit hours whereas both Korean and English proficiency contributed to graduate GPA. The different natures of undergraduate and graduate studies determined that the predictors of undergraduate and graduate students’ academic success were different. The determinants of international students’ academic success are complex and not yet completely understood, and language proficiency is only one of the factors contributing to international students’ academic success. The present study addressed the research gap by integrating theoretical constructs from both psychology and language education, and also by exploring the relationships between language proficiency and academic success in a less researched test, TOPIK, and in two second languages, Korean and English, at the same time. The findings contribute to the overall understanding of international students’ academic success, in particular the success of Chinese students studying in Korean universities. / Thesis (Master, Education) -- Queen's University, 2014-04-23 14:54:05.315

Translanguaging (Transspråkande) har det senaste åren blivit väldigt omtalat och ses som ett effektivt verktyg i engelska undervisning i ett flerspråkigt klassrum. Translanguaging innebär att ge flerspråkiga elever möjlighet att använda alla sina språk som resurs i lärandet. Syftet med studien är att bidra med kunskap om hur engelsklärare ställer sig till användning av translanguaging i flerspråkiga klassrum i åk 4–6. Studiens ansats är kvalitativ och valet av metod föll på semistrukturerade intervjuer. De medverkande sex lärarna i studien undervisade i engelska i årskurserna 4–6. Resultatet kan presenteras på detta vis: (1) Lärarnas inställning till translanguaging är positivt. (2) De ser på translanguaging som en möjlighet, då det förbättrar skolresultat och identitet. (3) Lärarna är medvetna om vad translanguaging innebär. (4) Erfarenheten av att använda translanguaging i ett flerspråkigt engelskt klassrum är litet och begreppet är mindre talad i skolan. (5) Det råder en osäkerhet kring implementeringen av translanguaging, det saknas även relevanta läromedel.(6) Uppmuntran till att använda translanguaging i engelska undervisningen från skolan saknas (7) Eleverna kan ha negativ syn på deras flerspråkighet pga. konflikter i världen. (8) Samarbetet lärare emellan saknas. / Translanguaging has grown in popularity in recent years as a useful tool for teaching English in a multilingual classroom. Translanguaging means allowing multilingual learners to use all of their languages as a learning resource. The purpose of this research is to add to understanding of English teachers' attitudes toward the use of translanguaging in multilingual classrooms in grades 4-6. The study takes a qualitative approach, and semi-structured interviews were conducted to aid in the development of methodology for this study. The six teachers who took part in the study taught English in grades 4-6. The findings are presented as following: (1) Teachers have positive attitudes toward translanguaging. (2) Teachers see translanguaging as an opportunity because it improves school performance and identity. (3) Teachers understand what translanguaging entails (4) There is little experience with translanguaging, and the concept is rarely discussed in schools. (5) There is considerable uncertainty about implementation, as well as a scarcity of teaching materials. (6) There is lack of encouragement from schools in translanguaging. (7) Due to global conflicts, students may have a negative perception of their multilingualism. (8) A failure to collaborate with other teachers.