Dealing with academic challenge Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Dealing with academic challenge - Essay Example The students feel that their peer of the dominant culture has greater experience in all or most things. Consequently, the fresh students may be reluctant to communicate their contrary opinions and may be influenced in accepting offered opinions by the other students, supervisors, or tutors. Self-concept into autonomy (Carr, 2013) is however a solution to this problem and requires input from different stakeholders such as the freshman international students, their classmates, their teachers, and their parents and family. Even though discussing the concept from a more specific perspective, Conradi (2014) explains the role of self-concept in motivation. The belief in oneself is likely to help a student confront divergent views for a better understanding of course concepts. Even when in doubt, a foreign and freshman student is able to overcome cultural limitations such as language barrier and to express opinions on learnt concepts for correcting wrong opinions from others and for facilit ating correction of personal opinions that may be wrong. Consequently foreign and freshman students should receive necessary support for developing positive self-concept towards active participation in class discussion and assertiveness in arguments for learning purposes. Teachers play an important role in creating a favorable environment for self-concept through mediation. Motivation from parents and support from peer are other factors to the role of self-concept in facilitating confidence in expressions and autonomy in learning. Interpersonal relationships with fellow students from either the dominant culture or those with experience in the culture as well as relationships with academic professionals are another solution to challenges that freshman international students face. Such associations are likely to expose a new student to academic challenges and possible solutions and therefore aid