Note: the beginning and middle parts are well-discussed, but you got weary in the end and statements become generalized and shortcut. Check
CHAPTER V
PRESENTATION, INTERPRETATION AND ANALYSIS OF DATA
This chapter discusses the results of the survey and interview with the seven foreign students in the University of the Philippines.
This chapter presents the data through graphs and descriptive analysis.
Respondents’ Profile
The respondents were all foreign students studying in the University of the Philippines Cebu College. All of them are female students and are taking up either Bachelor of Arts in Fine Arts or Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communication. (nationality?)
The table below shows the distribution of the foreign students according to their courses.
Course No. of Foreign Students
Fine Arts 5
Mass Communication 2
Total 7
Table 5.1 Respondents’ Courses
Results and Analysis
This chapter presents the graphs, interpretation, and analysis of the data gathered from the respondents’ answers to the questionnaire and during the interview which assess the foreign students’ adjustments towards their new school environment.
The level of adjustment of a foreign student is determined by calculating the weighted mean average of each factor. The table below shows range of each level of adjustment of the foreign students.
VALUE SCALE
4.21 – 5.00 Strongly Agree
3.41 – 4. 20 Agree
2.61 – 3.40 Undecided
1.81 – 2.60 Disagree
1.00 – 1.80 Strongly Disagree
Table 5.2 Scale for Standardization
Teaching Style/Education
A. Effectiveness in Teachers
Effectiveness in teachers pertains to the methods and techniques used by the teachers so that their students can easily grasp the lessons and discussions of a certain subject. When a teacher handles a foreign student, it is his/her responsibility to make the student understand their lessons well. The teachers may have to modify their way of interacting with the foreign students. Considering the Communication Adaptation Theory which was explained in chapter 3, two individuals who came from societies with different culture tend to change their communication behavior depending whether who is interested to continue the conversation. In the case of a native teacher and a foreign student, each of them tries to change their communication behavior towards each other. As a teacher, he/she has to try to communicate to his/her students - more particularly the foreign students - in such a way that they will understand him/her and learn something from him/her. As what the theory stated, the teacher may try to modify his/her language, accent and dialect while talking in class. Poedjiastutie (n.d) also pointed out that the teachers’ roles and attitudes are few of the main sources of the foreign students’ culture shock.
The questionnaires that we¬¬re distributed to the foreign students contain questions that ask for their judgments regarding the effectiveness of their teachers’ teaching techniques. The two following graphs show the tally of results of the survey on the subject of the teachers’ effectiveness in making the foreign students understand their lessons well.
Figures 5.1 and 5.2 present the tally of results to questions regarding the effectiveness of a local teacher in making their foreign students understand.
Figure 5.1 The UPCC teachers are good in teaching.
Figure 5.2 The UPCC teachers’ methods and techniques
are effective so that new concepts are readily grasped
by the class.
Figure 5.1 shows that three out of the seven respondents strongly agree that UPCC’s teachers are good in teaching and four also agree to this statement. Not one from the respondents disagrees on this statement. In general context, figure 5.2 shows that three out of the seven respondents strongly agree that their teachers’ teaching techniques are effective in a way that they can easily understand their lessons.
The results found in the figures above show that the foreign students’ teachers are effective in teaching them their lessons. Despite the differences in language and culture, the teachers have successfully conversed with the foreign students. Based on the results, the foreign students are not having a hard time in learning from people of different nationality and culture. This implies that the foreign students adjusted to this aspect without much delay. Upon interview, most of the foreign students say that UPCC has a really good set of teachers. “They can explain well using the English language, and they are masters of their subject” one foreign student said. UPCC has a really high standard in accepting their teachers.
B. Difficulty of Homework
The foreign students were also asked about their homework exercises. Mcleod (2008) explained that in order for a foreign student to gain academic success, the student must still first adapt to the host country’s academic activities. The figures below show the results on the questions regarding the assignments and homework exercises that the teachers give to the foreign students.
Figure 5.3 The teachers give less assignments.
Figure 5.4 The homework exercises given are easy.
Figure 5.3 shows that four out of the seven respondents disagree on the statement saying that their teachers give them less assignments. There is one student who strongly disagrees. Furthermore, the respondents were asked whether their homework exercises are easy. Only one of them agrees, two are undecided, another one disagrees, and three strongly disagree. Each of the students was asked by the researchers what made him/her answer such. The researchers found out that the results vary on the course, subjects taken, and the teachers of the respondents. And also based on the interview conducted, some of the respondents do not mind the difficulty of their homework that much because they had been used to this kind of training in their home country. This means that the foreign students did not need a long time to adjust in this aspect since they were already used to it back from their home country.
C. Schools’ Rules and Regulations
Culture shock could spring from experiencing restrictions and limitations. It makes a foreign student disappointed or frustrated whenever they are restricted from the things they used to do in their home country. The rules and regulations of the school might have restricted the students to do these things. This aspect pertains to how UPCC’s rules and regulations affect the adjustment of the foreign students.
The figure below shows the graph of the students who think that the school’s decisions, rules and regulations are reasonable.
Figure 5.5 The decisions, rules and regulations
set down by the school are reasonable.
Figure 5.5 shows that six out of the seven respondents agree and one strongly agrees that the school’s rules and regulations are reasonable. Some of them said that the rules of the school are just appropriate because the school gives them enough freedom of whatever they do. And besides, one of them said that he/she don’t linger around the school too much so the rules do not apply much to him/her.
From the results above, the foreign students did not take it long to adjust to the rules and regulations of their new school. This is because the rules did not restrict them or limit them too much from the things they want to do.
D. Convenience in School
Adjustment includes satisfaction and ease in the environment. This aspect determines whether the school has provided the foreign students enough expediency that will help them adjust more quickly or not. It also shows whether the respondent is comfortable and satisfied with the school in any aspect, or rather feels uneasy and apprehensive.
The figure below shows the graph of the students who think that the school is clean and well-ventilated.
Figure 5.6 The school is clean and well-ventilated.
Figure 5.6 shows that five out of the seven respondents agree that UPCC is a clean and well-ventilated school. One foreign student cannot seem to decide whether the school environment satisfies him/her or makes him/her feel uneasy. On the other hand, one foreign student disagrees that UPCC is clean and well-ventilated. When asked why, he/she said that there is a big difference between UPCC’s environment and his/her home country’s school environment. “There are no single trashes that can be seen in our schools back home,” said one student. In contrast, there are visible trashes in some of parts of UPCC. He/she also said that UPCC is not that well-ventilated, given that there are constructions going on in the school and the tropical weather. In his/her home country, the schools provide the students air conditioners or heaters in order to make them comfortable while studying. It is only applicable to a few of the classrooms in UPCC. According to the Theory of Work Adjustment, an individual and his environment must have correspondence or connection with each other – that is, the individual gets the necessities he/she needs from the environment and vice versa.
Though there is one foreign student who does not agree that the school is clean and well-ventilated, most of them did not have a hard time on adjusting to this aspect. The researchers believe that the foreign students had adapted to UPCC’s physical environment well because it has provide them most of their needs.
The figure below now shows the students’ view on UPCC’s facilities.
Figure 5.7 The school’s library and other facilities in are good.
Figure 5.7 shows that four out (check) the seven respondents are satisfied with UPCC’s library and other facilities. On the other hand, one respondent is undecided, one disagrees, and one strongly disagrees. When asked, the respondents who did not agree with the statement said that compared to what they had known in their schools back home, UPCC’s library and other facilities are far from being better. “UPCC’s library is very limited. It lacks many good books,” one Japanese respondent pointed out. Japan, on the other hand, has huge libraries where almost all published books can be found. Furthermore, Japan is one of the representative countries when it comes to technology. The country is almost made up of highly technological facilities. The schools in Japan use highly technological facilities as well. The respondent who is undecided said that he/she is confused because he/she had not used the school’s facilities that much. The four respondents who were just satisfied with the facilities of the school said that so far the school’s facilities provide them well enough with what they need.
In this aspect, there are foreign students who were not satisfied with the facilities provided by the school. Once again, according to the Theory of Work Adjustment, these foreign students did not develop a correspondence with their new environment. Thus, they could not adjust easily to UPCC’s library and other facilities. Meanwhile, the researchers believe that not all of the foreign students who were just satisfied with UPCC’s library and other facilities had fully adjusted to this aspect. Because according to them in their interview, they seldom use the library and other facilities of the school.
The next figure shows the graph of students who think that the school provides them with people who they can run to when they have personal problems.
Figure 5.8 The school provides the foreign students someone
whom they could go to for help in solving personal problems.
Figure 5.8 shows that four out of the seven respondents seemed confused whether there is someone they could run to for help that the school provides. Most of them said during the interview that they are too antisocial to talk and ask if there is someone who can help them whenever they have problems. “I keep the problems to myself,” one foreign student said. They said that they are too shy to talk so they keep the problems to themselves. A few of the others who agreed already had become close to some of their teachers. “I don’t share too personal problems to my teachers, only those which concerns my studies,” said one of the respondents.
E. Confidence in Class
This area refers to whether the foreign students are confident enough to be active in class. Ward, et al., (2005) stated that there are people who they call “socially skilled” who have adjustable behavior that enables them to interact with the environment or the surrounding people appropriately. They also stated that the opposite falls into two categories. One is that they don’t know the right social behavior that would lead to interaction with other people. The other one, as what they said, may already know the proper behavior but are just unable or unwilling to adjust.
The next figure shows the tally of foreign students who can be referred to as “socially skilled”.
Figure 5.9 It is easy to recite or talk in class.
Figure 5.9 shows that four out the seven respondents (what?). There are four who agree that they are not having a difficulty in participating in their class while three of them cannot decide whether participating in class is difficult or not. Some of the four respondents who agreed on the statement said that they do not volunteer themselves, but they are willing to answer questions whenever they are called by the teachers to recite.
This aspect focuses on the ability of the foreign students to express themselves. If one is “socially skilled”, then it may be easier for him/her to adjust and be able to recite in class confidently.
F. Equal Treatment
This part judges the treatment received by the foreign students from the people surrounding them. The opportunities of the foreign students to lead their fellow students might be lesser because he/she is of different nationality and is seen to be different.
The figure below shows the graph of the students who think that they are given equal chances by their Filipino classmates to be the leader of their class.
Figure 5.10 The foreign students are given equal chances
to be the leader of the class by their Filipino classmates.
Figure 5.10 shows that most of the foreign students agree that they are given equal chances to be their class’ leader. There are four of them who agree, one who strongly agrees, one who is not sure and another one who disagrees. This implies that most of the foreign students are treated equally in their class. “I’m too quiet in class so maybe they won’t appoint me as a leader,” said one respondent who disagreed that he foreign students are given equal chances to lead the class. The next figure shows the graph of the foreign students regarding the subject that their teachers treat both Filipino and foreign students equally and fairly.
Figure 5.11 The teachers treat their students, both
Filipino and foreign, equally and fairly.
Figure 5.11 now shows that five out of the seven respondents strongly agree that their teachers treat their students equally and fairly. Only one of them cannot seem to decide whether he/she is treated fairly or not. He/she said she doesn’t take it much into consideration because whatever treatment he/she receives, he/she still feels the difference. This certain student is still in the process of adjusting to his/her new environment. He/she still does not sense the feeling of belongingness into his/her new school environment.
G. Enjoyment
The foreign students, in order to adjust in a short time, need to enjoy while staying in the host country. This area assesses whether the foreign students enjoy the things that the school offers to them.
The figure below shows the graph of the foreign students concerning the school subjects as interesting subjects which avoids boredom.
Figure 5.12 The school subjects are interesting enough
to keep the foreign students from getting bored.
Figure 5.12 shows that the foreign students all agree that their subjects are interesting. Upon interview, they all imply that the subjects they are taking reflect their passions in life that is why they find the subjects interesting. Most of them are Fine Arts students. There are also foreign students who major in Mass Communication. Each of the foreign students enjoy the field they are taking.
The figure below shows the graph of the foreign students regarding their enjoyment with the activities in school.
Figure 5.13 The activities implemented by the school are enjoyable.
Figure 5.13 shows that one out of the seven respondents is not sure whether he/she enjoys the activities implemented by the school. There are four who agree and two who strongly agree. The student who is not sure whether the activities were fun or not said that he/she is not that participative in the school.
Based on the results above, most of the foreign students in UPCC find the activities in school enjoyable. This means that most of the foreign students had adjusted to their new school environment given that most of them participate and enjoy the school’s activities like the Intramurals, or other classroom activities.
H. Performance in School
This refers to the foreign students’ evaluation of their performance in the school. As what Mcleod (2008) had stated, most of the significant problems of the foreign students start in the school environment. And again, he said that in order for the foreign students to gain academic success, they first have to learn the host country’s culture and academic activities. If a foreign student thinks that he/she is doing well in school, then it may imply that the student has already adapted the host country’s culture and has already learned its academic activities.
The figure below shows the graph of the foreign students who believe that they are performing well in school.
Figure 5.14 The foreign student is doing well in school.
Figure 5.14 shows that six out of the seven respondents think that they are doing well in school. Though there is one student who is not sure, the others outnumbered him/her. The student who is not sure thinks he/she might fail some of his/ her subjects, which, in observation, is not so rare in UPCC.
Table 5.3:
The table shows the weighted mean score for the questions related to the effect of teaching style factor towards the foreign students.
QUESTIONS (Teaching Style/Education) WEIGHTED MEAN
The UPCC teachers are good in teaching. 4.428571
The UPCC teachers’ methods and techniques are effective so that new concepts are readily grasped by the class. 4.428571
The teachers give less assignments. 2.142857
The homework exercises given are easy. 2.142857
The decisions, rules and regulations set down by the school are reasonable. 4.142857
The school is clean and well-ventilated. 3
The school’s library and other facilities in are good. 3.142857
The school provides the foreign students someone whom they could go to for help in solving personal problems. 3.571429
It is easy to recite or talk in class. 3.571429
The foreign students are given equal chances to be the leader of the class by their Filipino classmates. 3.714286
The teachers treat their students, both Filipino and foreign, equally and fairly. 3
The school subjects are interesting enough to keep the foreign students from getting bored. 4.142857
The activities implemented by the school are enjoyable. 4.142857
The foreign student is doing well in school. 3.857143
Average 3.530612
AGREE
As shown in the table above, the calculated mean score is 3.530612, which is Agree in the scale given above. This means that the foreign students have a positive attitude towards the teaching style of the local teachers and as well as any school related matters.
This means that the teaching style of the teachers has not affected the foreign students with their adjustment. Since the students shows (check) a positive attitude towards it, this factor may have sped up the adjustment of the foreign students towards their new school environment.
Language/Communication
A. Language Used
Uehara and Hicks (1989) pointed out several concerns of a foreign student. One of them is language acquisition.
As English is the known to be the international language, figures 5.17 and 5.18 show the results to the questions about the language used.
Figure 5.15 Filipinos use the English language when talking
to the foreign students.
Figure 5.16 The foreign students can express themselves
using the English language.
Figure 5.15 shows that five out of the seven respondents confirm that Filipinos interact with them using the English language. Some of them can already understand a bit of Tagalog or Cebuano. On the other hand, Figure 5.16 shows that five out of the seven respondents can express themselves well using the English language.
This implies that most of the foreign students in UPCC did not have a hard time expressing themselves because they more or less are comfortable in using English.
The next figure shows the graph of the foreign students who find it easy to meet Filipinos who do not know or are not fluent in speaking the English language.
Figure 5.17 The foreign students find it easy to meet Filipinos
who do not know the English language.
Figure 5.17 shows that there are three respondents who disagree and two who even strongly disagree that it is easy to meet and interact with the Filipinos who cannot speak the English language. Only two agree that they find it easy when they meet Filipinos who do not speak using the English language. There are Filipinos who cannot speak straight English. There are times when their words become indistinct while speaking.
B. Comfortable Interaction
Comfortable interaction pertains to the level of awkwardness in a local and foreign students’ conversation.
The figure below presents the graph of the foreign students who think they take time in replying to a conversation.
Figure 5.18 It takes time for the foreign
students to reply in a conversation
Figure 5.18 shows that four out of the seven respondents do disagree and one even strongly disagrees that they take time in answering a conversation. There is one that agrees with this. When asked about this, the Korean said he/she is having a difficulty in understanding the English language when spoken in a bit fast way. He/she has to think about it for a long time before talking back to the Filipino classmates.
The next figure shows the graph of the foreign students who believe that the Filipinos understand what they are trying to express.
Figure 5.19 Filipinos understand what the foreign students say.
Figure 5.19 shows that four out of the seven respondents agree that the Filipinos can understand them. There are three respondents who are not that sure. This is probably because of the accents that the foreign students use. The ones who are not sure whether the Filipinos understand them or not were asked by the researchers if they try to change their accent or language as what the Communication Adaptation Theory stated. “I don’t know how.” Some of them find it hard to change their accents. This situation sometimes leads to the foreign students’ silence and prevents them from interacting to (with) the local students. Not being able to express themselves is something new to the foreign students. In their home country, they can talk freely and can make other people understand them. Based on Rhinesmith’s Ten Stages of Adjustment, when a foreign students’ usual activities in their home country becomes limited in the host country, the foreign students experience culture shock.
The figure below shows the graph of the students who find it pleasant to hear a language they don’t understand.
Figure 5.20 The foreign students find it pleasant to hear
language which they cannot understand.
Figure 5.20 shows that there are two students who agree that they find it easy. (easy what?) There are students who find it unpleasant when they hear people talking in a language cannot understand. On the other hand, there are students who are already used to the language and therefore do not find it unpleasant hearing other people talk even if they don’t understand anything. But to those who agreed that it is unpleasant to hear others speak in languages they don’t understand, This situation only reminds the foreign students that they are not home, that they are in a different country, thus, reminding them of the negative feelings caused by culture shock.(comma splice)
The next figure shows the graph of the foreign students who believe that they can comfortably to the Filipinos.
Figure 5.21 The foreign students can comfortably
talk to the Filipinos.
In general, the foreign students think that they can talk comfortably with the Filipinos as shown in figure 5.21. Even though a few of them are not that fluent in speaking the English language, they claimed that they are comfortable in talking with the Filipinos.
Table 5.4:
The table below illustrates the weighted mean score for questions relating to the effects of the language factor towards the foreing students.
QUESTIONS (Language/Communication) WEIGHTED MEAN
Filipinos use the English language when talking to the foreign students. 3.571429
The foreign students can express themselves using the English language. 4
The foreign students find it easy to meet Filipinos who do not know the English language. 2.285714
It takes time for the foreign students to reply in a conversation 2.428571
Filipinos understand what the foreign students say. 3.714286
The foreign students find it pleasant to hear language which they cannot understand. 2.857143
The foreign students can comfortably talk to the Filipinos. 4.571429
Average 3.346939
UNDECIDED
The calculated mean score of the answers of the foreign students regarding the questions related to communication and language is 3.346939, which results to Undecided, under the scale given above. This means that the students shows neutral attitude towards language.
This indicates that the students are still undecided if they are already adjusted when it comes to language. With this, language factor has affected the adjustment of the students towards their new school environment. Since the students show a neutral attitude, language has contributed to the slow adjustment of some of the foreign students.
CULTURE/TRADITION
A. Food
The foreign students were asked about their reactions regarding Philippines’ type of food. New kinds of food are also part of the new environment.
The next two figures show the results for the statement about the foreign students’ adjustment on Filipino food.
Figure 5.22 The foreign students find it easy to
adjust to Filipino food when they first arrived in the country.
Figure 5.23 The foreign students eat Filipino food.
Figure 5.22 shows that three out of the seven respondents had a difficulty in adjusting to Filipino food. There are two students who directly adapted to Filipino’s food when they first arrived in the Philippines. In figure 5.23, however, there are already six out of the seven respondents who can eat Filipino food. In the interview, most of them said they had adjusted pretty quickly with Filipino foods because they can still taste the Asian flavor in them. Most of the foods they enjoy are adobo, fried chicken and other meat recipes.
B. Environmental Factors
This area refers to the physical factors of the environment. It represents the appearance of the country’s place. The Theory of Work Adjustment states that in order to be able to adjust, the person must have to develop a correspondence with his/her environment, including its physical appearance.
The figure below shows the graph of the foreign students who enjoy or detest the tropical weather in the Philippines.
Figure 5.23 The foreign students enjoy the
tropical weather of the Philippines.
Figure 5.23 shows that four out of the seven respondents are not sure whether they enjoy the weather here in the Philippines or not. There are two who enjoy the weather and one who didn’t. “I hate winter,” said the Japanese respondent.
The climate differences that the foreign students experience is also a factor that the foreign students need to adjust. Most of the UPCC foreign students cannot decide yet whether they enjoy Philippines tropical weather or not.
The next two figures show the results on the statements regarding the daily street conditions of the Philippines.
Figure 5.24 The foreign students are well adjusted to the road conditions,
occasional lack of running water, or the interrupted electricity.
Figure 5.25 The foreign students are bothered by the garbage that
are piled up along the sides of the roads.
Figure 5.24 shows the tally of students who are well adjusted to the common daily life situations in the Philippines. There are four students who think that they have already adapted to these situations. Figure 5.25 on the other hand shows the tally of students who are bothered by the garbage and filth piled up along the sides of the roads.
There are parts of Cebu where trashes and other garbage scat er (check) around the sidewalks.
The figure below now shows the general judgment of the foreign students regarding the Philippines as a beautiful place to live in.
Figure 5.26 The foreign students find the Philippines a
beautiful and clean place to live in.
Figure 5.26 shows that four out of the seven respondents think that the Philippines is a beautiful and clean place to live. There are three who cannot decide on this matter.
Some foreign students are undecided whether the Philippines is a beautiful place to live. “I’m not sure if the whole place is beautiful,” said one. The foreign students believe that not the whole of Philippines is beautiful. “Aside from the places that are full of criminals, it’s fine,” said the Japanese. Japan is a very secured country with a very strict government. They treat crimes with justice. The Japanese student in UPCC is used to a country that prevents crime as much as possible.
C. Behavior of the Public
Behavior of the public pertains to how the local residents act and what they show to the crowd. This area pulls together the reaction of the foreign students regarding the attitude and manners of the Filipino public.
The figure below shows the graph of the foreign students’ idea regarding the Filipinos urinating in public.
Figure 5.27 The foreign students get embarrassed and
upset when they see a person urinate in public.
Figure 5.27 shows that four out of the seven respondents strongly feel aversion whenever they see a person urinate in the public. There is one student who disagrees with the statement. “I really don’t care,” said the student. Most of the foreign students do not want the sight of people urinating in public.
The next figure shows the graph of the foreign students who get annoyed when they see people who spit in public.
Figure 5.28 The foreign students get annoyed when
they see a person spit in public.
Figure 5.28 shows that there are four students who get annoyed when they see people spit in public. Most of them are not used to seeing people who spit in public.
D. Acceptance of Weaknesses
Acceptance of weaknesses pertains to the foreign students’ acknowledgment of their mistakes if ever they had made one.
The figure below shows the graph of foreign students who find it easy to accept corrections from their Filipino classmates.
Figure 5.29 It is easy to accept a correction from a Filipino classmate.
Figure 5.29 shows that three agree, one strongly agrees, and three chose undecided on the statement saying that it is easy to accept their weaknesses. Based on the bestkajahejevprdfeel (check) superior over the Filipinos, they slowly learn that everyone is equal. They were most influenced by the Filipino students in UPCC because the students in UPCC express themselves with freedom. They said they get used to it. The others are still confused about how they would feel if a Filipino classmate would correct them from something they did wrong.
Most of the foreign students did not take long in adapting to the expressiveness of their Filipino classmates. Those who had already made Filipino friends find it even easier to accept corrections from their local classmates.
The next figure now shows the graph of the students who find it easy to accept discipline from their teachers.
Figure 5.30 It is easy to accept discipline from the teachers.
Figure 5.30, on the other hand, shows four out of the seven respondents strongly agree that it is easy for them to accept discipline from the teachers. There are two who chose undecided, and there is one who agrees with the statement. They confirmed that it is easier for them to accept discipline from the teachers than to accept corrections from their Filipino classmates. This can be referenced to what Mcleod (2008) had stated. He believed that there are students who expect more error correction from the teachers. More of UPCC’s foreign students are expecting their teachers to discipline them.
E. Religion
Another aspect of culture is the primary religion of the host country. The foreign students were asked questions regarding their religion and the religion of most of the Filipinos.
The next figure shows the graph of the students who attend church in the Philippines.
Figure 5.31 The foreign students attend church in
the Philippines State denomination.
Figure 5.31 shows that only one student attend in one of the churches in the Philippines. The others said that they do not quite fit in one of the churches here in the Philippines.(discuss?why?what is their religion?different from Filipinos?What do they think of Filipinos religion? )
The next figure shows the results regarding the unity of ideas between the churches in the respondents’ home country and the host country.
Figure 5.32 There is an agreement between the standards taught by the
foreign students’ churches and what they see in the Philippines.
Figure 5.32 shows that only two of the respondents agree that there is an agreement between what they had learned in their church back home and what they see from the people here in the Philippines. (elaborate.generalized)
F. Entertainment
The foreign students were also asked whether they enjoy the kinds of entertainment that Philippines has offered them.
The next figure shows the graph of the students who enjoy the Philippines’ mass media.
¬¬¬¬¬
Figure 5.33 The foreign students enjoy the mass media
(such as radio, television, magazines and newspapers)
provided for them in the English language.
Figure 5.33 shows that five of the seven¬¬¬¬ respondents enjoy the kinds of entertainment offered to them by the country. Most of them said that as long as they can understand the medium, they enjoy it as much as the Filipinos. (what is this entertainment?elaborate)
G. Social Aspects
Social aspects pertain to the relationships that the foreign students have with the Filipino students. Figures 5.34 and 5.35 show the tally of the results to the questions pertaining to the relationships between the foreign and local students.
The two figures below show the results regarding the social interaction between the foreign students and the local students in UPCC.
Figure 5.36 The foreign students find it easy to get along
with their classmates here in the Philippines.
Figure 5.37 The foreign students find it easy to make friends
with the Filipino students here in UPCC.
Based on figure 5.37, all of the respondents agree that it is easy to get along with their classmates in UPCC. Moreover, figure 5.35 shows that they all agree as well that befriending the Filipino students is not hard to do at all. This implies that the Filipino students in UPCC are open to the foreign students in befriending and accepting them. On the other hand, the foreign students are skilled enough to socially interact to their new classmates.
Figures 5.38 and 5.39 show the graph of the foreign students who feel that they are accepted by the Filipino students and that they belong to their new school environment.
Figure 5.40 The foreign students feel that they are accepted
by the “clique” (influential group) of my school.
Figure 5.41 The foreign students feel that they are liked by their Filipino classmates.
In figure 5.40, most of the foreign students cannot decide whether they are accepted by the clique in their corresponding courses or divisions. They believe that it is not for them to decide whether they are accepted or not.
The next figure shows the results on the statements regarding the comfort the foreign students feel when attending social gatherings with the Filipinos.¬¬¬¬¬
Figure 5.42 The foreign students feel comfortable and relaxed
when they attend a party or other social gatherings given by Filipinos.
Figure 5.42 shows that most of the foreign students agree that they are comfortable in attending social gatherings with the other Filipinos. But still, there are others who are not sure and there is even one who disagrees.
The next figure shows the graph of the students who most likely enjoy or are satisfied with their social activities here in the Philippines.
Figure 5.43 The foreign students are satisfied with their social activities here.
Figure 5.43 shows that the students are satisfied with their social activities here in the Philippines. (what are these?) Poedjiastutie (n.d) stated that one classification of the culture shock that the foreign students encounter is their social life. The results above imply that the foreign students in UPCC have already adjusted their social life here in the Philippines. Though there some of them who claim that they interact mostly with people of the same nationality, they somehow feel satisfied with the interaction between them and the Filipinos.
Table 5.5:
The table shows the weighted mean score for the questions related to the effect of teaching style factor towards the foreign students.
QUESTIONS (Culture/Tradition) WEIGHTED MEAN
The foreign students find it easy to adjust to Filipino food when they first arrived in the country. 2.857143
The foreign students eat Filipino food. 3.857143
The foreign students enjoy the tropical weather of the Philippines. 3.428571
The foreign students are well adjusted to the road conditions, occasional lack of running water, or the interrupted electricity. 3.571429
The foreign students are bothered by the garbage that are piled up along the sides of the roads. 4.428571
The foreign students find the Philippines a beautiful and clean place to live in. 3.857143
The foreign students get annoyed when they see a person spit in public. 3.571429
It is easy to accept a correction from a Filipino classmate. 3.714286
It is easy to accept discipline from the teachers. 4.285714
The foreign students attend church in the Philippines State denomination. 2.285714
There is an agreement between the standards taught by the foreign students’ churches and what they see in the Philippines. 3.428571
The foreign students enjoy the mass media(such as radio, television, magazines and newspapers) provided for them in the English language. 4.285714
The foreign students find it easy to get along with their classmates here in the Philippines. 4.714286
The foreign students find it easy to make friends with the Filipino students here in UPCC. 4.571429
The foreign students feel that they are accepted by the “clique” (influential group) of my school. 3.428571
The foreign students feel that they are liked by their Filipino classmates. 3.857143
The foreign students feel comfortable and relaxed when they attend a party or other social gatherings given by Filipinos. 3.571429
The foreign students are satisfied with their social activities here. 4.285714
Average 3.777778
AGREE
As shown in the table, the calculated mean score of the answers regarding the culture differences of the foreign students is 3.777778, which is Agree in the scale given above. This means that the foreign students shows (check) a positive attitude towards the cultural differences of the their country and the locals host country.
This illustrates that the cultural differences did not affect the foreign students in adjusting to their new school environment. The students have already adjusted to the cultural differences that they experiened. (check) This also shows that cultural differences do not really slow down the adjustment of a foreign student.
