Survey of Indian Medical Students’ Adaptation in Kazakhstan: Psychological, Sociocultural, and Academic Dimensions

This study investigated international students’ adaptation experience in a higher education institution. A sociological survey was conducted among one hundred and seventy Indian students in their first and second year of medical studies at West Kazakhstan Marat Ospanov Medical University, Aktobe, the Republic of Kazakhstan. Against the background of many studies in this field, this topic is contextualized within the higher medical education system in the western region of Kazakhstan. The study helps to improve understanding of such phenomena as international students’ dimensions of psychological, sociocultural, and academic adaptation. The differences in the various dimensions of adaptation from the gender perspective and the year of study were investigated. The impact of the adaptation level on the students’ study achievements was assessed. The study results demonstrated challenges in psychological adaptation in the first-year international students, which decreased over time. The differences in the psychological, sociocultural, and academic adaptability between girls and boys were not statistically significant. Second-year international students felt more emotionally comfortable and psychologically safe in the group, and this reflected their high grades GPA. Based on the findings, the authors propose recommendations on how to improve the international students’ comfortableness in the Kazakhstani university setting.

ADAPTAÇÃO ACADÊMICA E SAÚDE MENTAL DE ESTUDANTES DE MEDICINA NA COVID19: ESTUDO EXPLORATÓRIO NO BRASIL

Research shows that university students are more vulnerable to the occurrence of mental disorders than the general population. In this sense, the medical course is considered a great source of stress. This study aimed to characterize the variables of academic adaptation (personal, interpersonal, career, study and institutional) of students facing the pandemic period of COVID-19, as well as to present descriptive statistics regarding emotional, physical and behavioral variables associated with mental health (stress, depression and anxiety). 513 medical students participated in the research, with ages varying between 18 and 29 years (M = 22.41; SD = 2.49), coming from public (18.7%; n = 96) and private universities (81, 3%; n = 417). Three questionnaires were used for data collection: the Academic Experiences Questionnaire - short version (QVA-r); the Depression Scale, Anxiety and Stress DASS-21 and a sociodemographic questionnaire. It was observed that most of the sample reported losses in concentration levels (79.5%) and academic performance (59.8%) during the pandemic, and this contingent also did not feel supported by the university to deal with the issues of this period. Regarding professional performance, most students (53.6%) do not feel prepared to guide conduct, as well as the perception that pandemic interferes in the relationship with patients in primary care (93.8%). Regarding the levels of depression, anxiety and stress, the first and second year students had higher averages when compared to students in more advanced stages. This article contributed to identify the impact of remote education on the training of future doctors and, thus, encourage research and study of this new adaptation in the face of the current pandemic of COVID-19.

English and International Students’ Adjustment in Indonesian Higher Education: A Teacher’s Perspective

International students at higher education in Indonesia encounter an extent of situations amid their adaptations in academic life. These experiences contribute to their satisfaction. As handful of studies within Indonesian context were conducted to identify the international students’ difficulties in adapting to academic life, teacher’s point of view toward the issue is barely available. This study centers at a teacher’s experience in dealing with the international students. Highlight is given to language barrier, not only encountered by the international students but also the teacher. A narrative inquiry was employed involving an academic leader who is also a teacher knowledgeable in internationalization agenda in higher education in Indonesia. Results of the study reveals that the academic adaptation of international students, with the focus of language barrier, was compounded by the absence of roadmap of internationalization policy in national and organizational levels, less-ideal classroom setting, and not effective interaction within classroom with the diversity of people involved. It is suggested that the policy on the proficiency of English language should be regulated to be mastered by students and teachers in international program. HIGHLIGHTS: The lack of policy regulating standard of English proficiency level as entry requirement for international students becomes one of the causes of the language barrier problem that might hurdle the academic adaptation of international students. The composition of domestic and international students in a class as well as the lack of English proficiency of both the teacher and the students has contributed to the difficulties in academic adjustment.

Characteristics of students’ academic adaptation at different levels of education in Russia

Introduction. The relevance of the study is conditioned by the need to find effective ways of adaptation due to changing conditions of education and personality development, as well as to inclusion of students with various educational needs and capabilities in the educational process, including those with disabilities (health limitations) and chronic diseases. Currently, there is no conceptual and systematic elaboration of theoretical provisions and experimental research in the field of academic adaptation. Materials and methods. The materials of the study are articles from Russian periodicals. The research method is theoretical analysis of the problem of academic adaptation at different levels of education. Results of the study. Major studies of academic adaptation in Russia are focused on the problems of determining its criteria, age specificity, factors and conditions for successful adaptation, the development of a diagnostic tool, its characteristics in inclusive education, etc. The specificity of academic adaptation at different levels of education is associated with gaining experience of adaptation and psychological development of a student. The determinants of academic adaptation differ depending on the educational level. In the conditions of preschool education the determinants are games and the experience of interaction with peers and adults, psychosomatic development; in the conditions of primary education the determinants are communication skills, educational motivation, interaction with the teacher; in the conditions of secondary education the determinants are correspondence of the educational process organization with characteristics and capabilities of students, interaction with peers and adults; in the conditions of special professional education the determinants are psychophysiological characteristics of students, personality factors (academic motivation, self-reflection), interpersonal factors. Discussion and conclusion. Analysis of academic adaptation as a multicomponent phenomenon makes it possible to develop means of its optimization and to create conditions for children and adults’ academic success in the educational system. Within the context of modern education it is important to study students’ academic adaptation in an inclusive educational environment, the development of the concept of academic adaptation as a process of successive change of its foundations, factors and mechanisms at different educational levels.

Component structure of academic adaptation at primary school age

Modern education is characterized by the variability of forms and requirements, which necessitates the search for the ways of effective academic adaptation of students. The purpose of this study is to study and experimentally confirm the component structure of academic adaptation at primary school age. The study involved 80 primary schoolchildren of the municipal educational institution "Secondary school No. 59" in Saratov (RF) and 51 parents. To study the component structure of the academic adaptation, the authors' questionnaire and scales for parents and children were used to assess the motivational, emotional, cognitive, communicative, personal (regulatory), as well as psychophysiological components of academic adaptation. New scientific data were obtained on the relationship of the motivational component of academic adaptation (with cognitive r= 0.245, at p < 0.05), cognitive (with internal learning motivation, r= 0.529, at p <0.01), and personal (with cognitive r= 0.375, at p< 0.01). It was found that the most variable characteristic of the academic adaptation of primary schoolchildren is the arbitrariness of mental processes (σ = 0.9). As a result of factor analysis, 7 factors of academic adaptation were identified: "Consistency of self-esteem as a good student", "Orientation towards independence in studies and communication with peers", "Psychophysiological distress", "Avoiding school troubles based on emotional self-regulation and thinking through actions at school", "Striving to improve normative behavior at school", "Social success in school", "General emotional well-being at school". It is also shown that, in the views of parents, the mental stress of students is a positive factor in the academic adaptation of their children, while the students themselves experience a negative influence of this factor on the success of their adaptation. The results of the experimental study enabled to create the scientific basis for developing a technology of psychological and pedagogical support for the academic adaptation of primary school students, contributing to the successful inclusion of a child in the educational environment.

The Role of Junior Adolescents’ School Well-Being/Ill-Being Characteristics in School Anxiety Variations

Difficulties that junior adolescents (aged 11–13 years old) experience in terms of academic adaptation, which are indicated through school anxiety and academic wellbeing characteristics, often lead to a dramatic decrease in academic performance, behavioral problems, and deterioration of their health. The purpose of this investigation is to determine the structure of characteristics of school wellbeing/ill-being of junior adolescents and their role in variations of school anxiety, which largely define academic adaptation. In this study, based on positive psychology and a systematic approach, the level of distinctiveness of characteristics of school wellbeing is carried out with the help of comparative analysis; the factor structure of these characteristics is identified; the characteristics of wellbeing and their coordinated combinations (factors) are determined as predictors of school anxiety. The sample consisted of 120 students of the 5th–7th grades, aged M = 11.5; SD = 1.04 (49.2% girls, 50.8% boys) who attended Saratov secondary schools. To study the level of school anxiety, we used the Philips’ School Anxiety Scale (SAS), and indicators of school wellbeing were measured with the original scales developed by the authors of the study. Statistical processing of the results was carried out with regression analysis and factor analysis. The results showed that the school wellbeing of junior adolescents forms a complex structure that includes cognitive, personal, emotional, social, and psychophysiological characteristics of school life. It was found that from 16% up to 53% of the deviation of variables characterizing school anxiety is conditioned by the assessment of variables characterizing emotional states, the ability of self-regulation, cognitive capabilities, and interest in learning. The study determined a high level of tension in adolescents in the field of emotions’ self-regulation, unpleasant physical sensations at school, before and after attending school, in the course of planning their school day and reflecting on educational activities. The most powerful factors of school anxiety in junior adolescents are physical distress, low ability to self-regulate and social adaptation, lack of independence in a learning activity, and personal immaturity.

Teacher-Student Relationship and Academic Adaptation in College Freshmen: Disentangling the Between-Person Effects and Within-Person Effects

Developing a good relationship with teachers and adapting to the new academic environment are important developmental issues for college freshmen. Based on three-wave longitudinal data collected at the 2nd (T1), 4th (T2), and 8th (T3) months upon entry to college, this study examined the dynamic associations between teacher-student relationship (TSR) and academic adaptation among 1,578 Chinese college freshmen. Results of cross-lagged panel model found a reciprocal association between TSR and academic adaptation across time points. Results of random-intercept, cross-lagged panel model suggested that after controlling for the significant association between TSR and academic adaptation at the between-person level, the within-person changes in TSR at T2 predicted corresponding changes in academic adaptation at T3. In conclusion, the association between TSR and academic adaptation is mainly due to the stable, trait-like difference between individuals and partly due to state-like variations within individuals. Practically, enhancing TSR seems a promising avenue to facilitate academic adaptation among college freshmen.