Evaluation of instrument design to explore supervision experience of international Chinese doctoral students in a Malaysian university
List of Authors
  • Baharin Abu , Nie Jing

Keyword
  • International Chinese Doctoral Students, Supervision Dynamics, Academic Challenges, Coping Strategies, Malaysian Higher Education

Abstract
  • This study assessed the feasibility of an interview protocol to examine international Chinese doctorate students' supervision in Malaysia. It is carried out from a larger study that seeks to address gaps in the literature on these students' problems, supervision dynamics, and coping methods, given their importance in academic and cultural interchange. The initial design involved a comprehensive literature review, interview procedure development, and field expert and target student input. The respondents evaluated the interview protocol's clarity, relevance, cultural sensitivity, and linguistic ease indicated a need for revisions to improve understanding and application. Half of participants assessed the procedure as straightforward, however cultural sensitivity and language limitations were recognized as areas for improvement. On the other hand, five experts recommended simplifying technical language, including open-ended questions, and adjusting for cultural and educational variation to make the procedure useful for future study. The findings revealed that although the interview protocol's basic design is strong, adding the proposed improvements would improve its relevance, clarity, and cultural appropriateness. These upgrades should make data gathering easier, help us understand the international doctorate student experience in Malaysia, and shape future educational policy. Academicians and politicians might use the revised methodology to correctly capture Chinese PhD students' complex experiences to improve supervisory and academic assistance in Malaysian institutions.

Reference
  • 1. Baniasadi, A., & Salehi, K. (2019). Introduction on the Principles and Process of Construction and Validation of the Interview Protocol. Higher Education Letter, 12(46), 177-203. 2. Bhaskar, H. L. (2018). Business process reengineering framework and methodology: a critical study. International Journal of Services and Operations Management, 29(4), 527-556. 3. Davies, G. A., Edney, K., & Wang, B. (2021). National images, trust and international friendship: Evidence from Chinese students. International Relations, 35(1), 69-89. 4. Denieffe, S. (2020). Commentary: Purposive sampling: complex or simple? Research case examples. Journal of Research in Nursing: JRN, 25(8), 662. 5. Feng, Y., Duives, D., Daamen, W., & Hoogendoorn, S. (2021). Data collection methods for studying pedestrian behaviour: A systematic review. Building and Environment, 187, 107329. 6. Heng, T. T. (2019). Understanding the heterogeneity of international students’ experiences: A case study of Chinese international students in US universities. Journal of Studies in International Education, 23(5), 607-623. 7. Huang, R., Liu, D., Tlili, A., Yang, J., Chang, T.-W., Wang, H., Zhuang, R., Burgos, D., & Jemni, M. (2020). Handbook on Facilitating Flexible Learning During Educational Disruption: The Chinese Experience in Maintaining Undisrupted Learning in COVID-19 Outbreak. Beijing: Smart Learning Institute of Beijing Normal University, 46. 8. Jin, Y. Q., Lin, C. L., Zhao, Q., Yu, S. W., & Su, Y. S. (2021). A Study on Traditional Teaching Method Transferring to E-Learning Under the Covid-19 Pandemic: From Chinese Students' Perspectives. Front Psychol, 12, 632787. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.632787 9. Kalpokas, N., & Radivojevic, I. (2022). Bridging the Gap Between Methodology and Qualitative Data Analysis Software: A Practical Guide for Educators and Qualitative Researchers. Sociological Research Online, 27(2), 313-341, Article 13607804211003579. https://doi.org/10.1177/13607804211003579 10. Khanal, J., & Gaulee, U. (2019). Challenges of international students from pre-departure to post-study: A literature review. Journal of International Students, 9(2), 560-581. 11. Lim, M. A., & Huang, Z. M. (2022). An analysis of Chinese students? use of Chinese essay references Another role for international students in the internationalisation of the curriculum. Learning and Teaching-the International Journal of Higher Education in the Social Sciences, 15(2), 29-52. https://doi.org/10.3167/latiss.2022.150203 12. Nguyen, M. H., Serik, M., Vuong, T. T., & Ho, M. T. (2019). Internationalization and Its Discontents: Help-Seeking Behaviors of Students in a Multicultural Environment Regarding Acculturative Stress and Depression. Sustainability, 11(7), Article 1865. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11071865 13. Roh, Y., Heo, G., & Whang, S. E. (2019). A survey on data collection for machine learning: a big data-ai integration perspective. IEEE Transactions on Knowledge and Data Engineering, 33(4), 1328-1347. 14. Saddour, I. (2020). Methodological considerations when piloting an interview protocol: the example of Syrian asylum seekers in France. Journal of French Language Studies, 30(2), 211-238. 15. Scott-Monkhouse, A. R., Tal, M., & Yelenevskaya, M. (2021). International teleconferences in EGAP courses: preparing students for prospective professional situations. Language Learning in Higher Education, 11(1), 15-32. https://doi.org/10.1515/cercles-2021-2003 16. Yahya, N., Maidin, S. S., & Safari, M. S. (2021). The Development of Interview Protocol to Explore Hybrid Agile Software Development Phases. International Journal, 10(3). 17. Yeong, M. L., Ismail, R., Ismail, N. H., & Hamzah, M. I. (2018). Interview protocol refinement: Fine-tuning qualitative research interview questions for multi-racial populations in Malaysia. The Qualitative Report, 23(11), 2700-2713. 18. Zólyomi, A. (2020). Designing an instrument to measure explicit and implicit learning processes. Central European Journal of Educational Research, 2(1), 92-102.