Group B

Group B encompasses those students at the other end of the continuum, Connor, Li Ming and Saul (see Table 5.3). Nobody was without both positive and negative experiences, but for these students the negative seemed to dominate and there was an anxiety about whether they really were going to be able to succeed and an absence of clear plans to change their current approach in spite of its apparent inadequacy. Li Ming, for example, was able to describe a well-structured plan in interviews 2 and 3 for improving his learning, involving preview and review reading and high attendance, but admitted that it would not be practicable as he did not have time to implement it.

Name Interview

Indications of confusion, lack of clear plan, struggle with

task Indications of sense of progress Overall tone of the interview Louise 2

Can you also listen to what the teacher is saying and take notes from that? Not very often.

Yes. B. First assignment is B. Actually I think anything is OK.

Satisfied, on trajectory, normal difficulty 3 No negatives expressed For me I think the happy thing is I got the

good result. Satisfied, on trajectory, normal difficulty. May 2

And at the course I try to catch the tutor’s talk the course, I want to before she studying the course I read the book first, and I tried that but at the last week I can’t, I can’t catch it, because I have heaps assignments to do and tests, so I use all of the time to do the assignments and the test, so I didn’t read the book.

I thinking about every people is at the same level. I didn’t need to worry about anything. I will do it better, do it by myself is the better. Maybe I can catch them or at the same level. Yeah, I must can do that, any people can do that, I can do that, too.

Expectation of understanding and active role to achieve it; confusions temporary

3 And I can say I failed, one terrible thing, I failed the D101 the second test.

I know how to study which part is important, just a little bit more know how to study.

Erratic results, but an active role in pursuing clarification, learning.

Mike

2

the first few weeks of study I have no idea. I haven’t read the book and I just attend the lecture and then listen and no -- [indicates nothingness, no comprehension]. At home I have no read the books.

At first I have no idea about study but now I have little idea how to study at Rutherford.

Continued enthusiasm in spite of temporary setbacks as course practices reveal new ways of working 3 I think, ‘Oh, it’s easy,’ or something, and I

[thought] I did it, but maybe later I feel wrong or I don’t really realise what should I do and get a better result, so at final not good.

Yes. If my exam result is continue to up there, I think I can’t learn more but I think … if at that moment I just think I’m doing enough, but now I think I’m did not enough and I will change my some skills and listen to my friends and put more time on study.

Pattern of entering with confidence, finding unforeseen complexities but drawing new insight and new confidence.

Scott

2

It’s quite, quite tough. Every day, especially for international students because they choosing the second language for their study, so is quite - - I don’t think so hard for anyone, but quite hard for most of the international students.

I know my effort is not a zero, so that is good, even if I’m still make some mistake, I still make some silly mistake but next time, I can avoid them. But try to do my best, then better than the last one. I think more confident than the first time.

Sense of agency in spite of challenge; step-by-step learning

3 quite worry about final exams because that was first time for me so I don’t know how the exam going.

I think, oh, exam like this, so I feel confident a little bit increased because I can handle well, and that is keep going, keep going, keep going,

Circumspection about the unknown but familiarity restores his sense of agency

Table 5.3 Group B students

Whereas in the first interview he had hoped for opportunities of “voicing out” his opinion in class, giving vent to his natural talkativeness and developing a friendly relationship with the teacher, in the second he sadly proclaimed a setback in his oral skills, was skipping classes and thus missing guidance on assignments, and was even considering whether attendance was necessary at all:

Just my friend told me last week she didn’t attend to the D101 course for whole semester but she did the final exam and get a good mark, just like that. She didn’t know about what does look like for the lecturer and just give the assignment and take the final exam. (Li Ming 2)

His loss of a sense of agency is perhaps manifest in his fatalistic pronunciation of the phrase “just like that” fourteen times in the second interview. However, as one of the youngest in the study, he was proud of advances he had made gaining independence in his personal life, citing his new earning power in a part-time job, his growing circle of

Name Interview

Indications of confusion, lack of clear plan, struggle with

task Indications of sense of progress Overall tone of the interview Connor 2

Because my level is not good so I afraid fail the paper.

not very good balance, because I think I also have problem with that, because I need to spend more time on study.

Maybe do next time better, [im]prove, step by step.

Sombre tone, but talking up his struggle: failure is asserted to be normal, and can see what to do next

3 I haven’t enough time. I just read some principle but I haven’t read the case for explain the principle. Maybe the meaning is not very clearly, so I think that’s a problem for answer some question in the exam.

Study at university, communicate with some Kiwi friend or Kiwi classmate has also open my idea, opened my mind.

Confusion about content of courses, chastened by exam, self-ascribed bad study habits. Li Ming 2

I don’t know. I am still struggling to do it better. Just try my best. I don’t have the specific plan for my next the half semester.

Independent living: because I can cook the food very well.

Sombre tone, study challenges overwhelming

3 in that period I went to the restaurant, the takeaway, to do the job. After that I don’t have time to look read the book, just like that … I just worry about my study, I try to figure out all the things.

Maybe I, how to say, more independent, and experience the life oversea, just like I tell you. … At least I have to deal with all the things, pay the electric bill or something like that.

Sombre tone, study aspects

overwhelming. Learning better, better life skills.

Saul 2

I feel quite pressure and frustrated … before the test I spent two days to stay in library, maybe seven or eight hours to review, but actually I have no point about what is the lecturer want us to catch.

Managing regular attendance at 8 am workshop:

so I think for me I think if you have this kind of perseverance, can insist to do one things, it is make me real pleased.

Sombre tone, no sense of what he can do that is different but seeing that present strenuous effort is not working

3 it is quite stressful, you know. I think is -- some paper is quite strange, … I don’t know which one I should focus on, yeah, so that is why I feel so stressful.

I think whole semester is quite bad.

Good time is I got a really high mark at my G101 test. It is 20 out of 25, I think is A. It is quite surprising, though, because at the time I don’t think I prepare very well, and I still have some problems, but that is multiple choice, so that is why, I think I just depend on luck, I think.

Still no idea of how to improve study. Small moments of feeling good, but mostly confusion and stress.

friends (including a Kiwi) and his management of such mundane matters as paying the bills and buying toilet paper: “I begin to suitable about the life here” (3).

Another example of this group was Saul. On the whole, apart from brief moments where some kind of competence could be claimed (as when he realised that he actually had more confidence about participating in discussion than some of his native-speaker classmates), the semester was characterised by confusion about what he should do and puzzlement that what he did, which had served him well in the past, appeared to be making no difference to his results. However, Saul believed that with effort it was possible to experience growth as a result of personal suffering, and that there is personal congratulation due to persistent effort, and this gave him some spirit to drive himself forward.