New Zealanders need to reach out and be more amicable towards Asian students, many of whom are returning home without having made friends here, says a report just out.
Failure to befriend Asian students amounts to lost opportunities in expanding New Zealand-Asia relationships, including future trade and business ventures, according to the Asia New Zealand Foundation’s latest report; Friends and Allies; the Impacts of Returning Asian Students on New Zealand-Asia Relationships.
The report’s three authors all have Massey University links. They are Terry McGrath, International Student Ministries New Zealand, Paul Stock, Senior Tutor in Plant and Cell Biology, Institute of Molecular BioSciences – both of whom are Massey chaplains – and Dr Andrew Butcher, Director Research and Policy, Asia New Zealand Foundation, who completed his doctoral thesis and has guest lectured at the University.
“The opportunity afforded for a significant expansion of New Zealand-Asia relationships through initiating relationships with Asian students studying here is critical,†say the report’s authors. The returning students acted as ambassadors for New Zealand, commentating in this country’s values, people and lifestyles, and recommending New Zealand as a tourism as well as quality education destination, they said.
But feedback from students revealing negative experiences, such as racist remarks, financial exploitation and poor treatment by service providers, is creating a bad impression back home.
Research showed the majority of Asian students returned home without having really connected with the host community, or with their New Zealand student peers.
Despite the high numbers of Asian students coming here – from 5000 to a peak of 125,000 in 10 years and steady at around 90,000 a year now – New Zealand’s “Asian literacy†remains poor, the report says.
New Zealanders may well embrace sushi, karaoke, dragon boat racing, Chinese New Year festivals and sister city cultural exchanges, but they remained reticent when it came to welcoming Asian students on a personal level, says co-author Terry McGrath.
Schools and tertiary institutions were well-placed to facilitate better connections between local and foreign Asian students through organised groups, clubs and events, he said.
“We need to discuss ‘Asian students’ as part of a broader conversation about what it means for New Zealand to engage with Asia,†the report said.
International education in New Zealand needed to focus on mutual relevance and ongoing relationships, manifest in joint ventures, business partnerships, community linkages, advisory networks and professional associations as well as personal friendships.
Massey News, Issue 13, 10 September 2007
