The challenges overseas students encounter are many. This is especially the case for elite Asian overseas students.

In this podcast, I interview Dr. Yang Peidong from the National Institute of Education in Singapore for his expert knowledge in the integration of international Chinese students and the difficulties they face while studying abroad. Once a Chinese international student himself who has studied in Singapore and Oxford, he also shares his experience, dilemmas, and growth. He describes various soft skills necessary to excel when studying beyond home, such as developing cultural sensitivity, genuine communication, and open-mindedness. Dr. Yang ends the podcast with an emphasis on implementing academic excellence with soft skills development.

Dr. Peidong Yang holds a DPhil in Education (University of Oxford) and a M.Phil in Sociology (Cardiff University). He currently teaches at the National Institute of Singapore.

0:00 - Introduction to Dr. Peidong Yang - Research, work, and background

5:50 - Pitfalls of Overseas Chinese elite students

11:30- Cultural Superiority vs. Cultural Diversity (and its impact on sensitive communication)

15:19 - Positionality - how positionality affects our ability to view ourselves and appreciate other cultures

18:50 - Cultural diversity and Class Privilege

19:50 - Parallel Societies - Barriers to acquiring soft skills in university

24:00 - Conflict - between migrant and local students

30:00 - Integration - Migrant students

34:50 - Mismatch - Does cultural mismatch in migrant educators make up for academic rigour?

48:10 - Segregation - Indian students to China

56:10 - What is cultural capital and how do we cultivate it?

Video version available on YouTube channel “Dr. Jon Tam”

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