A volume in Literacy, Language, and Learning Series Editors Claudia
Finkbeiner, University of Kassel; Althier M. Lazar, Saint Joseph's
University and Wen Ma, Le Moyne College This book is about the learner
sideof the teaching and learning equilibrium, centering on the
educational experiences and perspectives ofChinese students in the
United States. These students ranged from kindergarteners, adolescents,
undergraduate, graduate, toadult learners, across the educational
spectrum. Because Chinese students are the largest cohort among all
international students in the U.S., and their prior educational
experiences and perspectives in China are so different fromthose in the
U.S., exploring who they are, what their learning experiences have been,
and how their learning needs can be met, may notonly help us better
understandthese culturally different students, but also allow U.S.
educators to teach them more effectively. The chapters in the book
examine the constructs of learner privilege and responsibilityin the
teaching and learning equation, cultural and linguistic challenges and
transitional adjustments, self-concept, learning strategies, comparison
and contrast of differences and similarities between Chinese and
American students, and/orcritical reflections on significant issues
confronting Chinese learners. While each chapter is situated in its own
research literature and connects with its own teaching and learning
practices, all of them are united around the overarching themes of the
book: the experiences and perspectives of diverse learners from Chinese
backgrounds in the United States. The chapters also flesh out some of
the larger theoretical/ pedagogical issues between education in China
and in the United States, provide useful lenses for rethinking about and
better understanding their differences and similarities, as well as
offer pertinent suggestions about how the educational communities in
both countries may benefit from learning about and from each other.
