Lived Experiences of Foreign Students towards the Development of a Language Adjustment Assessment Tool

As part of internationalization of higher education, student mobility has expanded over the past decade. Particularly, at St. Paul University Philippines, internationalization is established by hosting foreign students from Basic Education Unit to the Graduate School. Reviewed literature shows that foreign students across countries face a range of unique acculturation difficulties brought by language difference. However, none of these focused solely on language adjustment of foreign students. The researcher considered this particular space in sociolinguistics as a potential niche to occupy, with the aim of explicating the lived experiences of foreign students to develop a language adjustment assessment tool. This study used hermeneutical phenomenology in understanding the lived experiences of foreign students on language adjustment. Considering data saturation in the qualitative phase, the researcher involved 18 college foreign students using semi-structured one-on-one interview. The data were subjected to thematic structural analysis to find emerging themes. Based on such themes, the researcher developed a language adjustment assessment tool in the quantitative phase, which was pilot-tested to 76 medical foreign students and finally administered to 51 college foreign students using purposive-convenient sampling. Cohens Kappa was used to assess the instrument’s validity while Cronbach’s Alpha for reliability. Based on the findings of the study, more enablers affecting language adjustment of foreign students were identified than constraints. Moreover, four major themes emerged including Language-related General Living Adjustments, Language-related Academic Adjustments, Language-related Socio-Cultural Adjustments, and Language-related Psychological Adjustments. The developed language adjustment assessment tool was also evaluated to be fairly valid and reliable.


process.
The researcher considered this particular space in sociolinguistics as a potential niche to occupy, with the aim of explicating the lived experiences of foreign students; thereby contributing to the internationalization initiatives of the institution and the country at large. By employing a Sequential Exploratory Mixed Method, the researcher attempted to gather qualitative data to explore the lived experiences of foreign students, and then collected quantitative data to explain relationships in the phenomenological information initially obtained. The themes and subthemes that emerged from the qualitative phase were used to develop a tool on language adjustment, which later underwent validity and reliability testing through the quantitative phase.

Statement of the Problem
This study explored on the lived experiences on language adjustment of foreign students in SPUP.
Specifically, it answered the following questions: 1) What enablers and constraints affect foreign students' language adjustment?
2) What co-created meanings can be derived to describe the language adjustment experiences of foreign students?
3) What tool can be developed to assess language adjustment of foreign students? 4) What is the quality of the language adjustment assessment tool in terms of: a. Validity; and b. Reliability?

Research Design
The study underwent two phases. The initial qualitative phase explored on the lived experiences of foreign students on language adjustment; while the next phase quantitatively used findings to develop and validate a Self-Assessment Tool on Language Adjustment.
The first phase of the study employed Hermeneutical Phenomenology design, particularly using the Hermeneutic Loop with the goal to describe the lived experiences of foreign students. As the researcher developed an understanding of the lived experiences based on each response to interview questions, he began to question the meanings of these responses which were projected through actions and speech (verbal and non-verbal cues). The researcher engaged himself in all these answers and observations to find interrelatedness between and among experiences, observations and literature. Eliciting feedback was also done to clarify concepts, leading to a correct interpretation and greater understanding, which-of course-alters, yet again, the understanding of the whole.
After the analysis of the qualitative data, themes and sub-themes were used to drive the development of a

Participants of the Study
In the qualitative phase, purposive-convenient sampling technique was used by the researcher while considering data saturation. A total of 18 participants were involved to totally extract all significant elements of the phenomenon being studied, leading to an endpoint called "data saturation". The qualitative participants are composed of Indians (7), Nigerians (5), Papua New Guineans (2), East Timorese (2), Indonesian (1), and Korean (1).
Subsequently, in the quantitative phase of the study, purposive-convenient sampling technique was used for both pilot-testing and final administration. A total of 76 foreign students from Cagayan State University, College of Medicine and Surgery were considered in the pilot-testing of the tool, while 51 foreign students from St. Paul University Philippines were included in the final administration of the language adjustment assessment tool for foreign students.

Data Gathering Procedure
Throughout the process of the study, the researcher strictly complied with the institutional research protocols and regulations. A letter asking permission for the conduct of the study, duly signed by the Dissertation Adviser and noted by the Graduate School Dean, was sought from the Vice President for Academics of St. Paul University Philippines; and from SPUP'S Institutional Ethics Review Board (IERB). Once approved, permission to conduct the study was also requested from the Director of International Relations.
In particular, the researcher met the foreign students who were qualified in the set criteria for interview and asked if they can be participants of the study. The nature and objectives of the study vis a vis participants' rights were discussed with them, and informed consent was also sought. Those who agreed in the conditions thereof and signed the informed consent were asked for their convenient interview schedule.
Before starting the interview, a warm-up casual conversation was done to reduce the interviewee's tension. The researcher used an interview guide to direct the discourse and facilitate a natural flow of conversation. Apart from open questions which encourage participants to talk at length, the interview guide also employed prompts to breakdown ideas into more specific experiences. During the interview, the researcher used an audio recorder, as permitted by the participants and was mindful of all verbal and non-verbal cues of the participants while being aware with moments of silence to allow both interlocutors to reflect on issues being discussed. These were recorded through field notes and the researcher also asked clarifications from the participants to obtain accurate response and ensure a fluid conversation.
Verbatim transcription was done after every interview through the help of a research assistant. Such transcription conformed to the following format: single space; space between speakers; dash to indicate pauses; ellipses to indicate gaps or prolonged pauses; parentheses to separate from the text all expressions like laughter and exclamation among others; provision of sufficient margin for coding, critique or comments; and inclusion of page number coded with interview number and participant www.scholink.org/ojs/index.php/wjer With the assistance of the adviser and pool of experts, the researcher carefully conformed with the method of instrument development and validation by De Vellis (as cited by Gumabay, 2015).
This method involved eight steps, namely, (1) defining what is to be measured; (2) generating an initial item pool; (3) determining the measurement format; (4) having experts review the initial item pool; (5) pilot testing of the questionnaire; (6) evaluating item reliability and revising the questionnaire, (7) administering the final tool, and (8) measuring the reliability of the final tool.

Data Analysis
In the qualitative phase, Ricoeur's phenomenological hermeneutical theory was employed in the interpretation of text. This analytical theory was the main inspiration for opening the way into the hermeneutical circle. It included naive reading, thematic structural analysis, synthesis of findings, and illuminating and illustrating the phenomenon and integrating themes.
Next to the qualitative phase was the retrieval of all quantitative data by the researcher for further analysis. Statistical Package for the Social Science (SPSS) was used for statistical calculation. The present study utilized Cronbach's alpha, a reliability statistics which determines the internal consistency or average correlation of items in a survey instrument to gauge its reliability (Santos, 1999).
Cohen's kappa coefficient (κ) was used to test the validity of the developed questionnaire. It is a statistics which measures inter-rater agreement for qualitative (categorical) items, and generally thought to be a more robust measure than simple percent agreement calculation, as κ takes into account the possibility of the agreement occurring by chance. In statistics, inter-rater reliability, inter-rater agreement, or concordance, is the degree of agreement among raters. It gives a score of how much homogeneity, or consensus, there is in the ratings given by judges, and it is one of the aspects of test validity.

Instrumentation
Semi-structured one-on-one interview. Since the chief concern of phenomenological studies is to elicit rich, comprehensive, and first-person accounts of experiences and phenomena under inquiry, the researcher utilized semi-structured one-on-one interview which allowed him and the participants to engage in a dialogue in real time. Such data collection technique also gave sufficient space and flexibility for original and unexpected issues to arise, which the researcher may investigate in more detail with further questions (Pietkiewicz & Smith, 2012).
Relevance Validity Assessment Form. This tool was used by experts to analyze each questionnaire item and rate it as either relevant or not relevant, while editing or writing comments.
Language Adjustment Assessment Tool for Foreigners. This tool was developed from the emerging experiences of foreign students as recounted in the phenomenological data. Results from the internal consistency test and questionnaire validation were used to refine items in the developed research instrument.

Result
This chapter presents the results of the gathered data from both phases of the research study. The qualitative phase includes the description and interpretation of the lived experiences of foreign students on language adjustment. Responses during the interview with foreign students were extracted to determine the enablers and constraints on adjusting to language. Moreover, after a thematic structural analysis, four major themes emerged, namely: Language-related General Living Adjustment, Language-related Academic Adjustment, Language-related Socio-cultural Adjustment, and Language-related Psychological Adjustment.
Subsequently, the quantitative phase of the study presents the developed Language Adjustment Assessment Tool for Foreign Students for validity and reliability evaluation.

Figure 1. Summary of Enablers and Constraints Affecting Foreign Students' Language
Adjustment Figure 1 summarizes the enablers and constraints affecting foreign students' language adjustment. It is identified that there are more enablers than difficulties, indicating a high chance of adjusting well to the host country. Moreover, the ability to speak English is evident among Filipinos, but the difference in speech prosody, language preference, and willingness to communicate hinder foreign students to adjust.

The Emergent Themes
Based on the extracted responses from the semi-structured one-on-one interview with foreign students, the following themes and sub-themes emerged.

Major Theme 1: Language-related General Living Adjustment
This theme revolves around the experiences of foreign students in their language adjustment to the language along the areas of transportation system and purchasing arrangement.    Table 2 summarizes the language-related academic adjustment of foreign students. Along with this primary theme, there are a total of 75 meaningful units extracted. The highest among the sub-themes is translating and interpreting with 32.00%. Following this is language use in instruction and avoiding interaction, obtaining 28.00% and 25.33% respectively. Meanwhile, the lowest percentage is on providing additional tasks of 14.67%.

Major Theme 3: Language-related Socio-Cultural Adjustment
This theme speaks about the language-related experiences of foreign students in their socio-cultural adjustment. Generally, it includes how language difference affects their social dealings with interactants in the host country and how cultural diversity becomes attributable to foreign students' language apprehension. Such language-related socio-cultural adjustment can be abstracted into 7 sub-themes, Interlocutor's Personality, and (7) Understanding Social Implications.

Major Theme 4: Language-related Psychological Adjustment
This theme summarizes the experiences of foreign students in terms of homesickness, depression, loneliness, anxiety, boredom, isolation, and suspicion which are affected by language. The analyzed narrations can be further abstracted to two sub-themes, namely: (1) Dealing with Emotional Stress, and (2) Confronting Suspicion.

The Essence of Meaning
The language adjustments of foreign students are affected by more enablers than constraints. Such adjustments on language are identified to be existent in their general living, academic, socio-cultural and psychological experiences, allowing them to use language strategies when confronted with difficulties in the host country.
These language adjustments are initially problematic when foreign students immerse in a new environment where there is an abrupt change of people they interact with and an entirely different cultural norm. However, with social support group from inside and outside the host institution, they can accommodate new strategies of social interaction to minimize the negative effect of acculturation.
At SPUP, foreign students' language adjustments are properly dealt with through varied internationalization activities of the university and through the International Relations Office which serves as their front-line social support.

The Language Adjustment Assessment Tool for Foreign Students
The Language Adjustment Assessment Tool for Foreign Students is comprised of 32 items, encapsulating the lived experiences of foreign students on adjusting to the language in a host country. It is based on the themes and sub-themes that emerged from the qualitative phase of the study.
Directions: Rate your language adjustment experiences in the host country by encircling your choice from a scale of 1-4; where 4 (Strongly Agree), 3 (Agree), 2 (Disagree), and 1 (Strongly Disagree)       Table 6 shows the number of questionnaire items derived from each theme. The most number of items from the developed tool was taken from the Language-related Socio-cultural Adjustment with 16 items.
It is followed by Language-related General Living and Academic Adjustments having six items for both themes. The least is Language-related Psychological Adjustment with only four items.

Quality of the Language Adjustment Assessment Tool
A. Validity Moreover, since the obtained Kappa value was .310, the result was under the range of "fair agreement".
McHugh (2012) also indicated that a kappa value of 0.21-0.40 is considered "fairly valid" for a newly developed instrument. Thus, the Language Adjustment Assessment Tool for Foreign students is found out to be fairly valid.

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Item 26: I feel disregarded when only a few people talk to me. .702 Table 8 shows that during the pilot-testing of the 45-item language adjustment assessment tool among 76 foreign students, the reliability statistics provides an initial actual value of .533 for Cronbach's Alpha. It indicates a low level of internal consistency. As such, there was a need to delete less reliable items with the intent of obtaining at least .700 Cronbach's Alpha.
After deleting a total of 13 less regular items, the tool obtained a Cronbach's Alpha value of .702, indicating a high level of internal consistency. Moreover, the Language Adjustment Tool for Foreign students is trimmed down from 45 items to 32 items. .703 32 Table 9 shows that during the final administration of the 32-item language adjustment assessment tool among 51 foreign students, the reliability statistics provides an actual value of .703 for Cronbach's Alpha.
It indicates that the developed tool is deemed reliable.

Discussion
1) There were five assessed enablers of foreign students in adjusting to the language which include establishing a support group, immersion with the locals and their language, knowledge about the local language, English language proficiency, and tolerance.
2) The three difficulties in adjusting to the language, as identified by foreign students, are speech prosody, language preference of locals, and unwillingness to communicate.
3) There were four major themes deduced from the interview responses which include language-related general living adjustment, language-related academic adjustment, language-related socio-cultural adjustment, and language-related psychological adjustment. 4) Language-related general living adjustment revolves around the experiences of foreign students in adjusting to the language along the areas of the transportation system and purchasing arrangement. The sub-themes include assertion and concession, scaffolding by significant others, and perceiving prejudice.
5) Language-related academic adjustment includes dealing with language in class discussions, collaborative academic activities, and supplemental instructions. The sub-themes are avoiding interaction, language use in instruction, providing additional tasks, and translating and interpreting.
6) Language-related socio-cultural adjustment is about how language difference affects foreign students' social dealings with interact ants in the host country and how cultural diversity becomes attributable to foreign students' language apprehension. The sub-themes include initiating conversation, gender-based interaction, immersing with the local language, non-verbal strategic communication, prosodic features of speech, recognizing interlocutor's personality, and understanding social implications.
7) Language-related psychological adjustment includes how language is attributed to the experiences of foreign students in terms of homesickness, depression, loneliness, anxiety, boredom, isolation, and suspicion. The sub-themes are dealing with emotional stress and confronting suspicion.
8) The developed Language Adjustment Assessment Tool for Foreign Students is comprised of 32 items, encapsulating the lived experiences of foreign students on adjusting to the language in a host country.

9) After measuring validity and internal consistency, the developed Language Adjustment Assessment
Tool for Foreign students is found out to be fairly valid and reliable.

Conclusions
The language adjustments of foreign students are existent in their general living, academic, socio-cultural and psychological experiences, allowing them to use language strategies when confronted with difficulties in the host country. These adjustments are generally attributed to language apprehension brought by difference in language and culture. Moreover, Philippine environment is more enabling than constraining. This is evidenced by the fact that there is a support system prevalent among foreign students. In particular, SPUP is a friendly community in terms of language and cultural adjustment.
Evaluated as valid and reliable, the developed Language Adjustment Assessment tool for Foreign Students, which encapsulates the lived experiences of adjusting to the host country's language, is ready for use.