Students often face numerous stressors while studying. This situation has become even more critical recently as almost 16% of college students suffer from anxiety (Brown, 2016). Professionals from the UNSW Sydney (2017) state that this issue can be perceived as excessive worry that affects students’ lives adversely. Blackhart, Williamson, and Nelson (2015) believe that anxiety can be mainly described as people’s inability to control themselves appropriately. This idea is supported by Johansen (2013) and Rachman (2013). While speaking about learners who come from other countries, professionals mainly focus on issues associated with relocation and adaptation to the new environment (Hechanova-Alampay, Beehr, Christiansen, & Van Horn, 2002; Szabo, Ward, & Jose, 2016). Problems faced by local students tend to be more connected with general ones, such as overload or fear of having poor grades (Azadeh, 2013; Rogaten, Moneta, & Spada, 2013; Schuler, 2013). It is vital to focus on the problem of student anxiety in detail because it can lead to depression and suicide among this population (Eckart, 2018). This paper will prove that anxiety experienced by local and international students differs because foreigners are affected not only by the necessity to have good marks but also by a new environment and culture. In particular, this essay will discuss peculiarities of anxiety faced by the diverse learner population, reveal associated differences and similarities, and describe the best coping strategies.
Both international and local students often feel anxious because of their performance. Academic demands can turn out to be a cause of constant stress experienced by learners because they “focus on task-irrelevant stimuli, which negatively affect the performance” (Azadeh, 2013, p. 55; Schuler, 2013). Academic achievements have an enormous influence on students’ success in life because being outstanding people receive an opportunity to have a scholarship and to be accepted for a well-paid job (Osnat & Tulchinsky, 2017; Rogaten et al., 2013; Schuler, 2013). Realizing this fact, parents tend to make learners focus on studying and constant performance improvement as the recent survey data suggest (Dabney, Chakraverty, & Tai, 2013). Educators, in their turn, often emphasize that those students who fail to obtain a particular mark will not be allowed to retake their test, will have to take the same course one more time, or will be expelled from the educational establishment (Ritchwood, Carthron, & Decoster, 2015; Rogaten et al., 2013). As a result, students become anxious if expected results are not received. In this way, the intensity of test anxiety can increase over the course of time, revealing both physical and mental symptoms (inability to calm down, dizziness, sweating, etc.) (Johansen, 2013; NIMH, 2016; Rachman, 2013). Therefore, local and foreign students are pressed by their parents and educators, which increases the anxiety levels in both student groups.
However, there are certain differences related to social and emotional anxiety. Local students usually face these types of anxiety, as increased demand is the major element that alters their life when accomplishing high school education. International students are also affected by it, but these individuals seem to suffer more from the necessity to leave their homes and adapt to a new environment and culture (Hechanova-Alampay et al., 2002; Szabo et al., 2016). Those individuals who come from abroad need to cope with a range of additional issues, which presupposes that their level of anxiety is often higher than the one observed in local students. This is the central difference between foreign and local learners (Hechanova-Alampay et al., 2002; Khawaja, Chan, & Stein, 2017). Family and friends’ support is vital for students because it provides them with an opportunity to cope with everyday stressors (Hechanova-Alampay et al., 2002; Jibeen, 2016). That is why an unfamiliar environment can turn out to be a critical problem, especially for those students who are used to the fact that their parents take care of the majority of routine issues (Hechanova-Alampay et al., 2002; Jibeen, 2016; Khawaja et al., 2017). Cultural differences may also become a problem because such things lead to misunderstanding (Hechanova-Alampay et al., 2002; Loh, Moy, Nur, & Zaharan, 2013; Zender & Cassedy, 2014). For instance, according to Hechanova-Alampay (2002), a cultural novelty that defines the level of comfort in a foreign student in relation to the host culture might seriously increase the level of strain if the cultures are rather different. In such a way, both international and local learners have specific stressors that cause anxiety. The first group is more subjected to emotions while the second to social ones.
To reduce adverse influences associated with anxiety, students should follow coping strategies. One of them is relaxation such as meditation, relaxation breathing, or music, which have the capacity to minimalize anxiety symptoms (Brodersen, 2017; Cho et al., 2016; Ghasemi, Lotfollahzadeh, Kermani-Ranjbar, & Kharazifard, 2017; Ratanasiripong, Park, Ratanasiripong, & Kathalae, 2015). Researchers also note that a healthy diet and avoidance of caffeine help decrease anxiety (Rogers, Heatherley, Mullings, & Smith, 2013; Saneei et al., 2016). Another useful method is to have enough sleep and exercise regularly because these are the best ways to be clear-headed and release tension (Jayakody et al., 2014). These strategies help to minimize the level of stress and engage in specific activities that help to avoid negative thinking (Cho, Ryu, Noh, & Lee, 2016; Jayakody, Gunadasa, & Hosker, 2014). International students should gather information about a new culture and interact with its representatives as much as possible to develop an understanding of the new environment and improve language proficiency (Wang, Ahn, Kim, & Lin-Siegler, 2017). In this way, students may use various coping strategies to streamline adaptation and overcome anxiety.
Thus, this essay has explained that both local and international students suffer from test anxiety, but foreigners are also affected by the new environment and culture. Students face test anxiety due to the necessity to perform better than others to meet their families’ and educators’ demands. In addition to that, international students suffer from anxiety that is caused by the necessity to live in a new environment and culture. Nevertheless, different types of anxiety can be overcome if students identify their major issues and use coping strategies to adapt to changes. Schools should be mindful of these factors and create a less performance-driven environment focusing more on the mental health of the students. Government should create more inclusive opportunities for foreign students that will help them better adapt to the education process and feel less anxious. Parents in their turn need to support their children in every way without applying mental pressure.
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