The Middle Way: East Asian Master's Students' Perceptions of Critical Argumentation in U.K. Universities

Abstract

This article explores the learning experiences of East Asian master's students in dealing with Western academic norms of critical thinking in classroom debate and assignment writing. The research takes a cultural approach and employs grounded theory and case study methodology. The aim is for students to explain their own perceptions of their learning journeys and tell their own stories through in-depth interviews. The data suggest that the majority of students interviewed rejected full academic acculturation into Western norms of argumentation. They instead opted for a “Middle Way” that synergizes the traditional cultural academic values held by many East Asian students with those elements of Western academic norms that are perceived to be aligned with these. This is a relatively new area of research, which represents a challenge for British lecturers and students.