Foreigners Learn TCM-A Case-study From An Intercultural Perspective

Unlike the spread of west medicine that has taken roots in China and transformed Chinese social life as quickly and overwhelmingly as flood,the transmission of TCM abroad has undergone ups and downs but never stop moving forward.Chinese medicine has attracted so many foreign learners now and then.Nowadays,when TCM and its inner cultural values have increasingly attracted the attention from the world,TCM education has got a golden opportunity for its international development.The number and scale of foreign students who came to China to study TCM have been continuously increasing.Thus,how to promote TCM education internationally is not only a grand vision for some domestic famous universities of TCM,but a very important part of our country's cultural strategies.Whatever we do to develop TCM education at home and abroad,learners should not be ignored.As the “opinion leaders” for the transmission of TCM abroad in future,TCM foreign students as well as their learning stories will provide a unique perspective for the internationalization of TCM education..Although the unique theoretical system,way of thinking,diagnostic methods,language and terminology of TCM make TCM learning process full of difficulties,confusions even conflicts,more and more foreign students come afar to study TCM.What makes them insist on learning TCM? Is it the curiosity for this mysterious oriental art that drives them or some other reasons? Thus,to make it clear why foreigners learn TCM will help to find out what TCM really attracts foreigners.Secondly,how can these foreign students master the essences of TCM? The learning process of foreign students is just like a black box cut off from history,society and cultural background.In the real world of TCM international education,the educaters seldom stepped into the learners' world,listening to and observing patiently and intentively what they need and what they feel.What cognitive barriers did they encounter and how did they deal with them? How did they adapt to the intercultural study and what changes have taken place on the learners' cognition,emotion,attitude towards TCM? The answers to these questions will help us uncover the veil of foreigners' TCM learning stories.Only by knowing how to learn,can we better grasp how to teach.Thirdly,what the foreign students obtain from TCM education? Learners' self-evaluation on pros and cons will provide us a mirror to find out what kind of TCM education appealing and suitable for foreigners,which will guide the internationalization of TCM education.This study aimed to reveal the black box of TCM learning.Case study is adopted as a main research method combined with interviews and questionnaires.The research hopes to have a detail and dynamic depict for the learning stories of foreign students,making up the defects of similar research which were too abstract,simple,and rough in the observation and description of the subjects' inner world.Additionally,it tries to explain the phenomenon with the theories in sociology of education,anthropology and cross-cultural communication.Findings:1.There are reasons for learning TCM: a strong TCM complex,Chinese complex and Chinese culture complex;being attracted by TCM culture;satisfactory experience of TCM treatment;scientific inquiry;realistic interests such as occupation planning;realization of self-value and the ideal of life.These learning motivations are influenced more or less by some cross-cultural factors,such as integration into social life,school culture,peer culture,the relationship between teachers and students,which could reduce or increase their motivations.2.Foreign students experienced an intercultural adaptation mode consisted of four stages: passively accept—conflict—positively accept—influence others,which is like a "spiral spring".Correspondingly,their understanding of TCM has undergone sublimation from a healing to its cultural values and life style.3.The obstacles that foreign learners have to face include language and terminology,differences in the understanding of body and health between West medicine and East medicine;difficulties on handling TCM healing technology;conflicts in the way of thinking;difficulties on the integration into the local life,cultural identity etc.Getting TCM education back into nature and tradition are the useful coping strategies for the foreign students.Moreover,a good teacher is like a beacon to help the learners out of the confusion and loss.Conclusions:1.The harvest of TCM education is its adherence to the doctrine of TCM: harmony and balance.The success of TCM education lies in changing learner's way of thinking,way of life and creating a new life realm by a moderate but salutary influence.2.The most important strategy for the internationalization of TCM education is to implant the traditions and essences of TCM in foreign learners' hearts,to arouse every sensitive sense of learners,to make TCM teaching and learning process more poetic,life-oriented,natural and traditional.