| Over the past two decades the number of international students enrolled at U.S. institutions of higher education has steadily increased. What is the educational, social, and cultural impact of a large international student population on domestic students? Is there in fact a pedagogical basis for increasing international enrollment? This research investigated the impact of international students on domestic students through quantitative and qualitative analysis. First, a theoretical model of cross-cultural interaction consistent with existing literature was proposed. This Cross-Cultural Interaction Model measures significant relationships between various forms of cross-cultural interaction and eight educational aspects: educational experience, cross-cultural sensitivity, cross-cultural competency, the academic environment, international interest, the role of the institution, perceptions of international students, and interest in cross-cultural interaction. A measuring instrument in the form of an interactive web survey was then employed to collect data on 5,701 domestic students enrolled at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. When student cross-cultural interactions were correlated with the eight educational aspects, positive associations were found. These were supported by qualitative analysis of written comments provided by survey participants. Thus the findings support the hypothesis that the presence of international students has a positive impact on domestic students, and provide a pedagogical basis for increasing international enrollment at U.S. institutions of higher education. |
