In my first year as a clinical instructor, I had a difficult learning experience with a Nigerian foreign student. Our subject was COPAR, which comprised community assessment, and the requirement was to interview families in the community. The issue I faced was the language. The majority of the community residents were not good speakers of Tagalog, and the Nigerian student likewise had difficulty with English. Because we were in a region where English was not spoken ordinarily, it was hard for him to communicate and engage positively in the community events.
I could not put him together with his peers since it would be a burden to them as they would have to serve as interpreters, which hindered their performance in undertaking their activities. It was also difficult for him to learn and participate in the activities due to the language problems.
In accordance with this, I chose to go along with him myself. I explained to the community members and families that his learning process involved direct interaction with the community, and I was the one interpreting for him. I also explained the community members his purpose in being there and encouraged them to help him. By doing this, I was able to make him experience firsthand how to deal with the people, and he was able to study and learn despite the language barrier.
Hi Ma'am! Thank you for sharing this insightful experience. You demonstrated commendable adaptability and student-centered teaching by personally supporting your Nigerian student through a language barrier during COPAR. Instead of letting the challenge hinder learning, you created an inclusive environment by interpreting and facilitating community interaction. This not only ensured his participation but also modeled cultural sensitivity and compassion—key traits in effective clinical education.