The psychological problems of young international students can not be ignored.

With the expanding trend of studying abroad at a younger age, a series of problems have gradually surfaced, and many students' psychological problems have attracted more and more attention. So how to solve the psychological problems of international students? Come and have a look with me! Welcome to reading.

The psychological problems of international students can not be ignored. Parents need to pay special attention to psychological counseling.

The mental health problem of international students (courses) has always been one of the pain points for international students in China. Due to cultural conflicts and academic pressure, China students, especially young students, suffer from depression and mental illness due to negative emotions every year, which seriously affects their successful completion of their studies overseas. It is urgent to pay attention to the mental health problems of international students.

/kloc-a letter of 0/3 years old was brought to my office by my guardian as soon as school started in autumn. She has just arrived in a private boarding school from Beijing to attend the ninth grade. Although the school arranged pair counseling for new and old classmates and organized weekend trips for new students, within one week of school, she was asked by the school to find a psychological counselor because she didn't talk to anyone to rule out the possibility of psychological obstacles.

In 2000, he began to work as a school psychologist abroad. Letter is the first young international student I received. From that year on, more and more foreign students began to appear in the public junior high school and high school where I worked and the surrounding private boarding schools.

Fully understand, advance despite difficulties, and cultivate the ability of independent living and self-care

When people lament that many children in China are disappointed because of pressure or failure in college entrance examination (excellent courses), few people think that the seemingly free campus on the other side is far from a relaxed paradise. Take the United States as an example According to the report "Stress in America", the stress index of American teenagers (from 13 to 17) exceeds the health standard, and 83% people think that school is the main source of stress. Among them, 40% people expressed irritability, 36% people expressed nervousness or anxiety, and 30% people were depressed or depressed for a long time. About 10.7% teenagers in the United States are diagnosed with depression, and 5.9% have severe anxiety symptoms. A recent survey of nearly 5,000 senior high school students conducted by Stanford University found that 54% of girls and 32% of boys said that they had more than three stress-related physical symptoms in recent 1 month, such as headache, abdominal pain and difficulty sleeping.

Before going abroad, his parents always thought that foreign high school courses were simple, and domestic upper-middle-class students would definitely excel there, so they didn't make any other preparations except taking the entrance examination. The letter said that she didn't object to the decision of studying abroad in high school, but she didn't know much about foreign education, and the school was chosen by her parents, so her study had no goal. After school started, Xin was caught off guard by heavy schoolwork, which led to depression.

In contrast, Sang Ni has long known that although the content of high school courses abroad is not as in-depth as in China, it pays attention to understanding and application, emphasizes exchanges and cooperation, and also considers the all-round development of extracurricular activities. It is not easy to finish it well. Sang Ni's English (excellent course) is well prepared in China, and his TOEFL (course) score is 1 10, and his oral English is also very good, so there is basically no need for transition in learning. The most rare thing is that she has developed the habit of studying hard in China and was admitted to Shenzhen Lily Foreign Language School from primary school to junior high school. This boarding junior high school is not only academically strong, but also attaches great importance to quality education, and organizes a large-scale activity every month. Sang Ni participated actively, such as the host of campus broadcast and the organizer of foreign language (course) festival. She is the youngest in the class, but she is the head of the dormitory and helps the teacher manage the dormitory. TOEFL and related exams, application documents and campus interviews. , is to let her and her parents think about their own personality characteristics, advantages and disadvantages, and choose a high school that suits them. Sang Ni is used to and looking forward to the intense study rhythm, and deliberately cultivates his independent life and self-care ability before going abroad, which is very different from those students who plan to study abroad in order to avoid the college entrance examination, or who study abroad without their own will.

Pay attention to the cultivation of soft factors such as anti-frustration, decompression mechanism and communication ability.

With the development of China's economy, developed countries intend to open and lower the visa threshold for small international students in China, and a large number of young students leave their parents early to study and live overseas. In sharp contrast, overseas schools are not equipped with corresponding psychological resources for these rapidly increasing international students. In fact, graduate students can gain knowledge by going abroad, but China children should not be encouraged to study abroad at an early age, because their awareness of psychological resilience, self-management and safety is not mature enough, and the situation is worrying.

The World Health Organization defines mental health as "a state in which individuals can realize their potential, relieve the pressure of life, work efficiently and contribute to the community". During the academic year of 20 14 to 20 15, about 12% of the more than 800 China students from the University of Pennsylvania sought psychological counseling. Small international students are scattered and there is no census data, but mental health and behavior problems caused by various maladjustments have begun to attract more and more public attention. For this reason, when eager parents pack the latest laptop, sufficient tuition and fashionable clothes for their children, have they ever asked: Are the mental health equipment ready in the bags for studying abroad?

Ying, who came to study abroad in the second grade, began to have anxiety symptoms in the third grade after his father accompanied him for one year. She suffered from anorexia in the first year of high school, and her weakness began to lead to long-term absenteeism, and she was finally persuaded by the school. Cheng, who got good grades in China, actively participated in activities such as robot team and had a good peer relationship, was suddenly transferred to study abroad when he was a freshman. Due to language and cultural barriers, he lost his sense of accomplishment and intimate interpersonal relationship in his study and life. Without the motivation to make progress, Cheng began to indulge in computer games, neglected his studies, became extremely grumpy and fluctuated greatly. Finally, he was fired.

Of course, there are also small international students who adapt well, but after all, they are a minority. For example, Sang Ni, who has just turned 14, has been eagerly involved in academic and extracurricular activities since she went to a private high school abroad, and is busy taking part in various activities such as dancing. Although Sang Ni also has some cultural puzzles, such as the cognitive differences of foreign students' relatively mature and open clothes, her open attitude and strong curiosity have successfully adapted to her studies and interpersonal relationships, which has laid a good foundation for her growth in the next four years.

Comparing these two kinds of children, it is not difficult to find that whether they have cultivated good psychological quality and whether they have cultivated soft factors such as anti-frustration, decompression mechanism and communication ability plays a key role.

Establish a sense of accomplishment and close interpersonal relationships, and don't blindly worship western education.

If children want to grow up healthily, they need to feel a sense of accomplishment and close interpersonal relationships in life and study. Psychologist Maslow's widely quoted hierarchy of needs theory found that before reaching the top of the pyramid of "self-realization", people must first meet their own needs of "safety, love and respect" in addition to their basic physiological needs. If it is not recognized, accepted and respected, people will easily have a strong sense of loneliness and alienation, which will not only make it difficult to have the motivation to realize their potential, but also lay hidden dangers for mental health problems.

After consulting, I found that I hadn't said a word to my parents at home for nearly two years before I went abroad. There are several good classmates in the old school, but they never talk to the teacher. When I arrived at boarding school, I still ignored anyone because of my English difficulties and introverted personality. Parents did not expect that communication difficulties not only hindered the progress of study and interpersonal communication, but also were regarded as a sign of cultural and psychological obstacles in studying abroad. In the next two years, despite one-on-one tutoring by English teachers, a Chinese teacher took her out to play on weekends. Most of the time, Xin was depressed, and her main course score was stuck between "C" and "D", which, in her words, was "unable to lift the spirit of learning", showing symptoms of mild depression.

Puberty (12 years old to 18 years old) is a period of conflict between self-identity and role confusion. During this period, the main task faced by teenagers is to establish a sense of identity or their own image in the eyes of others, and find their place in the social collective, so whether they are recognized and respected by the environment plays a key role in mental health. At the same time, the frontal lobe of the brain, which is responsible for judging danger and adventure, controlling impulse, planning and choosing behavior, will not fully mature until around the age of 25. This is the essential reason why many teenagers are emotional, irritable, impulsive, inattentive, disorganized, easily tempted by drugs and alcohol, and like taking risks. Moreover, adolescence is a period of high incidence of mental health problems. Teenagers, like adults, need more patience and guidance from their parents because of hormonal changes, mood swings and behaviors. Moreover, at such a critical stage of development, even the native high school students are facing the challenges of various mental health problems, not to mention the small foreign students who have left their homes.

Any change will bring different levels of anxiety, especially when you suddenly come to a completely unfamiliar environment. Because of language and cultural barriers, it is difficult for most foreign students to integrate into the circle of new classmates in a short time, and it is easy to feel inferior and marginal. At the same time, when encountering psychological problems, I am not used to sharing with others. Teenagers seldom know how to decompress, ask for help or solve problems when they are frustrated, lonely and helpless outside. In this case, it is very important for children's mental health to have relatives or friends around and be able to communicate, discuss and release tension frequently.

Letters are lucky. /kloc-at the end of grade 0/0, her parents made up their minds to let her transfer to Beijing. After returning home, Xin was in a happy mood and soon caught up with the rhythm of domestic high schools. Two years later, I received the good news that she was successfully admitted to the Academy of Fine Arts. According to the status of the letter at that time, it is unknown whether you can graduate on time after staying abroad.

In short, it is understandable that parents are eager to send their children abroad to study. But because of this, we blindly worship western education and fail to see the great challenge of cultural differences to children's mental health, and there are endless hidden dangers. The best education is not necessarily abroad. Children should not be allowed to study abroad before the age of 18 unless they have good psychological quality, learning attitude and behavior habits.

If you lack a sense of security and lose the opportunity to cultivate a positive self-awareness and a healthy anti-stress mechanism in a familiar environment, studying abroad will only increase the probability of psychological problems. (Author Xie Gang is a school psychologist in the San Francisco Bay Area and a doctor of school psychology at Temple University.)

The above is an introduction to the psychological problems that foreign students can't ignore. Welcome to consult them.