An Action Research Study on the Management of Interruptions in the Classroom Among from Guinea

Abstract

As the Belt and Road Initiative continues to advance, cultural exchanges between China and Africa have deepened, resulting in a large number of international students from Guinea with no prior knowledge of Chinese coming to China to study the language. During the teaching process, it is evident that the classroom habits of Guinean students differ significantly from the norms of Chinese language classes in China. This study involved 14 Guinean international students with no prior knowledge of Chinese—12 males and 2 females. During their seven months of study in China, they completed all HSK Levels 1–3 listening and speaking courses. The following issues arose in the classroom: students would sometimes interrupt the teacher during class, openly contradict the teaching content, or challenge their classmates’ answers in front of the class. Consequently, through classroom observations and student interviews, I documented these classroom issues and analyzed their causes from four perspectives: cross-cultural differences, the establishment of classroom rules, and the adaptation of teaching materials. First, I developed a management plan based on a “student-centered” approach, implemented it, observed changes in student behavior, and then evaluated the effectiveness of the teacher’s intervention. The study indicates that management approaches relying solely on suppression or criticism can intensify students’ resistance. By co-creating speaking rules with students, allocating dedicated time for them to express their ideas, and making them the “protagonists” of the classroom, everyone is able to express themselves in an orderly manner, and instances of interrupting and backtalking are significantly reduced. The conclusion offers practical, country-specific classroom management recommendations tailored to West African international students with a French-speaking background.