Critical Thinking Development, Multicultural Academic Discourse, and Language Identity among International Graduate Students in Canadian Universities: A Mixed Methods Study
Keywords:
critical thinking, multicultural academic discourse, language identity, international students, Canadian higher educationAbstract
This mixed methods study examines the development of critical thinking competencies, multicultural academic discourse navigation, and language identity negotiation among international graduate students in Canadian universities. Grounded in critical pedagogy, academic literacy theory, and multilingual identity frameworks, the study employed a sequential explanatory design combining quantitative surveys administered to 374 graduate students from 28 countries of origin at three major Canadian universities, with qualitative semi-structured interviews involving 26 participants. Findings demonstrate that prior educational culture significantly moderated students' critical thinking dispositions, with students from Confucian-heritage educational traditions exhibiting initially lower academic argumentation self-efficacy but demonstrating accelerated critical thinking growth over time when supported by culturally responsive pedagogical scaffolding. Academic discourse socialization quality and multilingual identity affirmation were identified as the strongest institutional predictors of critical thinking development and academic achievement.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Isabelle Lefebvre- Tremblay, Priya Raghunathan (Author)
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