Editor’s note: The language challenges of the COVID-19 crisis have held much of our attention this year. Here on Language on the Move, we have been running a series devoted to language aspects of the COVID-19 crisis since February, and readers will also have seen the special issue of Multilingua devoted to “Linguistic Diversity in a Time of Crisis”. Additionally, multilingual crisis communication has been a major facet of the research projects conducted by Master of Applied Linguistics students at Macquarie University as part of their “Literacies” unit. Over the next few weeks, we will share some of their findings.
First up is Tazin Abdullah’s inquiry into COVID-19 information aimed at international students in intensive English courses in Australia. Access to timely high-quality information is key during any crisis and it is widely acknowledged that English language learners in Australia have often been left out of timely high-quality information. But is there such a thing as too much information and does quantity compromise quality?
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(Image credit: Kristina Tripkovic via Unsplash)
“Getting information off the Internet is like taking a drink from a fire hydrant,” says Mitchell Kapor, the founder of Lotus Development Corporation. He may have, originally, addressed this to fellow IT professionals but that image of information gushing out strikes a chord with many. It rings especially true in the context of COVID-19, where the transmission of information has been the modus operandi for almost every institution. Today, none of us can envisage functioning without a steady flow of information but in some situations, does it drown in itself?
ELICOS students in Australia
Take, for example, the case of ELICOS (English Language Intensive Courses for Overseas Students) students. ELICOS courses are offered by Australian universities to enable international students to fulfill English language requirements for university entry. The students have stringent visa conditions regarding attendance and academic progress. They must pass their courses, as failure to pass means they have to repeat that same ELICOS course, while their university entry is delayed.
Formal requirements are only part of the story
While all these formal requirements are outlined in black and white, the everyday challenges facing ELICOS students may not be so apparent. These students face the same challenges that have been identified for international students and language learners in other contexts (Piller, 2016; Barakos & Plöger, 2020; Li, Xie, Ai, & Li, 2020).
During their time in Australia, they are engaged in the process of getting their head around a new language. At the same time, they must read and write academically in that new language and sit examinations that test their language skills in relation to specific subject matters, e.g., accounting or current affairs.
The challenges of being a newcomer
Now, add one more layer to this complexity. They are in a new country, interacting with previously unknown systems, and in unfamiliar socio-cultural contexts. Consequently, ELICOS students must decipher all sorts of important and relevant non-academic information. In a new country, they must find out who to call in an emergency or how to go to a doctor. To do these things effectively, they must not only be able to read information but also to locate it.
Teaching institutes are legally required to provide information
This necessitates legislative frameworks such as the Australian ESOS (Education Services for Overseas Students) Act, under which ELICOS institutions carry the responsibility of making adequate support and welfare information available to students. Students must know where to find emergency, medical, mental health, accommodation, health insurance services, and more. The aim is to ensure that they have access to all kinds of information relating to living and operating in a new country. Given the linguistic difficulties that ELICOS students face, the effective communication of all of this requires great effort, even without COVID-19.
With the onset of the pandemic, this communication challenge took on a whole new dimension.
Providing orientation information online
As institutions moved online, the provision of support information also relied entirely on online mechanisms (Behan, 2020). One of the changes that has taken place is that orientation programmes have become virtual. They take place via the Zoom format of presenters speaking and sharing slides with links, contact details and videos. Students are being sent emails, also full of links and contact details for support services. At the same time, students are receiving voluminous emails regarding academic matters.
To observe the impact of these changes, it is useful to examine online orientations in contrast to pre-COVID-19 face-to-face orientations. Orientations always involve the provision of multiple links and contact details but the face-to-face format allows presenters to address the specific linguistic needs of ELICOS students.
For example, prior to providing contact details for mental health support, there would be an explanation of what mental health is. This will usually involve interactive games or activities that arouse the interest and hold the attention of students. Once an ELICOS student understands what mental health is and can contextualise the language around the subject, contact details for mental health support will mean more than just letters and numbers on a slide.
Face-to-face orientations are also structured to provide a large amount of information at a pace suitable to ELICOS students. In contrast, online orientations are compressed into shorter time frames. This includes all the usual support information plus specific direction regarding COVID-19, but minus the interactive activities that help a student contextualise and understand that information.
Drowning in emails
Then, there are emails. The volume of pandemic-time emails has inundated inboxes, with students feeling like they are drowning in a sea of information. In a survey I conducted at the Macquarie University English Language Centre (see also Abdullah, 2020), students lamented that they find it difficult to look at inboxes and distinguish where each email has come from.
When they open emails, they are confused by the number of email addresses and the variety of links to go to for information. Consequently, students skim to find what they regard as essential, e.g., the how to enrol or pay fees and they overlook information about support services.
Drawing attention to support services
So, how can support and welfare information attract the attention of ELICOS students? Student attention is already scattered over several online platforms and digital multi-tasking can reduce effective reception of information (May & Elder, 2018). As students are digitally multi-tasking at unprecedented levels, students themselves suggested being innovative with online communication tools.
For instance, GIFs and memes can be used to promote support services or provide contact details. Another idea is to use short animated videos that demand less time from viewers and also deal with each aspect of welfare at a time. These videos can be played at different times throughout the length of ELICOS courses, so students can be reminded gently of the support available.
Listen to the target community
This input from students that was provided in the survey is a meaningful reminder of the valuable contribution the target community itself can make (Carlo, 2020). Not only can they assist by highlighting their specific literacy needs but the ‘grassroots’ knowledge they possess will inform the design of communication that is most effective for them (Piller, Jia & Zhang, 2020).
Developing a base of community volunteers (Piller, 2020) who can assist in producing context-appropriate and relevant GIFs, memes or videos will help to develop communication tools and methods that are community-centred and thus, more inclusive.
Centering ELICOS students
It is important for ELICOS students to be seen as a community of their own within the larger international student cohort. They have unique needs when it comes to assistance with navigating any kind of information. Now, more than ever, support and welfare information is pertinent, as they endeavour for success in their university education during the international crisis we are facing.
It is imperative that institutions ensure that the message of support reaches, not overwhelms, ELICOS students.
References
Abdullah, T. (2020, September 18). How can we support you better? Looking after ELICOS students in uncertain times [Presentation Slides]. 2020 English Australia Conference. Australia. https://www.englishaustralia.com.au/documents/item/1072
Barakos, Elisabeth, & Plöger, Simone. (2020, May 25). Recent-arrival migrant students during the Covid-19 school closures. Language on the Move. https://www.languageonthemove.com/recent-arrival-migrant-students-during-the-covid-19-school-closures/
Behan, T. (2020, September 8). Bringing Back Our International Students: The Future of International Education across Australia and New Zealand [Zoom Webinar]. Monash Migration and Inclusion Centre. https://monash.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_wvxIR2YFTB-no6I9b7Wf5A?fbclid=IwAR3wHidfa7D9zCSOit3HF2XPzoiCTc95G7ju3fZ-SoagFdcPxsB8J5H_NZM
Carlo, P. D. (2020, August 6). Message- vs. community-centered models in risk communication. Language on the Move. https://www.languageonthemove.com/message-vs-community-centered-models-in-risk-communication/
Li, J., Xie, P., Ai, B., & Li, L. (2020, August 17). Multilingual communication experiences of international students during the COVID-19 Pandemic, Multilingua, 39(5), 529-539, doi: https://doi.org/10.1515/multi-2020-0116
May, K. E. & Elder, A. D. (2018). Efficient, helpful, or distracting? A literature review of media multitasking in relation to academic performance. International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education. 15 (1) 1-17.doi: 10.1186/s41239-018-0096-z
Piller, I. (2016). Linguistic diversity and social justice. Oxford University Press. DOI:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199937240.001.0001
Piller, I. (2020, October 12). Crisis communication in multilingual Australia. https://www.languageonthemove.com/crisis-communication-in-multilingual-australia/
Piller, I. Jia, L. & Zhang, J. (2020, August 28) Linguistic diversity in a time of crisis: Language challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. Multilingua 39(5): 503–515. DOI: https://www.degruyter.com/view/journals/mult/39/5/article-p503.xml
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The overwhelming stream of well-intentioned written information provided to international students reminds me that developing the brain’s ability to understand complex written information takes time and appropriate print resources. Even those who have had access to these benefits may need to access information in different ways, especially when under stress. Zoe’s description of students in Vietnam preferring a human connection by speaking with their teachers to clarify and resolve issues in preference to writing, links to the cultural practices described by Shirley Brice Heath in “Trackton”, where community members have strong oral language skills developed through personal connections, and where print literacy has a place but is not necessarily the preferred communication mode. In a similar vein, some communities in Australia have a strong orientation towards relating and talking directly to people. Community organisation in Darwin has, so far, been effective in helping Aboriginal people be informed and stay safe. The “long grass” (homeless or itinerant Aboriginal people in Darwin) share safety information in communal settings such as soup kitchens (see, for example, https://www.sbs.com.au/news/warnings-about-covid-19-are-being-translated-into-aboriginal-languages-to-reach-all-australians/4f37ea49-e8d4-417e-98a8-37719f332eca )
Thanks, Ingrid, for making this excellent connection to the reading!
Hi Tazin
Thank you for this fantastic insight into the experiences of international students. When I am living an a country where I do not speak the language fluently, I relate very much to issues you outlined. Long texts, such as emails are particularly daunting and overwhelming, particularly after spending a whole day trying to understand and be understood whilst interacting in daily life. i have had many days when I have just been too mentally exhausted and overwhelmed to be able to open my email and hence often feel behind in my administrative duties. It can be very difficult to differentiate between junk mail, general information and essential directives which require immediate follow up. I can recall feeling embarrassed to have to ask others for help with what should be simple daily tasks but are important. There should be a better system for learning to differentiate what is important. These skills could be taught in the classroom especially for international students.
Thank you, Tazin. This is an important blog post which highlights the importance of accessibility covered in Ingrid’s post about the readability of Covid-19 restrictions. It is important that the information provided by the government and organisations such as ELICOS centres, be readable and adaptable to their target audiences, especially in times of a global crisis. As Ingrid describes the basic measurement for readability includes using less words per sentence and less syllables per word. Perhaps one of the solutions is as Tazin suggested; to use context-appropriate visual and audio mediums to help convey important messages with the least amount of words. Afterall, an image is worth a thousand words.
Hi Tazin,
The article certainly resonates with experience. I must admit that for emails I now do a bit of “selective reading”. I tend to pay more attention to certain emails (e.g. regarding fees) and skim through others. During my first time on exchange to the UK, I thought I would easily navigate through the various stages of studying abroad, given my proficiency in English. This was far from reality. I hadn’t even left Italy yet and before I even had the chance to venture into the campus, I had already received a copious number of emails filled with information e.g. procedures to apply for student accommodation, how to use the LMS system, forms on top of other forms. It was a challenge to filter the information and it felt overwhelming at times. Luckily, this served as a very positive learning experience: I could easily apply, enrol to MQ and got fast accustomed to using iLearn.
This blog reminds me of my first semester in Macquarie when I was always supposed to check my emails every single day. The majority of emails sent by international team and student connect were mainly about students’ well-being. However, having thoroughly read through all of them, I noticed that there was limited instruction regarding how to effectively use the i-learn site. At first, it was utterly overwhelming to familiarize myself with a totally new digital site, to get access to weekly readings and to use Turnitin. It was not until I asked for predecessors’ advice, I became more literate in fully accessing all the “niches” of the i-learn. The point is that, self-exploring could be beneficial to a certain extent yet formal instruction might accelerate literacy.
Good point, Megan! Advice from people who’ve had the same experience (more advanced international students, established migrants, etc.) is often more useful that (undoubtedly well-intentioned) generic advice …
I agree that it is challenging for newcomers to approach all kinds of information relating to living and operating in a new country online during the Covid-19 pandemic. Drowning in a sea of information is an undeniable consequence due to receiving a high volume of emails at the same time. However, the reason I drowned in emails is not frequently checking my email account during my first semester. Email is not a popular means of communication, especially for students in Vietnam. If students have any issues, they will directly call their teachers via their personal phone number to seek assistance. Hence, I believe that understanding newcomers’ previous context and raising their awareness of the current context are crucial since they are important factors for the institution to launch more approachable and diversified support campaigns. This is also the key message that I learn from the ineffective delivery of Covid-19-related information in Peru and Indonesia.
Thanks, Zoe! Your comment was quite an eye-opener to me. I’d love to hear more about students calling teachers in Vietnam. How does that work? Are there set “phone hours” (like “office hours”)? How do teachers manage the workload?
Hi Ingrid,
Thanks for your questions.
Teachers in Vietnam usually gave students their personal phone numbers at the beginning of each course. They suggested that students could call them anytime if we have any issues (e.g., asking for a day off due to the student’s sickness or personal problems or checking the contents/time of upcoming tests, etc.). If the teachers are busy, the students can leave a message and they will contact us later.
One of my friends is a primary teacher in Vietnam. She told me that she received at least two phone calls as well as a number of text messages from her students’ parents to ask her about their children’s learning process although she finished her work and came home.
Only when it comes to professional contexts, emails are used as a means of communication. For instance, I only use emails to exchange information relating to my thesis with my supervisor. I think the habit of making a phone call might be a typical feature in Vietnam since the Vietnamese consider it as a quick and effective way to contact people.
Hi Zoe,
I agree that many teachers in Vietnam are willing to accept phone calls from their students and this is really helpful when students are in urgent need. In retrospect, I used to directly call one of my teachers to ask for academic advice since the student center could not provide detailed explantion for specific units, only the teacher was aware of what the unit would be all about. I think this could be a great alternative source of consultancy.
Thanks, Megan, for confirming the usefulness of phone consultations! I’m learning a lot from this exchange. Do you think quick phone consultations with the teacher would be as useful in a second language context? I’m thinking that language learners are often more confident communicating in writing, and so email might still be the preferred option of international students?
Hi Ingrid,
It is true that international students prefer communicating via email to quick phone consultations. Modest English level might impede effective communication. Hence, if response is made ASAP, email could be the most optimal option.
Best,
Megan.
I agree that it is challenging for newcomers to approach all kinds of information relating to living and operating in a new country online during the Covid-19 pandemic. Drowning in a sea of information is an undeniable consequence due to receiving a high volume of emails at the same time. However, the reason I drowned in emails is not frequently checking my email account during my first semester. Email is not a popular means of communication, especially for students in Vietnam. If students have any issues, they will directly call their teachers via their personal phone number to seek assistance. Hence, I believe that understanding newcomers’ previous context and raise their awareness of the current context is crucial since it is a key for the institution to launch more approachable and diversified support campaigns. This is also the key message that I learn from the ineffective delivery of Covid-19-related information in Peru and Indonesia.
Hi Tazin, thank you for this interesting article.
Studying during pandemic is quite challenging for me. Having to swift to a full online learning, I need to familiarise myself with zoom app and ensure I am able to study in the online environment. I remembered that there were quite lots of email from university at that time, and the most important one was (and still is) the message from MQ Vice Chancellor, so I paid more attention to these emails. Thus, ensuring an engaging and interactive information is a must to attract students’ equal attention.
Relating to the Indonesian COVID blogpost, this emphasised the importance of ensuring the reader understanding while providing information. Though the government had maximised their effort in spreading information across the country, it would be useless when the readers were not able to absorb the information due to language barrier. A pictured or symbolised information would be helpful to maximise people attention.
Reading this blog post brings me back to the first days of going to Macquarie University. I do agree that the leaders have done very well in delivering important academic-related message, announcement to all students. Yet, as an overseas freshman, it was quite challenging for me to navigate myself to proper performance (e.g. using Leganto). I remember I had no clue about what Leganto was and how can I retrieve files on the provided links while the lecturers just kept assigning readings. As the number of material increased, I was really on fire until small chat with one of my fellows. Reflecting on this event, I have acknowledged the importance of literacy in the academic discourse that although the online mechanisms were introduced, it could be unfamiliar to international students to comprehend due to the language barriers and knowledge background.
Thank you, Tammy, for this important reminder! From my perspective, as a teacher, it’s unfortunately too easy to forget that systems itself may be new to students… will make sure to add instructions how to use Leganto to my future ilearn sites 🙂
Thanks Ingrid for picking up on this issue. Another comment (from personal experience!) is that good instructions, and good webpage design, may sometimes still not prevent this kind of problem from occurring. Students are under pressure to read tens of thousands of words in academic texts, all in strict left-to right, top-to-bottom progression down the page. It develops a habitual approach to text which, especially when under stress, may persist when the web page design requires scanning the whole area then locating small blocks placed away from the centre.
The “Ah, there it is, looking at me the whole time!” moment.
Thanks, Ingrid! And “it” is in a different spot in every online system we use … I can’t even begin to think how much life-time I have wasted learning to use and then using the dozens of different content management systems for different aspects of my work …
Compared to blogs about situations in Peru and Indonesia, I feel although providing related information has been often done, even too much, it has defaulted that all readers can read and understand all literacies without enough consideration to contexts, cultures, languages, and levels of literacies of readers. Not enough explanation of notifications or written texts logically can make readers feel confused, stressed, or being ignored when they cannot classify or access information. I have ever been in ELICOS and faced understanding how to access Turnitin. I felt stressed to read and understand its rules and scared of doing wrong. Thus, I agree we should create more diversified forms of conveying information to receivers when relying on technologies and digital devices in the COVID-19 pandemic.
Thanks, Jenny! Good point that the default position implied by tools such as “turnitin” is actually that of wrong-doer … there is a real danger for trust and human connections to break down when all we ever seem to do is communicate via, with (and as?) machines …
This blog post is sure relatable to every overseas student, including me, coming from different geographical, cultural, academic life, and studying at an overseas university and country is not as simple as it seems. To be honest, one year of my university life at Macquarie was just being utilized in understanding the norms, services, and process of study shift from face to face to online ( this learning is never-ending). In India, being spoon-fed on information by our teachers left me so dependent. On the contrary, a new setting (also this pandemic ) left me independently to start navigating and searching for information even though it’s a stressful literacy activity (emails, ilearn, estudent, financial phone calls) going on physically and psychologically. However, the services (student connect or wellbeing) provided by universities to hear communities’ input is of great help that does ease the complexity of this entire process.
This is a very relevant topic that reflects a great change in terms of how students can get access to their university orientation during the pandemic. I still remember the my first orientation as an ELC student. It was really fun since I had chance to interact with people to find access to the university information. However, after the COVID-19 came, I have to learn to catch up with online information. I personally find the online communication boring. Also, I have to admit that I don’t pay enough attention on many information related to students’ well-being, or mental support even though those information can be really helpful for me. In this case, I can say that I am drowning in the sea of information. Yet, I agree that other creative tools of spreading the information like GIFs, memes or animations can help in a certain level.
From this article, I can know that ELICOS is a useful method for international students to gain more information during this special time. Students use a large amount of information on all aspects of the Internet. This is a test for students, they need to filter information which is about their academic major or their life, and they also need to distinguish the information. I think when I chose my Units during this semester, I also faced the similar condition, I needed to choose the Units that fit my major, but because of the pandemic, I cannot go to Australia to learn on the campus, I gained all the information about Units from the websites, my classmates. But what makes me feel warm is that for our students who are not in Australia, our small group can share, exchange and summary information through various methods via the WeChat or our student mailbox. So the useful literacy and context can be conveyed by the Internet.
Thank you Tazin is just an important article with important points highlight on a group of people affected by the Covid19.
As the Covid-19 changed the face of the world literary, the education changed totally from the kindergarten until universities and high studies. As a migrant and a student, the first semester of my master studies was in March 2020 on the onset of the pandemic. I faced a lot of difficulty to deal with everything at the same time, I need the support and the help, but I didn’t find anything while everyone and every institute try to figure out the way to deal with the pandemic and what result in. this difficulty came from inequality between the level of information and the level of my language and personal tools and resources. It was hard time but I think it is the time to redress the problems of LICOS, as they paid a high cost.
I really enjoyed reading this article!
This article resonated with me a lot. Especially, the excerpts about drowning in emails and support services. I was initially concerned about the amount of information in the emails constantly coming from my Student ID. I was totally clueless about the online educational platform, ilearn, eStudent and OneID. It took me almost a week to become familiar with the workings of my learning system, which actually influenced my results at some level. Similarly adjusting in a foreign country is another challenge when you are unaware about the society and Covid just made it worse. This article literally gave me a chance to vent. haha
Glad the article helped, Jay! 🙂
Thank you for an enlightening post. Every facet of society is overwhelmed with information at the moment and we could potentially suffer from Covid information PTSD and spawn a new kind of mental health illness as a result of the anxiety of not being able to keep on top of the ever-changing rules and regulations. It’s not only the inbox that you have to contend with but possibly the spam folder as well in the off chance an important email ends up in this folder. Also, the exercise of working through the unread mail is defeated when it is further inundated the following day.
What an interesting idea, Thao! Information PTSD – I’d never heard of it before but seems very real to me!
Hi Tarzin,
Thanks for sharing the experiences and challenges faced by ELICOS students during COVID19. It certainly resonates with me as it took me a while to get used to the ilearn site in my first year of university as this was a completely new thing to me. I remember being bombarded with lots of emails and I couldn’t distinguish essential information
Thank Tazin for your sensitive concern about international students. This article resonated a lot with me, as an international student, I was initially anxious about the excessive information in the email, I do not know what is very important and what needs to be filtered out. Also, it took me almost a week to get familiar with how to operate my ilearn system which increases my nervousness. Hindered by language barriers, community-centred tools and methods could be greatly helpful especially under the impact of COVID-19. Moreover, the reflection on this group of people could also be extended to others since timely high-quality information delivery is a general issue all over the world.
Thanks, Chen Wang! I’m sorry to hear about your initial troubles with ilearn etc. I hope things have settled down now and you are feeling more confident. Also, remember your teachers are there to help 🙂
What society has done is the hint to reveal how people access literacy during and after the pandemic of Covid-19. Similar to ELICOS institutions were tried to provide multimodal methods of orientation and support virtually, aim to build the most effective programs. The tendency of people’s attention is easier to be attracted by short and quick information, so the methods are images, videos, and emojis that are commonly seen in current social media. Thus, I think that more and more people will get used to the online mode to access literacy, it is not the issues of complexity, rather, habits.
It is for sure that the attention put on international students’ welfare and information provision from communities is adequate and efficient. Universities, as well, have successfully switched the academic activities into online formats and created a digital academic environment that engages international students as before the pandemic. However, there is another group that should be taken into account – international students staying in their own countries. Similar to the literacy crisis that appeared in the situation of Peru, these international students are barely provided with abundant chances, compared with those who are currently in overseas places, to experience offline and realistic literacy events. The “running water for rinsing hands” to rural indigenous people in Peru is like the “navigation to vaccination location in Sydney” to international students sitting in their hometown kitchens or studies. They may be ascribed to different factors, whereas both of them are devoid of context for literacy event participants to actually act on.
Thank you, Anka, for drawing attention to this mismatched communication. I will pass on this feedback.
Thanks, Tazin.
International students have priorities in adequate English competence, academic requirements, living expenses and cultural assimilation, and when Covid kicks in, all takes on a digital mechanism. Information scatters in technological sites from slides, emails, websites, and internet. This could confuse the actual location of academic and welfare package and create a sense of being left out by dint of interaction deprivation. However, Macquarie University have delivered information in an organised and structured way. For the mails, my primary attention is directed at iLearn forum digest then MQ announcement which I only locate main ideas and disregard the rest. Financial, essential and academic supports are exceedingly easy to navigate.
Thanks, Jolie! That’s really good to hear!
Thanks for your sensitive look into the plight of International language students on our shores. They have certainly had a tough time in this crisis with little sympathy from the government!
I enjoyed reading!
Cheers
Peter
Thank you, Peter! Teachers and staff at most universities and institutions have gone above and beyond to offer support. I hope our international students can resume their studies onshore soon. 🙂
Great post, Tazin. Thanks for drawing my attention to the Australian ESOS Act and the institutional communication responsibilities under it. Useful in the tricky task of piecing together all the (few and disparate) ways that offical communications to a multilingual public are dealt with in Australian law, which is a research project that Allie Severin at Macquarie and I are undertaking.
Thank you, Alexandra! ‘Tricky’ is definitely the word.
I find that to be the case even in smaller, individual communications with ESL students. For example, some conversations, as per the list of boxes to tick, must cover a certain amount of information. However, I notice that the more I try to cover in order to meet official requirements, the less seems to get through to a student. Your project sounds very interesting and so relevant!
Thanks Tazin for this great read!
Drowning in school emails is one thing we also find among migrant parents during the lockdown. Some of them relied on Google translator to decipher those emails and others just ignored them in the end as they could not figure out which is of primary importance.
Thank you, Gegentuul! So true that the challenges for migrant parents are also significant. In addition to the emails, parents had different online platforms to log in to, in order to assist their children with online learning. It all added to this ‘burden’ that many parents were confronted by.