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International Classroom Project
A mixed, comprehensive approach; bridging strategy with DNA,
Involving all staff and students
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| 12/6/2013 | 4
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Martini tower at night
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Facts & figures UoG
› 28,000 students in total
- 5,000 international students:
- > 50% PhD students
- 115 nationalities
› 20% international staff (academics)
› 25% study abroad
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Facts & figures UoG English-taught programmes:
over 100 English-taught Master’s (146 in total)
21 English-taught Bachelor’s (49 in total)
15 Double degree programmes
8 Erasmus Mundus programmes.
(strategic) partners and networks worldwide – at university and at faculty level.
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Internationalisation at UoG
Internationalisation 2.0: Comprehensive, quality approach More focus on programme/course level Mainstreaming in organization Fostering diversity How to measure and monitor
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International Classroom Project
Ambitions:
• Integrating internationally/culturally diverse students in a
single learning environment
• Achieving higher educational standards using the diversity of backgounds of students
• Preparing students for a life and career in a globalizing world.
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International Classroom Project
› Purpose
› To contribute to the UoG application for NVAO Distinctive Quality Feature Internationalisation (DQFI) by demonstrating the added value and clarifying institutional conditions of the International Classroom, in relation to both staff and students.
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International Classroom Project
Questions:
› What makes our English-taught programmes international?
› How to use diversity as a resource in the international classroom?
› How to adjust our policies to realise our vision on internationalisation?
› How to realise fit for purpose support for our students and staff?
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International Classroom Project
How?
top-down and bottom-up
involving all levels and stakeholders (teachers!)
starting from good practices
balance between models and context
embedded in theoretical framework
commitment from external experts.
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International Classroom Project
› What?
› Mission/vision document
› Language policy
› Policy University Teaching Qualifications
› Model for learning outcomes / graduate attributes
› Pilot project.
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Why?
› Mission – who are we
› The University of Groningen offers research-driven education in a wide range of disciplines. We generate and share knowledge, contribute to the innovative development of society and “grand societal challenges”, and prepare students for a life and career in a globalized world.
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› Values
› We highly value our cross-disciplinary character, our work contributes to international developments. We work in a context of academic excellence and integrity, and embrace diversity.
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International Classroom Project
› Vision elements
› inclusive environment (…)
› an international perspective throughout research disciplines and degree programmes
› an international perspective at the institutional level, reflected in all policies and regulations
› using diversity of staff and students as a resource.
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› Relevance for students:
› Internationalisation is an important aspect of students' education. It broadens their mind, not only in their academic but also in their personal development. In addition to that, it adds to their employability. It broadens their labour market potential and increases their attractiveness to potential national and international employers.
› For staff:
› Internationalisation makes the university a more interesting place to study and work. Students and staff are exposed to a potentially larger and more diverse pool of people and ideas. It strengthens knowledge creation, which is the primary aim of any academic venue.
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International Classroom Project
› “Internationalisation of the curriculum is the incorporation of an
intercultural and international dimension into the content of the curriculum, as well as the teaching and learning processes and support services of a programme of study.
› An internationalised university will engage students with internationally informed research and cultural and linguistic diversity. It will purposefully develop their international and intercultural perspectives as global professionals and citizens” (Leask 2009; p. 209).
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› Curriculum (formal, informal and hidden): everything that shapes the students’ learning experience (Leask 2009).
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› What else?
› Language policy: enabling, stimulating
› Language proficiency as a competence for effective participation and integration, future mobility and employability.
› Bi-lingual university fostering linguistic diversity.
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International Classroom Project
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International Classroom Project Pilot project – research questions: - what makes our English-taught programmes specifically
international?
- how to develop a generic IC model for all programmes?
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International Classroom Project
parameters NVAO
- international and intercultural learning outcomes - teaching and learning (curriculum, teaching methods, learning environment, assessment) - staff (diversity, international experience, competences, services) - students (diversity, cultural and linguistic competences).
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1. International Classroom Project Methodology
- semi-structured interviews with academic staff, management, students (based on QIC – Leask, 2009, and language aspects Lauridsen, 2013 ) - analysis of curricular and extra-curricular documents, including student evaluations - relevant publications and research, including related EU projects.
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Illustrating quotes – from students and staff
The medical context…
“Whenever I learn anything about myself or about my
friends, it is never when we are agreeing on subjects or when we
share the same experience. You always learn about other cultures
and other perspectives when you discuss it from different angles.
2nd year student B: Focus Group IBMG 2013
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More quotes
“They expect you to be able to do academic writing, but you have never done it before. There’s also a lot of diversity in what has been done. I wouldn’t be able to do it in Dutch either, although the language would be a lot better.” A second year IBMG student representative “At the moment we are just guessing why some things work and other things don’t, and so if you know the students personally, it’s easier to approach them, so they can share more, and to understand their experiences better.” Block Coordinator, IBMG
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Tentative conclusions
1.Be aware of culture in the widest sense of the word i.e. both local (Dutch) academic culture, and international standards for grading (in Medicine/Spatial Sciences)
2. Use diversity as a resource to generate understanding, scope and innovations for societal problems
3. Be context specific, providing examples which show differences. Examples preferably cover not only Dutch or European experience
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4. Facilitate broader and informal interaction at class level (rather than regulate at program level) 5. Allow for flexibility and adaptation time 6. Direct language support towards qualitative measures (observation and feedback) and contextualised needs e.g. academic writing (students), individually mediated needs (staff)
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International Classroom Project IC model – first draft learning outcomes/graduate attributes: include international and intercultural elements and use of diversity as a resource teaching environment: explicit use of diversity, adjust learning materials, group collaboration, allow for adjustment time, facilitate interaction and community building, facilitate English language development and development of cross-cultural communication skills assessment and evaluation: allow for sufficient feedback, facilitate freedom of choice, develop multiple evaluation strategies.
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Some references
- Aireys, John. 2011. Talking about teaching in English: Swedish university lecturers’ experiences of changing teaching language. In Ibérica, 22, 35-54. - Jones, Elspeth and David Killick. 2013. Graduate Attributes and the Internationalized Curriculum: Embedding a Global Outlook in Disciplinary Learning Outcomes. In Journal of Studies in International Education 17(2), 165–182. - Klaassen, Renate G. 2008. Preparing lecturers for English-medium instruction. In Robert Wilkinson & Vera Zegers (eds.), Realizing Content and Language Integration in Higher Education, 33–42. Maastricht: Maastricht University. - Lauridsen, Karen M. 2013. Higher Education Language Policy. Working Group under the European Language Council. In European Journal of Language Policy, 5(1), 128-138. - Leask, Betty & Christopher Bridge. 2013. Comparing internationalisation of the curriculum in action across disciplines: theoretical and practical perspectives. In Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International
Education 43(1). 79–101.
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International Classroom Project
How to proceed - IC seminar 19 December - discussion and implementation of the model in pilot faculties, plus Faculty of Mathematics - discussion of vision on internationalisation - adjustment of policies - development of a platform, publications, seminars, presentations.
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Thank you for your attention
If you have any further questions or comments feel free to contact me:
Franka van den Hende
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