The international and intercultural influence has increased so much recently that it now impacts every aspect of campus life. Many of the students enrolled in our courses come from different countries and represent a wide variety of cultures. In addition, technology has advanced to the point where we are constantly communicating or interacting with people from different countries. The technology has allowed some of the colleges to offer courses via Internet to students in various parts of the world. Some of the colleges within the district are now even recruiting students in different countries.
As educators, we are aware of the rapid changes taking place in the world and how these changes are affecting the students enrolled in our courses. The challenge to us as educators is to provide a curriculum with relevant information and experiences that will result in competent graduates who are equipped to function in an international and intercultural environment.
What exactly is international and intercultural education and how does an institution become more international and intercultural? International and intercultural education is a program that is designed to cultivate in students a global perspective and to develop in them the appropriate knowledge, skills, and attitudes needed to relate effectively in an environment characterized by ethnic and cultural diversity and increasing global interaction.
What then does an institution do to become international and intercultural? Most educators will agree that the key to internationalizing and interculturalizing an institution of higher learning is, and will always be, the curriculum. Since the curriculum is implemented in the classroom, the faculty serve as catalysts and change agents in the total process. The success of this process appears when the concept of internationalization and interculturalization is an integrated package rather than a series of unconnected strands. This includes programs such as international studies, global issues, multicultural studies, and studies about international development. It also includes sending United States students and faculty abroad to work or study, establishing linkages with educational institutions abroad, or sponsoring community forums on international topics.
Since the curriculum is the key to internationalizing and interculturalizing an institution, and the classroom is where the greatest impact will be made in the process, a major effort must be made to ensure that the content of our courses are truly internationalized and interculturalized. This means the courses we teach will have infused into them international and intercultural information. It is imperative that our classrooms provide a learning environment where students can broaden and expand the information they have about our country and other countries, including the political and economic systems, an awareness of the geographic location, and the diversity of the people and their languages and cultures.
I suggest when a course is internationalized, it will consist of four major components:
The first major component, global communication via the Internet, will allow students to develop and enhance the understanding of oneŐs own society as well as that of other countries. One way of accomplishing global communication is through the use of Internet (computers and satellite communication) to provide international and intercultural experiences. The Internet, being one of the most significant achievements in the history of mankind, allows students to become active participants in a world wide network connecting millions of computers and millions of people. With Internet, students can interact directly with individuals throughout the global community, thus allowing them to have an international and intercultural experience without leaving the classroom.
The second major component, the four significant environments, is designed to provide focused cultural, economic, geographical, and political perspectives that will result in a more global view. Possibilities for fostering a global perspective incorporating the four significant environments exist in every subject area from art to mathematics to zoology.
The cultural environment: A global perspective in this area should foster a strong appreciation of and respect for the cultural accomplishments of other civilizations and their influence on our own. This strategy should lead to a deepened understanding, which in turn might initiate improved relations among culturally diverse but interdependent neighbors. The study of different cultures offers a fine introduction into the comparison of neighboring but culturally different peoples.
Economic environment: During the last four centuries the many separate economies of the world have evolved into one global economy. Because of the interdependence of different countries or economies and the obvious gains from trading, mankind has engaged in interregional trade for thousands of years. One challenge of international and intercultural education is to help students understand the customs and traditions of others. Understanding economic concepts can be one useful tool in helping students to understand the actions of others.
Geographical environment: We live in a world whose people and institutions are increasingly interdependent. Therefore, students should be prepared to understand the interactions of nations in an interdependent world. The area of geography plays a major role in enhancing our knowledge of global issues.
Political environment: It is important that students have a fundamental understanding about the nature of political processes in general and a comprehensive knowledge of how these principles work in the contemporary global environment. We live in an increasingly interactive and interdependent world, in which we need a knowledge of the rest of the globe, and particularly of those people of the world whose political heritage differs from our own. Because of these differences, students should learn how other systems operate in relationship to their own.
The third major component, the relevant and required course content, is necessary to preserve the regular required courses. It is imperative that the goals, competencies, and overall integrity of the courses are maintained, because the intent of internationalizing and interculturalizing the course is not to eliminate portions of the required content but to enhance the content.
The fourth component, keeping a daily journal, requires students to enter global events and to write reflective views of the internationalized and interculturalized course. This is intended to facilitate an awareness of the world around them and to invoke the use of higher level and critical thinking skills in evaluating the significance of the course content to their observations.
Since journal keeping and the assessment of them is a relatively new adventure for both students and teachers, it will be best to narrow the focus at first, using it only for the Internet experiences. After some mastery and revisions, the journal may then be expanded to reflect the entire course.
While using the Internet, journal entries will be used by the student to document interactions and observations. These documented events will be reflected upon by the student to write reports evaluating whether the course competencies are being met and enhanced by these Internet interactions.
The students will also utilize the documentation to write a self-assessment report reflecting on the achievement of their personal goals and whether these encounters have changed their perceptions and attitudes toward other cultures. The teacher will also participate in the assessment process by writing a response to the studentŐs self-assessment report.
It is hoped that this process will actively involve the students in their own learning and in turn enhance the relevance of the course content to their lives. It is also hoped that by reflecting on global issues, the student will be better prepared to understand the impact these issues could have on their lives.
There are numerous resources available within the district for your use. A comprehensive Resource Guide has been prepared through an internal grant and is available to those interested in internationalizing and interculturalizing their courses. This guide includes many useful reference materials, some of which are:
Internationalization and interculturalization in the classroom can be accomplished by cumulative effort over time, and success can and will occur in small increments. The key is to get started, even on a small scale. Each small success helps to build momentum that will eventually have a significant impact on the entire curriculum.
The Internet Connection at MCLI is
Alan Levine
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Comments to alan.levine@domail.maricopa.edu
URL: http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/labyforum/Spr96/spr96L2.html