Intercultural Learning

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• Intercultural Learning
• in a PBL Environment

Xiangyun Du Department of development and
planning Aalborg University xiangyun_at_plan.aau.dk
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Overview

• Intercultural competencies
• Intercultural issues at international programs
• Reflection and discussions

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• What are the most surprising experiences you
  have had with in an intercultural context?

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Intercultural competencies for future engineers
Diverse capabilities

• National Academy of Engineering, The Engineer of
  2020, 2004
• EUR-ACE (Accreditation of European Engineering
  Programmes and Graduates, http//www.feani.org/EUR
  _ACE/EUR_ACE_Main_Page.htm
• - ABET http//www.abet.org/
•  

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Engineering programs are no longer just dominated
by native young men.
Increase of diversity
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Potential advantages from international programs
at AAU

• New experiences and eye-opener
• Development of process competencies
• Development of intercultural competencies
• Prepare to become a global engineer

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Challenges and identified problems 1

• Miscommunication arises due to
• Use of second language (English) as a means of
  communication
• Learning and working styles
• Personality

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Challenges and identified problems 2Different
beliefs on/ways of learning different
expectations
Educational background
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Challenges and identified problems 2Different
beliefs on/ ways of learning

• Nobody knows the exact answers until the project
  is finished
• Students are responsible for managing their own
  learning
• Learners are creating new knowledge

Studying in a PBL environment, Denmark
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Challenges and identified problems 3Can group
work be an efficient way of learning?
Will they believe me because I am a girl??
NO, I cant get up anyway
YES, we can meet at 8 tomorrow morning
It is my turn to talk?
If we dont follow the supervisors suggestion,
will he allow us to pass?
Listen to me, I am very experienced
He complains of my garlic, but he has coffee and
carrots all the time!!!
They dont understand even such easy things!!
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Challenges and identified problems 4Different
expectations between students and teachers

• Danish lecturers
• perceptions
• The lecturers role
• Enter into a dialogue
• refrains from giving answers
• moves activity onto students
• The students role
• Participation in formulation of course content
• commitment and self-
• management

• Foreign students perceptions
• The lecturers role
• Transferor
• Is responsible for course contents and
  organization
• The students role
• Receivers
• Reproduction of knowledge at examination

(Reimann Ulsig 2005)
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An example Major differences confronting
Chinese students in PBL

• A new way of living from being arranged to being
  independent
• A new way of being a student from fitting to
  established expectation to setting up ones own
  learning goals and self management
• A new way of learning from lecture based,
  theories focused, obligation orientated to
  student-centred, practice focused, interest
  oriented
• A new way of handling relations with teachers and
  students

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Students reflection

• I have never worked in a group in my educational
  life In group work, I preferred to listen when
  some students discussed intensely, because I
  could not understand why it was a question to
  discuss. Sometimes I could not follow their ideas
  or thinking. I need to change and actively work
  in the group. (Chinese female master student)

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How to understand? Model of asymmetrical
cultural convergence
(Reimann Ulsig 2005)
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How to understand? Model of asymmetrical
cultural convergence in a multi-cultural
learning environment
(Reimann Ulsig 2005)
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How to understand? Biggs (2003) model of
cross-cultural teaching
Cross-cultural teaching ladder
Teaching as
The focus on
Level 3 educating involving cognitive process
Beyond culture
What students do
Good teaching activate the learning process as
appropriate to the objectives
Level 2 accommodating involving teaching
techniques
Cultural differences
What teachers do
Teachers adapt to students cultural expectations
Level 1 assimilating involving student
differences
Cultural differences
What students are
Student adapt a good student
Western educational system
Exotic educational system
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Handling Strategies- a new (shared) platform for
cultural meeting

• Shared perceptions on
• Learning objectives
• Educators role
• Learners role
• Communication methods

Learning
Teaching
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Handling Strategies- Two approaches to teaching
international students Biggs (2003)
Focuses
Two approaches
Three levels
Level 3 educating The context approach
Use the context established to extract the
appropriate learning behaviour from students
all students
The context approach
Level 2 accommodation
Adapting teaching techniques to meeting the
preferred ways of learning
The deficit approach
Level 1 assimilation
Identify skills and knowledge that the target
students lack and mainstream them
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Facilitative activities
Project organized Learning Courses as a means of
facilitation
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Muslim
Is ethnicity the only reason that makes us
different?
Young girl
Philosopher
Animal doctor
butcher
farmer
artist
wolf
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Reflections on culture and intercultural

• What are the factors that influence intercultural
  communication in teaching and learning?
• Ethnical culture
• Disciplines/programs professions
• Educational background (system, institutional
  environment)
• Gender, religion, age, generation, etc
• Personality, individual interests and learning
  styles

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Reflections on teaching and learning

• How to obtain a better understanding of
  interaction and communication in different
  learning activities at multicultural contexts?
• How to handle issues arising from intercultural
  communication so as to maximize learning and
  prepare students for the complex and changing
  world?

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Discussions Based on your experiences, please
identify the main issues confronting teaching and
learning in a multicultural context