Last preparations before the start

In the run up to the start of the international class this year, we had a preparatory meeting today with a great number of lecturers who will be teaching part of the programme. It was good to share with each other who was going to teach what over the next 3 months. All in all, there will be around 30 staff members who have taken up the challenge to teach in English.
In the past months it was stimulating to see and hear that so many had responded positively to our appeal to give a few lessons to the coming group of international students. A group (by the way) that has steadily grown over the last few years. When the school of social work joined forces with the social of education a number of years ago, we started out with a small (but highly motivated) group of 7 or 8 students. Since then the numbers have only grown and grown and this year we are expecting around 30 students, although we're still not 100 % sure of the exact number of students turning up.
During this preparatory session we discussed a number of issues, among which: what to expect when teaching in an international classroom. As a teacher / lecturer you are a role model to the students, but students with different cultural backgrounds have had different role models in their respective countries where their teachers employed different styles of teaching. When students are used to one teaching style and their teacher uses a different one, the result can be confusion, dissatisfaction, or cause other problems. This preparatory meeting was also meant to develop awareness of different teaching styles and how they differ from one culture to another.
Generally speaking, many lecturers do not realise that the more casual and accessible approach of Dutch teachers in classroom sessions is completely different compared to the teaching styles in countries like Bulgaria, the Czech Republic and Turkey, to name just a few.
For example, when students in their own home education system are primarily taught using a more authoritarian style they may be reluctant to participate in group or pair activities because of fear of making mistakes, or because of the unfamiliarity with the procedures. Students like most people feel uncomfortable with the unknown.
Into our international class will come students of differing cultural
backgrounds and academic histories, bringing with them certain experiences,
attitudes, expectations and preconceptions which constitute their own individual
cultural characteristics. It's then up to the teacher to make sure that the way things are done in the classroom are clearly introduced, explained and clarified when questions arise. It was Geert Hofstede who suggested that there are 2 possible strategies to cope with the perplexities of cross-cultural learning situations: 1. teach the teacher how to teach, and 2. teach the learner how to learn.
He proposed that the focus of the teacher's training should be on learning about his / her own culture: getting intellectually and emotionally accustomed to the fact that in other societies, people learn in different ways.
Here's the presentation I gave:

Preparatory meeting lecturers International Class

View more presentations from Anja S.

A few hours after the meeting I came across this webpage, succinctly stating a few common issues in international classrooms, a tip !

UNESCO schools, an outstanding initiative

Did you know: the UNESCO Associated Schools Project Network (ASPnet for short) was created over half a century ago? In 1953 to be precise. Convinced of the constant need to construct peace in the minds of men, women and children, a truly international network of schools was set up committed to converting the organization’s ideals into action through new and effective educational practices and approaches worldwide.
It is the largest network of public and private schools around the globe(representing some one million teachers and millions of students, from over 9000 educational institutions in 180 countries, all operating under the auspices of UNESCO and within the United Nations system. It is highly acclaimed by Member States and still expanding.
The ASPnet was set up to help deal with some of the pressing issues facing society and the world at large in the 20th Century. By building peace in the minds of children and young people, the network has kept pace with a constantly changing world and it remains futureoriented. Member institutions – ranging from pre-schools, primary, secondary and vocational schools to teacher training institutions at university level- work in support of international understanding, peace, intercultural dialogue, sustainable development and quality education in practice.
At the moment there are 20 UNESCO schools in the Netherlands and recently Europees Platform activated a specific subsite dedicated to explaining the idea and principles of UNESCO schools. Click here.

Exploring the unesco.org site a little further I came across this very practical toolkit, published by UNESCO, UNICEF and the Arigato Foundation: “Learning to Live Together: An Intercultural and Interfaith Program for Ethics Education”, a programme for educators to teach children about respecting and understanding diverse faiths, religions and ethical beliefs. It aims to help young people and children develop ethical decision-making skills and nurture a sense of belonging, community and values. Ultimately its aim is to shape attitudes for building peace through teaching tolerance and mutual understanding.
In the light of the Grundtvig project that we are participating in this was a welcome find! Another interesting and recent publication is: School Culture: UNESCO-schools towards a peaceful society, showing national and international school portraits around the issue: how can multi-ethnic schools develop a binding school culture? Inspiring examples of the way schools can tailor the UNESCO School profile to their own specific situations ! The idea of becoming a UNESCO school is definitely worth exploring further.

an ECA certificate on internationalisation

We were the first to hear of it: there are serious plans for a European certificate on internationalisation, to lift national initiatives to the EU level. It is the European Consortium for Accreditation of higher education(ECA) that will be working on this from the start of July 2011.
The news was launched today at the special NVAO seminar about assessment of internationalisation and internationalisation as a distinctive quality.
For my international readers: NVAO (in Dutch: Nederlands-Vlaamse Accreditatieorganisatie) is the Accreditation Organisation of the Netherlands and Flanders. It was established by international treaty and it ensures the quality of higher education in the Netherlands and Flanders.
The certificate is seen as a specific "reward" for good and excellent forms of internationalisation and is meant only for the happy few (they called it "the Champions league"). They are not looking for mass certification, we were told by the chairman of the ECA who made the announcement, Rolf Heusser.
The rationale for an ECA certificate was that international projects need a corresponding award. Besides, there is a high demand for such an award coming from the higher education institutions themselves. All this fits well with ECA aims, know-how and philosophy, which is the mutual recognition of accreditation and quality assurance decisions. Other aims of ECA are: mutual learning and disseminating best practices in accreditation as well as providing transparent information on quality and supporting internationalisation of institutions and students.

Clipped from: www.ecaconsortium.net (share this clip)

Learning and networking

With the CEV symposium in Brussels just behind me, I’m looking back here at the experience. It was well announced as an event on “Volunteering as a means of empowerment and social inclusion”. The week before we received all the information by mail, among which a list of participants. It’s always interesting to know in advance who will be present at such an occasion. Not to my surprise, I read that I was going to be the only representative from a university , even though we are a university of applied sciences.
Learning and networking: those were my goals. Learning about the great diversity of voluntary activities within Europe and familiarising myself with the landscape of volunteer initiatives but also barriers to voluntary action. And networking in order to get acquainted to a number of European players in the field of volunteering and, secretly, hoping to find some partners to start up a small scale European project, a Grundtvig Learning Partnership.
I am happy to say that many of my expectations have turned out as I'd hoped. Enthusiastic, open and committed people I met, quite a large group from all over Europe (and a few from beyond), all with their own experiences and input. Many of them are members of the European Volunteer Centre and have known each other for quite a while, but the other half of the audience present on the first day was not, CEV director Markus Held established.
On day 1 I particularly liked the dialogue café: a wonderful way of getting to talk to a variety of participants in a short period, with a specific question as the starting point. On day 2 it was the workshops that I enjoyed most. I listened to Anne Sophie van der Bracht who related how young people were involved in activities that support their mental, physical and ethical development in 3 years at a stretch, moving from bronze to silver to gold in the process, each year for them being more difficult than the one before. Volunteering is (only) part of that. Next to that they do sports, study and go on an annual expedition. The overall aim is to teach these 15 to 19 year olds that through dedication and commitment to tasks and by working systematically, they can exceed themselves. It’s an intensive type of youth work performed by the foyer (Jongerenwerking Brussel). As for volunteering, they hope that these youngsters (all from non-Belgian backgrounds) will maintain their voluntary work as a structural thing.
Voluntary Services Overseas (VSO) and the role of international partnerships was another workshop that attracted my interest. In the huge organisation that VSO is and based on the wealth of experience they have gained through the years, they have developed their theory of change and demonstrated the potential of volunteering in the improvement of the lives of people experiencing poverty and marginalisation. The Chief Youth Officer at the Kenyan Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports then illustrated their National Youth Volunteer Scheme, established together with VSO.
The final part of day 2 was dedicated to the Brussels declaration on the role of volunteering in the fight against poverty and social exclusion, making a bridge between the themes of the two consecutive European years.

Day 3 was meant as an opportunity to meet volunteers and voluntary organisations in a large tent by way of a continuing fair that will be travelling around Europe in the course of 2011, the European Year of Volunteering.

To end this post , just a few encouraging facts:
• Volunteering improves self-confidence. Over 80 % of English volunteers report that engagement in voluntary work makes them happy and improves their self-esteem.
• Research shows that the unemployed, people coming from minority ethnic groups and unskilled workers are underrepresented in the “volunteering force” of Europe.
• According to a study among job seekers in England, 81% of respondents said that volunteering gave them a chance to learn new skills.
• Almost 75 % of employers prefer to recruit candidates with volunteering in their CV.

"afblazen" or calling it off: study trip to Berlin

Clipped from: dwotd.web-log.nl (share this clip)

Practical and fun website if you decide to learn some Dutch !
By coincidence today's Dutch word of the day is "afblazen", in English to call off (a plan). Why a coincidence you may ask.... well, last Friday was supposed to have been the day that a group of our students from the minor Media & Culture departed from Rotterdam en route to Berlin.
However, due to recent developments in Germany, the study trip was cancelled the day before departure. Germany is on heightened alert following a recent announcement that a terrorist attack was being planned for the country. Daily newspaper Der Tagesspiegel reported that the United States had told Berlin that between two to four al-Qaeda militants were on their way to Germany and Britain to attempt attacks at the end of November. Among the targets are said to be Germany's popular Christmas markets, scheduled to open in the coming days. Security has been stepped up at airports and train stations across the country.
On the other hand, the German government has urged citizens to remain calm and not to let the recent terror alerts affect their daily lives.
"There is reason for concern, but no reason for hysteria", German Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere said at a gathering in the northern city of Hamburg.
In these circumstances, what would you have done facing this dilemma: go ahead as planned or cancel the study trip? Feel free to respond !