Bridging the Intercultural Competence Gap Between the University and the Enterprise
John Holder University of Chichester
12th June 2012
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The employability context
§ HE institutions are compelled to ensure the employability of their graduates.
§ There is a need for skills and competences such as proficiency in a foreign language(s), mobility, flexibility and empathy to support effective strategies in working in and with culturally and linguistically diverse teams.
§ European Commission flagship programmes such as New Skills for New Jobs and Youth on the Move focus on strategies to support the smooth transition of students from HE to employment.
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Internationalisation & HE
INTERNATIONALISATION At institutions of higher education
§ Inputs / resources § Needed for implementation of components of internationalisation (i.e. interested
students, funding, institutional leadership and support) § Activities / components of internationalisation
§ (college leadership, faculty international involvement, curriculum, study abroad, international students / scholars / faculty, international co-curricular units (Ellingboe, 1998)
§ Outputs of internationalisation § i.e. Number of international students, number of study abroad programmes,
number of students studying foreign languages, etc.) § Outcomes of internationalisation
§ (i.e. interculturally competent graduates) (Knight, 1997) § Intercultural competence – what is it? § How do higher education administrators define it? Intercultural scholars? § How can it be assessed?
§ = Long-term impact of internationalisation (Deardorff 2004)
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Intercultural Competence
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A"tudes: Respect (valuing other cultures); Openness (witholding judgement); Curiosity and discovery (tolera<ng
ambiguity).
Knowledge and Comprehension: Cultural self-‐awareness, deep cultural knowledge, sociolinguis<c awareness
Skills: To listen, observe and evaluate; To analyse, interpret and
relate.
External outcome: Effec<ve and appropriate
communica<on and behaviour in an intercultural situa<on.
Internal outcome: Informed frame of reference shiG
(adaptability, flexibility, ethnorela<ve view; empathy).
Individual
Interaction
Process orientation
Process model of intercultural competence (Deardorff 2004)
The SKILL2E Project
§ SKILL2E: Sustainable Know-How in Intercultural Learning in Student Placements and the Knowledge Transfer to Enterprises.
§ 2 year Erasmus Lifelong-Learning project (ends September 2012).
§ Partners: A range of HE institutions and enterprises from the EU, Turkey and the USA.
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Project Partners
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Aim and Objectives
§ To bridge the intercultural competence gap between universities and enterprises.
§ To use an assessment instrument to enhance intercultural competence;
§ To provide intercultural training to prepare and support interns on work placements;
§ To use cultural mentors in the workplace to facilitate the integration of placement students/employees from diverse cultural backgrounds.
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Interlinked aspects
§ Intercultural competence assessment § Pre-placement training
§ Cultural mentoring
§ Intercultural reflection
§ Enterprise handbook 8
SKILL2E Double Learning Loop
Intercultural awareness training at home ins<tu<on
adapted to students’ orienta<on
Students’ orienta<on is measured either in an
individual or group profile
Work placement Cultural
mentoring at placement
Structured report on comple<on of work
placement (if possible)
Ini<al IDI assessment
Second IDI assessment
Result / feedback on cultural orienta<on / competence
gain
Reflec<on: Interflec<on PlaRorm (free diary / guided ques<ons) and other life
experiences which may be non-‐work-‐related
Finish for those students who don’t need any cultural
training
Blue for students; Red for companies; Green for universities.
Intercultural Sensitivity
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Intercultural competence assessment
The Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI)
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(Hammer et al. 2003)
Initial findings and challenges
§ Intercultural competence assessment (IDI) – feedback and plan.
§ Pre-placement training – typically 4 hours: different start/end times; culture; culture shock; tailoring to students.
§ Cultural mentoring – student and enterprise buy-in. § Intercultural reflection – DL engagement; depth of reflexivity;
personal / public? § Enterprise handbook – KISS
§ Evaluation – Q-sort § Dissemination § Exploitation – encouraging (esp. UK) students to take part in
international work placements; embedding; requirement / crediting as part of work placement.
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References
§ Bennett, M.J. 1993. Towards ethnorelativism: A developmental model of intercultural sensitivity. In M. Paige (ed.), Education for the intercultural experience. Yarmouth, ME: Intercultural Press.
§ Deardorff, D. K. 2004. The identification and assessment of intercultural competence as a student outcome of international education at institutions of higher education in the United States. Unpublished dissertation, North Carolina State University, Raleigh.
§ Ellingboe, B. J. 1998. Divisional strategies to internationalise a campus portrait: results, resistance and recommendations from a case study at a US university. In J. A. Mestenhauser and B. J. Ellingboe (eds.), Reforming the higher education curriculum: internationalising the campus (pp. 198-228). Phoenix, AZ: Oryx.
§ Hammer, M.R., Bennett, M.J. & Wiseman, R. 2003. The Intercultural Development Inventory: A measure of intercultural sensitivity. In R.M. Paige (Guest Editor), Special issue on the Intercultural Development Inventory. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 27, 421-443.
§ Hammer, M.R. (in press). The Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI): A New Frontier in Assessment and Development of Intercultural Competence. In M. Van de Berg, M., Paige, R. M., & Lou, K. (Eds.) (in press). Student learning abroad: What our students are learning, what they’re not, and what we
can do about it. Sterling, VA: Stylus. § Knight, J. 1997. A shared vision? Stakeholders’ perspectives on the internationalisation of higher
education in Canada. Journal of Studies in International Education, 1 (1), 22-24.
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