An interactive approach to promoting intercultural communication and collaboration within the EUGLOH alliance
Abstract: In today’s global society, marked by polarized discourses, rising extremism, and increasing violence, intercultural competence has become a foundational skill, which enables individuals to communicate and collaborate more effectively and appropriately across different cultures. Developing intercultural competence helps enhance inclusivity, reduce misunderstandings, and equips students and university staff to engage effectively in diverse academic and professional settings, particularly those requiring mobility and international, interdisciplinary collaboration. This workshop is organized by an international team from five EUGLOH universities who have worked on creating a short online module and a more in-depth Small Private Online Course (SPOC) that aim at fostering intercultural competence among a diverse group of students and university staff within the EUGLOH alliance. Through selected activities and exercises from the module and SPOC, the workshop aims to provide participants with meaningful opportunities to engage in intercultural encounters and to deepen their understanding of the culturally diverse societies we live in. By the end of the workshop, participants are expected to have strengthened their competence in working within interdisciplinary and international contexts. Co-animated and moderated by the team members, the workshop adopts a hands-on, interactive approach 1) to share the team’s understanding of intercultural competence, and 2) to allow participants to experience the pedagogical foundations underpinning the objectives of our module and SPOC, which aim to foster intercultural understanding.
Requirements for potential participants: B2 level of English
Target group: Open to all
Expected outcomes:
- Increased intercultural awareness and understanding of intercultural communication
- Strengthened collaborative skills within international and interdisciplinary academic/professional settings
Maximum number of participants: 30
Workshop facilitators: Minjeong Son & Kaori Takamine, UiT The Arctic University of Norway; María Jesús Fernández Gil & Raquel Lázaro Gutiérrez, University of Alcalá; Kamini Soobben & Ghislaine Tamisier (project leader), Université Paris-Saclay
