Course Redesign: Internationalization 2007

Have you ever wondered how to add an international dimension to your course, so that students who cannot study abroad can still receive an international experience? Have you ever struggled with the presence of different cultural backgrounds and realities in your classroom? Do you believe that, in today’s interconnected world, academic subjects need to be taught by taking the world as point of reference, rather than by taking a narrow geocentric, ethnocentric, or otherwise limited perspective?

We invite faculty and other instructional staff who have already participated in the week-long Course (Re)Design Workshop (CRW) to participate in a three-day workshop that will be offered December 5 ~ 7, 2007 in HHB 116 and HHB 120 from 8:30 AM ~ 4:30 PM. This event, the Lenses on Course Redesign: Internationalization, will revisit the course (re)design process by applying an internationalization "lens". Participants will practice the different components of course design (concept mapping, learning outcomes, instructional strategies, assessment) with a view to teaching and learning for worldmindedness. The Lenses on Course Redesign: Internationalization should provide an excellent tool to reach out to the over 90% of UVic students who currently do not have an opportunity to incorporate a study-abroad experience into their academic program.

Here is what past participants have said about the Course Redesign: Internationalization:

"Internationalization is not simply a mechanism to help accommodate or acclimatize international students – it is a process relevant to everyone’s appreciation of the limited vision we have when our filters are in place and the benefits we can gain from considering other frames of reference.”

"I no longer immediately think of a place on the globe when I hear ‘international’ or ‘internationalization’ – I now think of a place within the mind’s eye.”

"I applaud the focus of the workshop and the effort to infuse and permeate, rather than treat internationalization as a specialty topic that could be addressed in a specialty course.”

"Internationalization is still a ‘slippery concept’, but it is a much bigger idea than I had originally envisioned.”

"If you get a chance to attend [a Course Redesign: Internationalization], don’t miss it – and bring a colleague.”