Hi Kassandra,
The instructor in the film was the inspiration for the first alternative. He tried it and found it worked brilliantly. (Having students hand in questions to be addressed at the start of next class or on an electronic medium). A couple of things were addressed by this method. 1) The students could field questions anonymously, without losing face, and the instructor could assess comprehension (especially when the same question arose in a variety of ways). The pair / share method is old school, but used in regard to questions can also help students to articulate confusion and clarify before bringing what they might deem trivial to the entire class. Finally, the informal question period at the end of the class is LOVED by all students. If they "get it" they leave early, if they don't they have an opportunity to clarify in a small, informal setting.
The international students involved in the film were all excited about these methods and we received numerous comments from them about how they "wished" this was common practice...
Try them out... let us know...
Kyra
Kyra Garson
Posts made by Kyra Garson
Hi Gina,
I agree that it is worthwhile to move to a more ethnorelative view, especially in higher education which is rapidly becoming a more international, intercultural environment. Hence our motivation to create the film scenarios: a springboard for dialogue and exchange of best or innovative practices.
The plagiarism / academic integrity piece is really interesting. It tends to evoke emotional responses, particularly from Western educators :) There is a growing number of scholars who are questioning the academy's rigorous defense of our rules and what is considered acceptable academic use of English. Indeed, Englishes is now considered in the plural form. Scholars and students all over the world are using English in ways that might not fit the paradigm we hold so dear, add to that the increasingly contested notion of ownership in the technological age, as well as the uncomfortable questions being raised in terms of not only ethnocentrism, but charges of post-colonialism within international education.
Perhaps we demand that academic writing adheres to Western standards because we are truly convinced that it is the only correct model where others are indeed deficient. It is interesting that we are able to make this claim knowing so little about other rhetorical models and academic discourses, isn't it?
Just a few heavy thoughts on this fine morning :)
Hopefully, you will have a chance to check out some of the resources we posted along with the films on the SoLR site, some of them expand on the above notions (I have more if you are really interested!)
Kyra
I agree that it is worthwhile to move to a more ethnorelative view, especially in higher education which is rapidly becoming a more international, intercultural environment. Hence our motivation to create the film scenarios: a springboard for dialogue and exchange of best or innovative practices.
The plagiarism / academic integrity piece is really interesting. It tends to evoke emotional responses, particularly from Western educators :) There is a growing number of scholars who are questioning the academy's rigorous defense of our rules and what is considered acceptable academic use of English. Indeed, Englishes is now considered in the plural form. Scholars and students all over the world are using English in ways that might not fit the paradigm we hold so dear, add to that the increasingly contested notion of ownership in the technological age, as well as the uncomfortable questions being raised in terms of not only ethnocentrism, but charges of post-colonialism within international education.
Perhaps we demand that academic writing adheres to Western standards because we are truly convinced that it is the only correct model where others are indeed deficient. It is interesting that we are able to make this claim knowing so little about other rhetorical models and academic discourses, isn't it?
Just a few heavy thoughts on this fine morning :)
Hopefully, you will have a chance to check out some of the resources we posted along with the films on the SoLR site, some of them expand on the above notions (I have more if you are really interested!)
Kyra
We are excited to see this conversation thread: Diversity as a resource. It is also valuable to explore the challenges presented by diversity in order to view it as a positive resource. In some of the film scenarios the instructors are attempting to draw out the diversity in respectful ways so that everyone's understanding of others' experiences and ways of knowing are enhanced. It is particularly important for us to include the students' voices.
Emma & Kyra
Emma & Kyra
Greetings colleagues!
We'd like to begin by introducing the project. It was motivated by research on our campus that identified 4 key areas that posed challenges for faculty and students. 1. Participation / Communication 2. Academic Integrity / Standards 3. Team Work / Classroom Dynamics 4. Learning & Rhetorical Styles / Evaluation.
The four film scenarios were developed to parallel these challenges and explore alternative approaches. The first ScoPe session invited participants to view and discuss the film clip Plagiarism.
Our research indicated that although faculty and students shared this as a challenge, their perspectives regarding the source of the problem differed. For example:
Faculty - Plagiarism, writing skills, language comprehension, cheating, collusion
International students - Different expectations, integration of sources and independent thinking, lack of: rationale, instruction, examples, and explanation
Domestic students - Problematic in group work, unfair evaluation
Our aim in the first session was to elicit intercultural knowledge, hone in on participants' questions and comments and help us set up for the second round.
To prepare for the session on the 26th, we think it would be valuable if you had some context. Please watch the videos and consider what you see, as well as the language and theory to prepare for discussion. It may also be helpful to read Bennett's Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity (attached or link: http://www.gee-geip.org/pdf/idi_theory.pdf)
On the 26th, we'll address all of the scenarios and hope to lead a constructive discussion around how this resource can be used to support faculty in addressing challenges in diverse classrooms and to make shifts that can benefit all classroom stakeholders. We invite additional strategies and collaboration. In the meantime, we'll carry on the discussion threads.
Emma & Kyra
We'd like to begin by introducing the project. It was motivated by research on our campus that identified 4 key areas that posed challenges for faculty and students. 1. Participation / Communication 2. Academic Integrity / Standards 3. Team Work / Classroom Dynamics 4. Learning & Rhetorical Styles / Evaluation.
The four film scenarios were developed to parallel these challenges and explore alternative approaches. The first ScoPe session invited participants to view and discuss the film clip Plagiarism.
Our research indicated that although faculty and students shared this as a challenge, their perspectives regarding the source of the problem differed. For example:
Faculty - Plagiarism, writing skills, language comprehension, cheating, collusion
International students - Different expectations, integration of sources and independent thinking, lack of: rationale, instruction, examples, and explanation
Domestic students - Problematic in group work, unfair evaluation
Our aim in the first session was to elicit intercultural knowledge, hone in on participants' questions and comments and help us set up for the second round.
To prepare for the session on the 26th, we think it would be valuable if you had some context. Please watch the videos and consider what you see, as well as the language and theory to prepare for discussion. It may also be helpful to read Bennett's Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity (attached or link: http://www.gee-geip.org/pdf/idi_theory.pdf)
On the 26th, we'll address all of the scenarios and hope to lead a constructive discussion around how this resource can be used to support faculty in addressing challenges in diverse classrooms and to make shifts that can benefit all classroom stakeholders. We invite additional strategies and collaboration. In the meantime, we'll carry on the discussion threads.
Emma & Kyra