Identifying the cultural challenges of Finnish and Chinese collaboration in university education of software engineering

Abstract. In my thesis, I compare Chinese and Finnish software engineering (SE) educational cultures in university level. In the background, there is the education export from the Finnish University of Oulu (UO) to the Nanjing Institute of Technology (NJIT) in China. The Chinese who complete the programme will receive a Bachelor’s Degree (SE) from both universities. This thesis studies the cultural and practical challenges of collaboration between Finnish and Chinese education cultures. My goal is to discover the differences in conceptions of learning behind teaching and the reasons for these differences. The main targets to focus on are chosen teaching methods, independent information acquisition and status / relationship of teacher and students. The Chinese informants with SE studying experience at UO provided comparison between the educational cultures. Furthermore, I interviewed Finnish teachers who are going to teach at NJIT and Chinese students and teachers at NJIT. All my interviews are semi-structured theme interviews. In addition, I conducted classroom observations, both at UO and at NJIT. Research findings can be utilized when planning education collaboration between Finland and China. This study is ethnographic and theory-guided and it belongs to the field of educational anthropology. The main theories used are Mary Douglas’s Grid and Group theory (1982) and cultural theory of four ways of life (2003) by Mary Douglas, Marco Werveij and Michael Thompson. With these theories, I explain what kind of cultural factors affect an individual’s agency. The main conclusion is that Chinese culture is hierarchic and fatalistic and Finnish culture is individualistic and egalitarian. For example, collective group pressure, high tolerance of control and hierarchy are impacting factors in Chinese culture, which is seen in individual’s agency. On contrary, individual and egalitarian culture restricts the agencies less and the tolerance for control is low. This is seen in educational cultures: Finnish education is student-centred and includes more conversations and several teaching methods. Chinese education is teacher-oriented: teaching is based mainly on lectures, right or wrong answers and lack of communication with a teacher. The practical group at NJIT gave an impression about change towards freer behaviour compared to the lectures. However, Chinese education faces challenges, such as the great number of students, lack of teachers’ time and teaching being often based on textbooks. These are some of the restricting factors for possible change efforts in teaching methods. However, also Confucianism has its effect on this; teachers are respected by listening to them and classrooms are silent, because students are used to that. Significant is that when individuals are moving e.g. from hierarchical culture towards a more individualistic one, their identity can change due to the weakening of restricting boundaries. With the globally oriented, the change is more significant and they adopt e.g. flexible teaching methods more easily, whereas the locally oriented may feel uncomfortable e.g. towards communicative teaching methods or tasks with too open instructions.Tiivistelmä. Tutkielmassani vertailen kiinalaista ja suomalaista yliopistokoulutusta. Taustalla on Oulun yliopiston ohjelmistotuotannon koulutusvienti Kiinan Nanjingiin. Kyseessä on kaksoistutkinto, jossa kiinalaiset opiskelijat saavat ohjelmistotuotannon kandidaatin tutkinnon sekä Nanjing Institute of Technology:sta (NJIT) että Oulun yliopistosta. Tutkin millaisia kulttuurisia ja käytännön haasteita suomalaisen ja kiinalaisen koulutuskulttuurien yhteistyön välillä on. Tavoitteenani on selvittää opetuksen taustalla olevat erot oppimiskäsityksissä sekä eroja selittävät syyt. Keskeisiä tutkimuskohteita ovat valitut opetusmenetelmät, itsenäinen tiedonhankinta sekä opettajan ja oppilaan suhde ja asema. Vertailupohjaa antavat kiinalaiset informantit, joilla on kokemusta ohjelmistotuotannon opiskelusta Oulun yliopistossa. Lisäksi haastattelen ohjelmistotuotannon suomalaisia NJIT:iin meneviä opettajia sekä kiinalaisia opiskelijoita ja opettajia NJIT:ssa. Kaikki haastattelut ovat puolistrukturoituja teemahaastatteluja. Teen myös luokkahuonehavainnointia molemmissa yliopistoissa. Tutkimustuloksia voi hyödyntää suunniteltaessa koulutusyhteistyötä Suomen ja Kiinan välillä. Tutkimukseni on etnografinen ja teoriaohjautuva. Tärkeimmät tutkimustulokset kertovat, että suomalainen koulutuskulttuuri on opiskelijakeskeisempää ja sisältää enemmän keskustelua ja lukuisia erilaisia opetusmenetelmiä. Kiinalainen koulutus on taas opettajajohtoista: opetus perustuu pääasiassa luentoihin, oikein ja väärin -vastauksiin ja kommunikointi opettajan kanssa on vähäistä. Harjoitusryhmä NJIT:ssa antoi viitettä käyttäytymisen muuttumisesta vapaammaksi luentoihin verrattuna. Haasteita aiheuttaa opiskelijoiden suuri määrä, opettajien ajan puute sekä opetuksen rajoittuminen usein oppikirjoihin. Nämä toimivat rajoittavina tekijöinä mahdollisille opetusmenetelmien muutosyrityksille. Taustalla vaikuttaa myös kungfutselaisuus: opettajaa arvostetaan kuuntelemalla ja luokkahuoneissa ollaan hiljaa, koska siihen on totuttu. Tärkeimpiä käyttämiäni teorioita ovat Mary Douglasin Grid ja Group teoria (1982) sekä Mary Douglasin, Marco Werveijin ja Michael Thompsonin kulttuuriteoria neljästä elämätavan mallista (2003). Teorioiden avulla selitän, millaisia kulttuurisia tekijöitä yksilön toimijuuden taustalla vallitsee. Keskeinen johtopäätös on, että kiinalainen kulttuuri on fatalistinen ja hierarkkinen ja suomalainen kulttuuri on individualistinen ja egalitaristinen. Kollektiivinen ryhmäpaine, korkea kontrollin sietokyky ja hierarkia vaikuttavat kiinalaisessa kulttuurissa, mikä näkyy yksilön toimijuudessa. Sen sijaan individualistisessa ja egalitaristisessa kulttuurissa toimijuus on vähemmän rajoitettua ja kontrollin sietokyky on alhainen. Merkittävää on, että yksilön liikkuessa esimerkiksi hierarkkisesta kulttuurista kohti individualistisempaa, hänen identiteettinsä voi muuttua, mikä johtuu toimijuutta säätelevien rajojen vapautumisesta. Globaalisti orientoituneilla muutos on merkittävämpää ja esimerkiksi joustavien opetusmenetelmien omaksuminen on helpompaa, mutta lokaalisti suuntautunut saattaa vierastaa esimerkiksi kommunikointiin perustuvia tai liian vapaita tehtävänantoja

The integration of CALL in EFL/ESL learning environment

A number of studies have shown that learning through the use of computers is more efficient than traditional methods and arouse students motivation (Johnson & Osguthorpe, 1986; Jung, 1992 ). The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of Computer-Assisted Instruction (CAI), to investigate the immense potential of Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL), and then to identify ways in which computers can be used to enhance foreign language learning

Dual Route Model of Idiom Processing in the Bilingual Context

The dual route model predicts that idiomatic phrases show a processing advantage over matched novel phrases. This model postulates that familiar phrases are processed by a faster direct route, and novel phrases are processed by an indirect route. This thesis investigated the role of familiar form and concept in direct route activation. Study 1 provided norming evidence for experimental stimuli selection. Study 2 examined whether direct route can be activated for translated Chinese idioms in Chinese-English bilinguals. Bilinguals listened to the idiom up until the last word (e.g., draw a snake and add), then saw either the idiom ending (e.g., feet) or the matched control ending (e.g., hair); to which they made lexical decision and reaction times were recorded. Results showed evidence for dual route model and provided preliminary support for both familiar concept and lexical association as drivers of direct route activation

Expectations eclipsed in foreign language education: learners and educators on an ongoing journey / edited by Hülya Görür-Atabaş, Sharon Turner.

Between June 2-4, 2011 Sabancı University School of Languages welcomed colleagues from 21 different countries to a collaborative exploration of the challenging and inspiring journey of learners and educators in the field of language education.\ud \ud The conference provided an opportunity for all stakeholders to share their views on language education. Colleagues met with world-renowned experts and authors in the fields of education and psychology, faculty and administrators from various universities and institutions, teachers from secondary educational backgrounds and higher education, as well as learners whose voices are often not directly shared but usually reported.\ud \ud The conference name, Eclipsing Expectations, was inspired by two natural phenomena, a solar eclipse directly before the conference, and a lunar eclipse, immediately after. Learners and educators were hereby invited to join a journey to observe, learn and exchange ideas in orde

Decoding learning: the proof, promise and potential of digital education

With hundreds of millions of pounds spent on digital technology for education every year – from interactive whiteboards to the rise of one–to–one tablet computers – every new technology seems to offer unlimited promise to learning. many sectors have benefitted immensely from harnessing innovative uses of technology. cloud computing, mobile communications and internet applications have changed the way manufacturing, finance, business services, the media and retailers operate. But key questions remain in education: has the range of technologies helped improve learners’ experiences and the standards they achieve? or is this investment just languishing as kit in the cupboard? and what more can decision makers, schools, teachers, parents and the technology industry do to ensure the full potential of innovative technology is exploited? There is no doubt that digital technologies have had a profound impact upon the management of learning. institutions can now recruit, register, monitor, and report on students with a new economy, efficiency, and (sometimes) creativity. yet, evidence of digital technologies producing real transformation in learning and teaching remains elusive. The education sector has invested heavily in digital technology; but this investment has not yet resulted in the radical improvements to learning experiences and educational attainment. in 2011, the Review of Education Capital found that maintained schools spent £487 million on icT equipment and services in 2009-2010. 1 since then, the education system has entered a state of flux with changes to the curriculum, shifts in funding, and increasing school autonomy. While ring-fenced funding for icT equipment and services has since ceased, a survey of 1,317 schools in July 2012 by the british educational suppliers association found they were assigning an increasing amount of their budget to technology. With greater freedom and enthusiasm towards technology in education, schools and teachers have become more discerning and are beginning to demand more evidence to justify their spending and strategies. This is both a challenge and an opportunity as it puts schools in greater charge of their spending and use of technolog

Perception and Acquisition of Natural Authentic English Speech for Chinese Learners Using DIT\u27s Speech Technologies

Given that Chinese language learners are greatly influenced by their mother-tongue, which is a tone language rather than an intonation language, learning and coping with authentic English speech seems more difficult than for learners of other languages. The focus of the current research is, on the basis of analysis of the nature of spoken English and spoken Chinese, to help Chinese learners derive benefit from ICT technologies developed by the Technological University Dublin (DIT). The thesis concentrates on investigating the application of speech technologies in bridging the gap between students’ internalised, idealised formulations and natural, authentic English speech. Part of the testing carried out by the present author demonstrates the acceptability of a slow-down algorithm in facilitating Chinese learners of English in re-producing formulaic language. This algorithm is useful because it can slow down audio files to any desired speed between 100% and 40% without distortion, so as to allow language learners to pay attention to the real, rapid flow of ‘messy’ speech and follow the intonation patterns contained in them. The rationale for and the application of natural, dialogic native-to-native English speech to language learning is also explored. The Chinese language learners involved in this study are exposed to authentic, native speech patterns by providing them access to real, informal dialogue in various contexts. In the course of this analysis, the influence of speed of delivery and pitch range on the categorisation of formulaic language is also investigated. The study investigates the potential of the speech tools available to the present author as an effective EFL learning facility, especially for speakers of tone languages, and their role in helping language learners achieve confluent interaction in an English L1 environment

Eurolanguages-2010: Innovations and Development

Збірник наукових студентських робіт по підсумкам 8 Міжнародної конференції "Євромови-2010

To Teach, Delight, and Inspire. Experiences with Kim Sowol’s Jindallaekkot (Azaleas) as a Printed Facsimile, Printed Scholarly Edition, Web-based Reading Text, and Virtual Reality Experience

Here we document how college students responded to a canonical book of Korean poems, Kim Sowol’s 1925 Jindallaekkot (Azaleas), presented in a variety of formats: as part of a 2014 printed facsimile, a 2007 printed scholarly edition, a reading text articulated as a web page on a tablet, and a radical refiguration as a virtual reality forest. We asked students to describe if they enjoyed and felt inspired by their encounters with Kim Sowol’s poetry in these different formats. We also asked if they felt their experiences were educational and if they engendered a desire to share Kim Sowol’s poetry with international peers. Student responses suggest that encounters with novel forms of canonical texts are enjoyable, inspiring, and create a desire to share them with international peers, especially if novel presentations are complemented by more familiar textual idioms, which students found the most educational