Applying intercultural awareness to curriculum development in Art, Design and Architecture

Through selecting and synthesising the existing literature surrounding international students, the recurrent foci have been explored and a new simple model of the international student sojourn has been generated. This model is driven by a holistic concern for the support and development of staff and students, and has been used to open a dialogue between staff and students in order to raise intercultural awareness within the disciplines of art, design and architecture. It is suggested that the collaborative fostering of intercultural awareness is the necessary first step towards developing an internationalised curriculum (Nilsson, 2003; Harrison & Peacock, 2010). This poster session will demonstrate how the model has been used to structure a workshop in the school of art, design and architecture, in which staff and students have engaged in dialogue and formulated a good practice agenda for internationalising the curriculum. The disciplines of Art, Design and Architecture present their own specific challenges for internationalisation due to the culture-bound nature of aesthetics. It is important to find out how current international students and staff cope with these challenges, and to share good practice across their disciplines. It has been discovered that in the UK certain traditions prevail, such as the emphasis on the individual creative process as well as drawing by hand before using technology, which are at odds with process of design training in other parts of the world. It is hoped that by creating increased intercultural awareness, we will be able to design curricula that will enable us to capitalise on the diverse range of experiences that international students bring to the UK. The model and workshop structure can be adapted for use by participants within their own disciplines, and the poster session will encourage delegates to explore this

Internationalizing the Art School: What part does the studio have to play?

Art, Design and Architecture (ADA) education has a number of distinctive features, including the use of the studio as a locus for an interactive approach to teaching and learning. This article explores the concept of ‘internationalization’ and uses it as a basis to explore the pedagogies found in ADA from an intercultural perspective. The study involved staff and international students participating in focus groups and workshop events to share their experiences of teaching and learning in ADA. We found that ADA pedagogies provide a number of specific opportunities and challenges for internationalization. Positive aspects include the social nature of the studio facilitating the development of independent learning and critical skills. However, issues raised were the lack of value placed on the development of IT/technical skills and language proficiency. We suggest that there is much that ADA pedagogies have to offer the debate on internationalization

Otolith δ15N Distinguishes Fish from Forested and Agricultural Streams in Southern Illinois

We investigated the ability of otolith stable nitrogen isotope ratio (δ15N) to discriminate among fishes from southern Illinois streams that differed in proportions of watershed agricultural land. Otolith δ15N was nearly as effective as muscle δ15N in identifying fishes from individual sites with different percentages of agricultural land cover; both had accuracies of \u3e75%. However, because of the relatively low N content of otoliths, substantial amounts (~8 mg) of otolith material are required for δ15N analysis compared to fish muscle tissue (~0.3 mg), which precludes the use of otolith δ15N as an indicator of dietary and environmental history for small fishes

Integration experiences of international students: A situated case-study

This thesis examines the integration experiences of a case-study group of international students undertaking postgraduate research degrees at a UK university. It places a deep focus on their individual stories, and situates these within the academic and policy discourses of integration, which are found to have a lack of consideration in terms of the integration of international students. The study uses key understandings of social capital to examine how the participants have mobilised the resources embedded within their social networks to enable their interaction and participation in society beyond the university campus.The specific aims of the research are to examine the nature of the social networks and social interactions of a case study group of international students, to decipher how their experiences relate to the discourses of integration, and to analyse how their integration experiences relate to the network theory of social capital. The study is qualitative, and uses interpretative phenomenology as a guiding framework to analyse and present the data. Three distinct methods of data collection were used:Ego-network mapping, sit-down interviews and walking interviews. The situated case study was conducted in an ethnically diverse town in the north of England, which has been a significant factor in the participants’ experiences. The findings show that the majority of the study’s participants have each developed a substantial social network during their time in Britain. They have an even mix of co-national and international friends, and some have developed co-national friendships with British people with ancestral links to the their home country. Indeed, a substantial finding from this study, is that the ‘host’ community is seen as both the settled ethnic minority communities within which the participants interact, as well as the conveniently diverse nature of Hill town. The participants are strategic and often use rational choice when forming friendships, in particular when seeking friendships with ‘local’ people for help with language and local cultural knowledge. Despite the consuming nature of their research, all participants acknowledge that they have to impose their own limits on how much time they spend working on it each day and look for ways to break up their routine and break free from the grasp of their studies, which leads to their interaction and participation in the wider society. The way they do this allows the study to interrogate key terms found in the integration discourse, such as ‘shared’ British values and sense of belonging, as the participants view the British ways of being and doing in a relative way. Nonetheless, they often show certain elements of integration that might be expected of permanent migrants such as an engagement with the local community or a wish to give back something to society.The study also reveals a certain resilience when faced with issues such as perceived discrimination or explicit racial abuse in the street. The study expose a sense of appreciation as the participants are able to easily recreate their consumption habits from their home countries, owing to the presence of international chains as well as the multi-cultural nature of Hill town. In addition, the fact that the participants themselves all have some previous experience of working in different countries or for international companies means that they can be described as natural transnationals, and there is evidence that they become a useful social contact for others who arrive in Hill town. Finally, there is strong evidence within the participants’ accounts that they mobilise the social capital resources from their social networks to find information, accommodation and employment

SPARK Linking Ready Kids to Ready Schools: A Report on Policy Insights from the Governors' Forum Series

Each year too many children start kindergarten unprepared to learn. Many will never catch up. The reasons for this are complex, but this much is clear: The multiple systems – from family to schools to government – that should be supporting young children too often are failing to do so. The W.K. Kellogg Foundation seeks to change that, and to permanently improve systems that affect children's learning.As policymakers look for ways to improve student outcomes by creating "seamless" systems of education starting at preschool, communities have been getting it done. SPARK (Supporting Partnerships to Assure Ready Kids) — a fiveyear initiative funded by the Kellogg Foundation — has contributed a unique, community-based perspective to the national conversation on what it takes to effectively link learning systems. In particular, SPARK examines what it takes at the beginning of the education pipeline to link early learning to the early grades. The goal is to make sure that children are ready for school and that schools are ready for them — a formula critical for a lifetime of successful learning.SPARK efforts are deeply anchored in the community and are designed to assure that children are successful both before and after they enter school. The strategy of working with schools, early care and education providers, families and community partners has yielded a set of proven ways to align local systems of education — approaches that have been tested in diverse rural and urban communities in Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Mississippi, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio and Washington, D.C. What SPARK community-based sites have done to create connections across local systems of learning stands to influence larger school reform issues and state policy discussions about what is needed to create a more holistic learning experience for children — one that results in academic success at grade three and beyond

University Libraries 21-Day Racial Equity Challenge Syllabus

As part of the University Libraries Reckoning Initiative, Library staff engaged in a voluntary 21-Day Racial Equity Challenge to further skills around understanding racism, bias, and racial inequity. The University Libraries 21-Day Racial Equity Challenge inspired participants to engage, act, and reflect on race and racial equity in personal spaces as well as in the organization and the profession