In 2019, the University of Northampton (UoN) was awarded a grant through the British Council’s Outward Mobility Internationalisation (OMI) Partnership Fund, to design and deliver mobility programmes in China whilst supporting Chinese partner universities to develop their wider internationalisation strategies.
As host of the China and Emerging Economies Centre (CEEC), UoN has formed regional collaborations between Northamptonshire and Chinese provinces. Through these collaborations, UoN has been working with Yunnan Technology and Business University (YTBU) since 2014. This partnership supports YTBU’s recently developed internationalisation strategy through sharing best-practice and expertise in internationalisation areas including pastoral care and international student experience.
The joint project aims to develop an innovative model in the form of an online personal development package, which supports UK students to have successful cross-cultural experiences in China. This work is an extension of existing models that supports UoN students to develop employability skills and overall China-readiness, such as a cross-country project exploring market entry strategies for British shoemakers.
A commitment to blended learning
From the outset, the project designed a blended model utilising UoN’s expertise in new teaching and learning technologies. An online personal development package was designed to support students’ transition from pre-departure through to post-programme. It consists of cultural training and practical tools to support learning and development.
The online package also brings students from YTBU and UoN together to assess their participation through self-reflective exercises. Using the platforms Edublogs and Padlet, students are required to write their reflections on the perceived impact the project has had on the way that they think.
Designing effective pre-departures resources
Students start the online pre-departure package six weeks prior to departure, which includes six modules that provide a nuanced introduction to topics including Chinese history, people, demography, language, economy and politics.
Developing awareness of these topics before departure helps to mitigate some of the issues students might experience upon arrival. The six modules cover three broad areas including:
- Noticing ‘change and continuity’: to demonstrate a common dichotomy and facilitate the understanding of the sheer scale of China.
- Seeking complexity to avoid ‘othering’: to encourage students to take the first steps to exploring the complexity of stereotypes and the ‘othering’ of Asian cultures and people.
- Engaging in ‘reflective learning’: to encourage a ‘subjective’ inner discussion on how mobility topics affect students personally.
The self-reflection exercise also assesses students’ cultural awareness sills. The assessment questionnaire is completed at the beginning and end of the project in order to compare results and measure changes in cultural competencies.
Creating a structured learning environment for personal development
Both universities selected students from business related subjects who were paired up with a virtual buddy via WeChat to facilitate one-to-one communication and cultural exchange. Students worked on group projects, which included a virtual visit to a factory in Yunnan. YBTU staff and students recorded a factory tour which was then shared and discussed with UoN students. Students were also encouraged to do internet research, engage in further discussion with their Chinese counterparts and subsequently produce a report about the virtual visit. This created an opportunity for UK students to develop an understanding of Chinese business, but also their cross-cultural awareness by working with their Chinese peers.
One student said of the collaboration, ‘I had a really good time working with the Chinese students. I was able to communicate with them outside of lectures and learn more about their culture, lifestyle and values.’
The online development package is also designed to support students’ personal and professional skills development, by encouraging continual reflection through checklists, action lists and mandatory note-keeping, followed up with discussions with tutors.
Looking ahead, we plan to engage companies in the UK and China who can host students as interns. These opportunities would continue to support students to develop their cross-cultural and employability skills, whilst gaining clearer career goals.
Challenges in online delivery
Due to Covid-19, the mobility element of the project has shifted to virtual delivery. One of the biggest challenges was finding suitable communication platforms that were user-friendly in China – we used Zoom to deliver the pilot. Despite some of the challenges, students have adapted to the virtual delivery well and demonstrated enthusiasm in finding creative ways to share content and ideas.
Key takeaways
- Virtual models are a good option to facilitate cross-cultural collaboration whilst face-to-face interaction is limited.
- Using a mixture of one-to-one and group learning formats can help encourage deeper cultural exchange.
- Structured self-reflection is key to supporting students to understand how to think and talk about the impact of the programme. This is particularly important when it comes to talking to future employers.
- Practical project-based activities can be showcased to potential employers to open doors for work experience opportunities.
Author:
Dr Shaowei He, Director of the China and Emerging Economies Centre, University of Northampton
Dr Holger Siemons, Senior Lecturer, University of Northampton
Dr Qian Zhang, Senior Lecturer, University of Northampton
Add new comment
Please note that comments by non-members are moderated. They do not appear on the site until they have been approved. Comments by registered members appear here immediately. Your email address will not be published. All fields are required.