Document Type

Report

Rights

Available under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial Share Alike 4.0 International Licence

Disciplines

*pedagogy

Publication Details

Practitioner Research Project undertaken in part completion of the DIT's Postgraduate Diploma in Third Level Learning and Teaching (DT906). For more details please see http://www.dit.ie/lttc/

Abstract

Multicultural societies require multicultural universities and internationalisation is a powerful influence within higher education. Conceptual understandings of internationalisation and practical activities have evolved significantly to prepare students for global workplaces, social cohesion and personal development (Higher Education Strategy Group, 2011). Internationalisation benefits the development of interculturally competent graduates who can participate in diverse, global labour markets, yet, international students require support while adjusting to new learning environments. A student-centred approach to learning is superseding traditional pedagogy in order to support the most diverse range of learning preferences that are characteristic of multicultural groups (Vita, 2001). Educators are encouraged to expand their teaching portfolios with tools that support international students, while also benefiting their domestic counterparts (Arkoudis, 2006. Seery, 2014). Adapting teaching methods for culturally mixed groups helps to address barriers to learning, to value cultural diversity and to encourage inclusive and supportive engagement. International students may need explicit instruction on assessable activities to help develop their own understanding of topics and to avoid plagiarism (Carroll, 2008). Constructive feedback for international students should consider their additional cognitive loads as they broaden their learning and develop new academic writing and referencing skills. To support lecturers, this project considers the impact of policy and core pedagogical categories of learning preferences, teaching methods, technology and assessment as they relate to internationalisation. It aims to offer some practical advice and to illustrate some examples to help address the needs of international students, alongside their domestic colleagues, in learning environments that are increasingly multicultural.

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