title: Developing and evaluating intercultural competence: Ethnographies of intercultural encounters

authors: Holmes, Prue

subjects: assessment

abstract: Although recent scholarly reviews have synthesized understandings of intercultural competence, the processes underpinning how individuals acquire and evaluate their intercultural competence, and where it resides, invite further investigation. This study aims to make a distinctive contribution by exposing those processes. Thirty-five student researchers (the participants in this study), guided by an ethnographic approach, engaged socially over a six-week period with a previously unknown Cultural Other. The PEER model (developed by the two researchers) guided student researchers through the interconnected and interdependent phases of Preparing, Engaging, Evaluating, and Reflecting upon their competence within these intercultural encounters. The findings indicate that developing intercultural competence encompasses processes of acknowledging reluctance and fear, foregrounding and questioning stereotypes, monitoring feelings and emotions, working through confusion, and grappling with complexity. The study therefore highlights the value of the PEER model in facilitating continued relationship building with a Cultural Other as a means of developing and evaluating intercultural competence; it also makes a clear contribution to this field by demonstrating the importance of the intercultural encounter as the place where individuals can shift their focus away from an external evaluation of the Other to an inward contemplation of their own intercultural competence. The study also provides a new methodological resource, the PEER model, for developing and evaluating intercultural competence.

text: Developing and evaluating intercultural competence: Ethnographies of intercultural encounters Although recent scholarly reviews have synthesized understandings of intercultural competence, the processes underpinning how individuals acquire and evaluate their intercultural competence, and where it resides, invite further investigation. This study aims to make a distinctive contribution by exposing those processes. Thirty-five student researchers (the participants in this study), guided by an ethnographic approach, engaged socially over a six-week period with a previously unknown Cultural Other. The PEER model (developed by the two researchers) guided student researchers through the interconnected and interdependent phases of Preparing, Engaging, Evaluating, and Reflecting upon their competence within these intercultural encounters. The findings indicate that developing intercultural competence encompasses processes of acknowledging reluctance and fear, foregrounding and questioning stereotypes, monitoring feelings and emotions, working through confusion, and grappling with complexity. The study therefore highlights the value of the PEER model in facilitating continued relationship building with a Cultural Other as a means of developing and evaluating intercultural competence; it also makes a clear contribution to this field by demonstrating the importance of the intercultural encounter as the place where individuals can shift their focus away from an external evaluation of the Other to an inward contemplation of their own intercultural competence. The study also provides a new methodological resource, the PEER model, for developing and evaluating intercultural competence.

year: 2012

title: Society Gets the Individual it Deserves: Engaging Learners for the Flat World

authors: Pope, Clive C.

subjects: learning

abstract: Historically the individual and society pendulum has swung back and forth between individuals and conformity and individuals and community. Individuals and society are mutually dependent yet conflicts of interest have shown how one has sometimes flourished at the expense of the other. As the world and society changes, learning must follow so individuals or groups can participate in society. And because participation in society inherently involves learning physical educators and kinesiologists (among others) need to address how we can assist students to be engaged learners who transform experiences into fruitful knowledge, skills, attitudes, values, and beliefs and give meaning to their lives. The paper will situate learning and in particular, student engagement, as a vector for the pervasive change and the associated profound challenges that will be presented to individuals and society this century. Student engagement, particularly at a philosophic level, has essentially been ignored within our field.

text: Society Gets the Individual it Deserves: Engaging Learners for the Flat World Historically the individual and society pendulum has swung back and forth between individuals and conformity and individuals and community. Individuals and society are mutually dependent yet conflicts of interest have shown how one has sometimes flourished at the expense of the other. As the world and society changes, learning must follow so individuals or groups can participate in society. And because participation in society inherently involves learning physical educators and kinesiologists (among others) need to address how we can assist students to be engaged learners who transform experiences into fruitful knowledge, skills, attitudes, values, and beliefs and give meaning to their lives. The paper will situate learning and in particular, student engagement, as a vector for the pervasive change and the associated profound challenges that will be presented to individuals and society this century. Student engagement, particularly at a philosophic level, has essentially been ignored within our field.

year: 2012

title: Still standing, still here, still dancing.

authors: Clendon-Tau, Iwa

subjects: first person narrative

abstract: A personal narrative is presented which explores the author's experiences on teaching-learning process and her insights on language, culture and learning.

text: Still standing, still here, still dancing. A personal narrative is presented which explores the author's experiences on teaching-learning process and her insights on language, culture and learning.

year: 2002