Intercultural Knowledge and Global Perspective | The Teaching & Learning Centre | Seneca Polytechnic

Definition
Intercultural Knowledge is the knowledge, attitudes and skills that support effective and appropriate interaction in a variety of cultural contexts in order to adapt to and build relationships. Global perspective is the exploration of global issues and challenges from diverse worldviews that respects differences, while informing and broadening individual views.

Benchmark for Achievement
The graduate respectfully collaborates with others to explore issues from various cultural contexts and considers a global perspective when seeking out solutions to local challenges and issues.

The graduate:

• Discusses cultural patterns
• Discusses issues from a variety of cultural contexts
• Collaborates respectfully with people from diverse cultures
• Explores solutions to local challenges and issues, considering a global perspective

At the Program Level
There are opportunities across the program to interact collaboratively with others of different backgrounds and cultures; make connections between and among local and global issues and discuss global challenges. The students identify their personal cultural patterns and compare and contrast them with those of others and discuss ways to adapt to diverse cultural contexts.

Questions to Guide Mapping

• Are students comparing and contrasting how cultural diversity is dealt with in different countries, and how this impacts people both in terms of their personal lives and professional practice?
• Do students consider issues and problems from a variety of social, economic, political, religious, ethical/moral, and/or cultural perspectives?
• Is the impact of culture on the development of specific approaches in the profession/discipline explored?
• Does the course include readings/articles from international journals, inter-governmental organizations, overseas newspapers, etc.?
• Are students examining ethical issues of globalization, such as social justice, equity, human rights, immigration, and other social, economic and/or political issues that involve a broad awareness of world trends (in any discipline)?

Resources

• ACC&U Global Learning VALUE Rubric
  The Global Learning VALUE Rubric explains AAC&U’s definition of global learning, lists the fundamental criteria, and describes four levels of performances for each criterion.
• ACC&U Intercultural Knowledge and Competence VALUE Rubric
  The Intercultural Knowledge and Competence VALUE Rubric defines international knowledge and competence (according to AAC&U), lists the fundamental criteria, and describes four levels of performances for each criterion.
• Assessing and Addressing our Biases from the University of Michigan
  The University of Michigan offers some strategies for becoming aware of your potential biases in teaching and learning, and strategies to safeguard students against your implicit biases.
• Cultural Context Questions from Evelyn O’Connor, LeavingCertEnglish.net
  Here are some sample cultural context learning activities/assessments.
• Global and International Perspective & Awareness Toolkit from Griffith University
  The Global and International Perspective and Awareness toolkit defines global and international perspective and awareness, explains the characteristics of intercultural competence, offers guidelines, tips and examples to help develop global and international perspectives, offers tips for assessing students’ global and international perspective and awareness, and provides resources.
• How Colleges Can Influence the Development of a Global Perspective by Larry A. Braskamp and Mark E. Engberg
  This article, from the 2011 Global Positioning: Essential Learning, Student Success, and the Currency of US Degrees Annual Meeting Issue, offers a framework that “intersects the campus dimensions of community, curriculum, and cocurriculum with three dimensions of student development: cognitive development, intrapersonal development, and interpersonal development.”
• Inclusivity in the Classroom from Vanderbilt University
  Vanderbilt University’s Center for Teaching explains the importance of teaching inclusivity and offers examples and resources.
• Principles of an Internationalised Curriculum by Sabine McKinnon, Glasgow Caledonian University
  Sabine McKinnon explains the aims and offers principles of internatinalizing curriculum.
• Strategies for Course Internationalization by the University of Waterloo’s Centre for Teaching Excellence
  This tip sheet from the University of Waterloo explains how to design internationalized courses. It also contains examples of strategies to internationalize courses.
• Teaching and Learning Strategies from Global Education, Australian Government
  Here are some teaching and learning strategies, examples and links to develop students’ knowledge of global issues and the skills to respond to global issues.
• Tools for Assessing Intercultural and Global Competence from the University of Michigan
  Here are some tools for assessing intercultural knowledge and competence.
• What are Global Perspectives? from Global Education, Australian Government
  Global Education, Teacher Resources to Encourage a Global Perspective Across the Curriculum, explains the five aspects of global education.