Within HE there is an identified need to ensure that all students are equipped for success to meet the demands of an increasingly connected world. The Culture, Communication and Global Citizenship course was created specifically to draw on the expertise of faculty from across disciplines at North Island College and members of the local community, in order to give students the opportunity to explore issues around diversity and intercultural communication from multiple perspectives.
Starting out from the underlying premise of Global Citizenship Education as put forward by UNESCO, (http://en.unesco.org/gced), this course provides students with the opportunity to explore what it means to be both a human being and a global citizen within the context of complex intercultural interactions. Students are challenged to reconsider their views on what is considered to be legitimate knowledge, ways of being and effective intercultural communication. Through critical reflection on historical and current world events, as well as their own values and beliefs, students are encouraged to develop compassion, empathy and caring for others, and a greater appreciation for and understanding of diversity.
Given the emotive nature of the topics discussed and the importance of ensuring student wellbeing, an important consideration is to provide a space with the emotional safety essential for students to feel able to fully express themselves and explore complex ideas honestly and with compassion.
This presentation:
- Describes how the course was organized to draw on interdisciplinary expertise;
- Outlines activities used to foster emotional safety/wellbeing both in the classroom and in the online learning forum;
- Explores the challenges encountered in supporting students in embracing the ‘unsettling’ but not ‘unsafe,’ in discussions of different ways of being in this world.
- Conference participants who attend this presentation will have the opportunity to experience examples of the activities used within this course and to contribute their knowledge and expertise in a discussion of the challenges of navigating the space between ‘unsettling’ – where learning takes place, and ‘unsafe’ - where learning stops.
