New Collaborative Research Publication: “Raising global citizens at home: Exploring a methodological approach” – Dr. Clinton Watkins

Dr. Clinton Watkins, Director of AIU’s Global Business Program, Dr. Ingrid Van Rompay-Bartels and Jannemieke Geessink from HAN University of Applied Sciences, one of AIU’s partners in the Netherlands, have published an article in Societal Impacts. 

This research was based on their experience conducting an International Virtual Collaboration between HAN University of Applied Sciences Arnhem Business School and AIU in the course “Crossing Borders Without Crossing Borders”, which ran for the first time in Fall 2022 and brought together students from HAN and AIU virtually in the same class, where they worked through individual and teamwork tasks and reflection in a business setting.

Dr. Watkins and Dr. Van Rompay-Bartels first met when the Dr. Van Rompay-Bartels joined a virtual brown-bag lunch research seminar held online during the pandemic, and developed their collaboration through the International Virtual Collaboration and subsequent research, culminating in visits to each university in 2022-2023. So while this course helps students to gain experience in working internationally in virtual teams, the researchers themselves experienced the same process in its design and execution, making the course and research a model for how to strengthen relationships with our overseas partner universities.

Abstract and Article Link

Views on how to balance the needs of humans and the environment differ widely. Global citizenship supports the transition to a sustainable society as the substantial and complex challenges facing the world transcend national borders. Global citizenship is a key response in contemporary higher education which aims to prepare students to address present and future challenges. We outline the design, international virtual collaboration, for an undergraduate course to develop students’ global citizenship competencies. International virtual collaboration works as an open-source instrument that provides an inclusive, equitable and low environmental impact solution to the internationalization of university students at home. We explain an iterative Participatory Action Research methodology to develop and enhance the present and anticipated positive societal impact of the course. The positive societal impacts include reduced environmental impact (by reduced need to travel), improved partnerships (by better understanding of cultural differences that may make working together across borders difficult), quality education (by improved educational design and approach), equality and diversity (by improved access, lower cost, for education that develops global citizenship competencies).

Read the full article here.

Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Dutch Comenius Senior Fellow programme grant [40.5.22865.406] awarded in 2022 under the title “Raising Global Citizens at Home” to Dr. Ingrid Van Rompay-Bartels.

The pilot described in this article is part of this ongoing research project, which focuses on improving the inclusiveness of education.