Descriptif

Prerequisites:

Participants must have an intermediate to good level of English to assure comprehension and effective participation.

Objectives:

The ability to successfully communicate in an international context requires both the knowledge of differing social norms as well as the ability to self-reflect in order to anticipate, mediate, and rectify cultural misunderstandings. Both theoretical and practical, this five-day course provides insight and strategies for overcoming various intercultural communication issues as well as incorporates key interpersonal skills such as relationship building and conflict management.

The course will begin with a brief background of popular and modern models of intercultural communication from Edward Hall’s classic Iceberg (1976) to Chia Suan Chong’s ADAPT Model (2018). Then, students will be given the opportunity to test out the models themselves all the while sharing and discussing intercultural experiences. Next, the students will be given the opportunity to reflect on their own communication styles as well as use strategies for conflict management during two, highly interactive debates and role-plays. And finally, on the last day, students will work in teams to design intercultural sketches that they can share with the entire group. By the end of the course, students will be able to observe, analyze, and grow in multiple international contexts.

Course exam:

A three-part, guided, cultural awareness journal due by lunchtime on the fourth day: Students will be given specific tasks to carry out on Days 1, 2, and 3 (going to a museum in Paris, interviewing a French person, and writing about one aspect of French culture that they didn’t expect to encounter). Students will be given specific questions to foster self-reflection. They will be evaluated on the quantity and quality of their analysis.