The emergence of English as a global language has led to a huge demand for TESOL language educators around the world (Davies, 2009). This has resulted in greater intercultural encounters with the cultural Other; hence, the need to understand the experiences of these teachers to prepare teachers for their work and support them to achieve favourable outcomes of intercultural learning emerges. This is especially important in light of the failure of teacher education programs to prepare these teachers for the realities of their work and in light of inadequacy of intercultural learning theories to theorize intercultural learning based on these teachers’ experiences. This thesis sought to explore TESOL teachers’ experiences using a grounded approach that is based on the teachers’ experiences as central to their intercultural learning. Drawing upon the intercultural experiences of seven global TESOL teachers who are working in Saudi Arabia, this thesis sought to understand the types of intercultural experiences that they went through, the factors that affected these experiences and the intercultural learning that these experiences generated. Interpretative qualitative study methodology was employed in my study to examine the TESOL global teachers’ lived intercultural experiences in Saudi Arabia. Qualitative data were collected through conducting in-depth narrative interviews and examining personal correspondence (where available), with seven experienced global TESOL teachers. The findings suggested that the global TESOL educators’ intercultural experiences were enormously complex with many factors and four facets affecting these experiences. The global TESOL educators’ experiences of interculturality were mainly found to be Othering experiences. The factors related to the global educators’ social positions and the four facets were wider discourses, dispositional positions, contextual realities and situated value systems in Saudi Arabia. The findings highlighted the importance of “translocational positionalities” in understanding the TESOL global teachers’ intercultural experiences and learning. Contrary to the literature, the thesis suggests that intercultural learning was not about intercultural competencies and developmental stages, but about how the participants negotiated their positionalities and developed awareness of their positionalities in relation to the Other. The thesis also uncovered two insights that have potential to contribute to preparing and supporting global TESOL educators in global contact zones. These insights related to the educators’ need to talk about their intercultural experiences and the need to interrogate these educators’ understanding of culture. The findings and the insights offer some theoretical and practical implications for understanding intercultural learning experiences in a new light. The theoretical implications suggest a new experiential model for intercultural learning in global contact zones. The practical implications highlight suggestions for a pedagogy of dialogue for teacher education programmes to promote favourable intercultural learning outcomes.

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This thesis examines how Japanese language schools in the Greater Vancouver area function in the diversification of their pupils’ backgrounds. The schools provide curricula which mainly consist of practices of Japanese language and cultural learning. Applying the content analysis of qualitative data derived from interviews with the school principals, the thesis investigates what emphasis the schools put on their educational policies and practices of the curricula. The maintenance of the learners’ heritage language and culture have been argued as a primary function of heritage language schools such as the Japanese language schools. However, currently most of the Japanese language schools accept Japanese as a heritage language (JHL) learners who are not limited to those children of whom both parents are of Japanese descent and whose first language is Japanese. In addition, the schools accept learners who wish to learn Japanese as a foreign language (JFL) as well. The complexity of the learners’ backgrounds indicate that the schools’ function cannot be explained only as the heritage language/culture maintenance of those who are Japanese descent. The results of this study reveal that the school principals greatly consider the importance of nurturing pupils’ intercultural competence (Byram & Zarate, 1997; Liddicoat & Scarino, 2013). In the current situation of the Japanese language schools, pupils naturally gain intercultural experiences inside and outside the classrooms. The schools’ intercultural perspective enables us to reframe heritage language education to that which is connected to learners’ development of accepting cultural differences. / Graduate / 0282 / mayok@uvic.ca

Detta arbete behandlar huruvida läromedlen Utkik 7-9 Historia och SO direkt historia ämnesboken, som används för historiekunskap i årskurs 7-9, följer läroplanens värdegrundsuppdrag om att främja det mångkulturella samhället eller indirekt motarbetar det. Fokus i den kvalitativa undersökningen av läromedlen är att studera utifrån vilka perspektiv utomeuropeisk historia berättas och om dessa perspektiv öppnar upp eller förhindrar utvecklandet av historiemedvetande och historisk empati, som således bör främja nutida mångkultur. Undersökningen har därför gjorts utifrån de två perspektivbegreppen eurocentrism och interkulturellt lärande, två ytterligheter när det gäller historieframställning och där interkultur arbetar mer i främjandet av mångkultur. Vidare sker en komparativ analys för att se om något av läromedlen gör ett bättre jobb i uppfyllandet av värdegrunden. För att ge bakgrund till arbetet används utdrag från Skolverkets hemsida samt från grundskolans läroplan. Undersökningsfrågorna baseras i olika typer av tidigare forskning utförd av Niklas Ammert, Lars Nyström (med flera), Peter Gran samt Maria Johansson. Resultatet av undersökningen visar att läromedlen inte lever upp till läroplanens krav eftersom de båda till övervägande del präglas av eurocentriska perspektiv snarare än interkulturella. Detta förhindrar således för elever att utveckla ett historiemedvetande och historisk empati. / This essay examines whether or not the textbooks Utkik 7-9 Historia and SO direkt historia ämnesboken, which both are used as teaching materials in compulsory school history (grades 7-9), meet the values of the curriculum concerning the support of a multicultural society. The qualitative study therefore investigates from which perspectives non-European history is described, and if those perspectives enable or prevent the development of historical consciousness and historical empathy, two qualities that benefit multiculturalism. Therefore, the examination has its foundation in the two perspective concepts eurocentrism and intercultural learning, which are each others opposites when it comes to historical representation. In short, intercultural learning has a bigger focus on embracing multiculturalism. A comparative analysis is also carried out to examine if one of the two textbooks do a better job fulfilling the values of the Swedish curriculum. Extracts from the compulsory school curriculum and from Skolverket's website will be used as background for the investigation. The survey questions are based on different research done byNiklas Ammert, Lars Nyström (and others), Peter Gran, and Maria Johansson. The result from the study shows that both textbooks fail to meet the requirements of the curriculum since they are predominantly characterized by a eurocentric perspective rather than an intercultural one. Therefore they also prevent students from developing historical consciousness and historical empathy.

The focus of this research is the learning of host families participating in the curricula of student exchange programs. The role of the host family is central to the exchange event, but hosting is often a problematic experience during which the host family faces may dilemmas. The research substantiates the relevance of family systems theory in relation to the host family and positions the host family in an intercultural context. Phenomenographic techniques are used to describe the different ways of experiencing a hosting event and to account for how these ways occur. The phenomenon of Hosting is described by the conception of Synergy. A Spectrum of Experience, rather than a hierarchy, is defined by the four components of :fit, responsibility, investment and learning. Host family dilemmas and discernment are related to prior experience of hosting and the Synergy between expectations and learning outcomes. Intercultural learning in a hosting event is identified as participants' understanding of themselves, the process of hosting, communication skills and an appreciation of cultural heritage. Host family expectations have an impact before, during and after the hosting event while realistic expectations recognise the potential for learning moments as well as the contribution that conflicts, confrontations and challenges make to learning and growth in an intercultural context. Best preparation and best practice for host family participation involves an understanding of experiential learning, training program design and strategies for ongoing support systems / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

This study examines representations of intercultural learning in global children’s literature through critical content analysis. Cosmopolitanism provides a vision to connect individuals to the global communities through a critical lens. According to Rizvi (2009), intercultural learning should bridge the local and the global, move between cultures and communities, and develop transnational compassion and collaboration. Intercultural learning involves explorations of culture, active participation in the world, and critical thinking on issues that are normally taken for granted. Intercultural learning is not just learning about other cultures but focuses on individuals’ awareness of their roles in the world and collaboration with people from global communities to make the world a better place. With this idea in mind, global children’s literature is a useful resource to introduce readers to the global community and to their responsibility in the world. This study is based on the importance of engaging with high quality global children’s literature to widen and deepen readers’ worldviews. Because readers are influenced by what they read and share, how books depict cross cultural experiences and international communities is crucial. Therefore, how books portray intercultural learning experiences in a global context is important to examine. This study provides a new lens on global children’s literature because limited research has been done to understand how the idea of intercultural learning through international travel is portrayed in books at a time when many readers have the opportunity to travel across the continents. The theoretical framework of this study consists of intercultural theories, global competency and critical literacy. This study looks at culture as ways of living that involve people’s thoughts, values and engagements in daily life. In addition, two intercultural learning theories are used to examine the protagonists’ learning including a continuum of intercultural learning by David Hoopes (1979) and a developmental model of intercultural sensitivity by Milton Bennett (1986, 1993, 2004, 2009). Theories relate to global education such as global competence by Hanvey (2000) and Case (1993), intercultural communicative competence by Michael Byram (1997), and cosmopolitanism by Rizvi (2005, 2006,2007, 2008, 2009 ) and Calhoun (2002). These theories inform my notion of intercultural learning in different ways. In addition, critical literacy is crucial to this study because it focuses on the characteristics that allow individuals to discover their role, relationship and responsibility with others in the world. Nine children and young adult’s realistic fiction novels were selected for this study. The books all involved protagonists’ explorations of new cultures, places, and people as they traveled to another country for short term visits. All of them have close relationships with at least one local friend. Critical content analysis is used to examine the text from a critical point of view to understand whether the international journey enables the protagonists to critically examine their privileges and responsibility in the world. In this study, critical literacy supports my concept of intercultural learning and it is also used to develop useful thinking tools (adapted from Jones, 2006) to examine the texts from a deeper perspective. First, the findings indicate that intercultural learning is portrayed with exoticism in this text set. In several of the books, international travel is associated with romance and exotic cultural icons. Secondly, insider authors and the authors who have close relationships with the groups they write about are more careful about cultural authenticity than outsider authors. Many of the insider authors care about the cultures they wrote about; therefore, they embed social messages in the stories. Additionally, several writers employ a writing formula to depict international travelers’ intercultural learning process. The formula does not reflect readers’ diverse cultural backgrounds in the current world. Lastly, throughout the journey, only a few protagonists develop critical consciousness regarding their roles in the global community. Conclusions from the analysis suggest the need for more sophisticated global children’s literature that highlights international travel and cross cultural relationships. The implication section provides recommendations to educators, teacher educators, and publishers and suggestions for further research.

Desde los años 1990 (Curtis, Ward, Sharp, & Hankin, 2013), con el desarrollo de un mundo cada vez más globalizado e individualista, diferentes estudios (Andreotti, 2014; Brown, 2017; Byram, 2014b; Guilherme, 2002, 2007; Hoskins, 2006; Hoskins & Crick, 2010; Osler & Starkey, 2015; Shultz, 2007; VanderDussen Toukan, 2017) han mostrado la necesidad de desarrollar políticas educativas que impliquen una forma de aprendizaje donde los estudiantes sean capaces de desarrollar proyectos y competencias cívicas que aborden temas referidos a cuestiones sociales, económicas o ambientales, entre otras. Este enfoque global y colaborativo de la educación es conocido como Global Citizenship Education (GCED), y en él se abordan contenidos como la paz y los derechos humanos, la interculturalidad, la educación ciudadana, el respeto por la diversidad y la tolerancia, y la inclusividad. Partiendo de estos principios, la pregunta de investigación planteada es ver si la canción protesta tiene elementos que pueden servir como materia transversal en el ámbito educativo especialmente en la formación de la GCED en alumnos universitarios. El antecedente del uso de la canción protesta, por ejemplo, para despertar sentimientos hacia movimientos sociales que estaban o están en contra de la guerra y en consecuencia buscar la mejora de los derechos civiles, no es algo novedoso. Los episodios que protagonizó la sociedad estadounidense contra la guerra de Vietnam se pueden considerar como un hito histórico en la reivindicación de estos –The Civil Rights Movement-, pero en la actualidad, dada la globalidad y la individualización del mundo, como ya se ha señalado, parece ser que la canción tipo protesta, a pesar de su producción y conocimiento por parte de la sociedad, no tiene el mismo vigor ni magnitud que en épocas anteriores. Esta aparente carencia de vigencia cuando el mensaje que subyace es el mismo a largo del tiempo, pone de manifiesto una serie de inputs que deben de ser analizados con el fin de comprender y profundizar en los procesos y las complejas interacciones entre este tipo de músicas y la construcción de significados que respondan a los principios de la GCED. Por este motivo el estudio tiene cuatro fases. La primera ha consistido en hacer un vaciado que relacionara prensa y canción protesta, pues se ha considerado que la prensa en el año 2003 –Guerra de Irak-, todavía actuaba como formadora de opiniones. En segundo lugar, se abordaron aquellas canciones que respondieran al concepto de canciones antiguerra de Irak y ver si tenían en la población algún efecto de tipo transversal que respondiera a los principios de la GCED- En tercer lugar, comprobar si una canción mayoritariamente desconocida por los alumnos universitarios Stange Fruit (Meeropol, 1939) que pone de manifiesto y clama contra la violencia racial (Lynching) podría todavía tener vigencia transversalmente en la actualidad en el ámbito educativo universitario, como en la sociedad en general. En cuarto lugar, se decidió estudiar el impacto de un texto con un alto contenido contra el racismo y la venganza con la finalidad de explorar si la carencia de acompañamiento musical produjera los mismos resultados que los estudios anteriores. El texto fue un extracto conocido como “Hath not a Jew eyes? ”de la obra de Shakesepare, “The Merchant of Venice” Global Citizenship Education (GCED), la promoción de educación para una ciudadanía global, representa un compromiso a nivel internacional para abordar temas actuales y globales como pueden ser: medio ambiente y desarrollo sostenible, justicia social, derechos humanos, pobreza y la paz, entre otros.

<p>  </p> <p>Global hospitality and tourism activities are becoming increasingly diverse in the profile of international visitors as well as in the destination communities that host them. Along with the geographic and demographic shifts, today’s hospitality and tourism employees not only come from multicultural backgrounds themselves but also serve and interact with guests and visitors of different cultures from all over the world. The study was conducted against this backdrop and focused on intercultural competence and intercultural learning in four-year hospitality and tourism programs in the universities of the United States. The purpose of the study is to advance intercultural learning of hospitality and tourism undergraduate students through forward-looking curriculum design. Specifically, the study aims to 1) analyze the extent to which intercultural learning is embedded in current hospitality and tourism programs; 2) identify the intercultural competence in undergraduate students presently enrolled in the programs and effective formats for students’ intercultural learning; 3) evaluate desirable learning materials, approaches, and assessments of intercultural learning from the perspectives of students, educators, and industry professionals; and 4) propose a model of and make recommendations for intercultural learning through curriculum design.</p> <p>A series of mixed methods were adopted to achieve the research goal and objectives. They include descriptive and semantic analyses, a self-administered survey questionnaire, and semi-structured in-depth interviews. The data were collected from 53 four-year bachelor’s hospitality and tourism programs in public or land-grant universities. The results of descriptive and semantic analyses show that clear and direct statements and content about intercultural learning are lacking in general program literature as well as in specific course syllabi. Results of survey questionnaire data demonstrate that the intercultural competence level of undergraduate students in hospitality and tourism programs is neither high nor low. The most effective format for intercultural learning is through personal involvement and interaction. Intercultural activities organized by the university and community are examples of this format. The findings from the interviews reveal the core characteristics of intercultural learning materials, approaches, and assessments. The learning materials need to be current, visualized, and industry-focused. The learning approaches should be interactive and active to place students in the center during their intercultural learning process. The learning assessments are expected to provide opportunities and platforms for students to share their experiences and reflect on what they have learned from intercultural courses. Based on the key findings from the study, a conceptual model of intercultural learning through curriculum design is proposed for hospitality and tourism programs. </p> <p>The study makes some theoretical and practical contributions. Theoretically, the study enriches the literature on intercultural learning and intercultural competence in hospitality and tourism from the curriculum design viewpoint and multiple perspectives of students, educators, and industry professionals. The research integrates intercultural curriculum and internationalization at home into an innovative learning approach to facilitate students’ intercultural learning. The proposed model lays a conceptual foundation for future academic discourse and empirical research. Practically in the educational context, the study offers guidelines for hospitality and tourism programs to develop and design intercultural curriculum through an illustration of an introductory tourism course. The study contextualizes intercultural learning as involving two or more world cultures. The findings are significant in intracultural and subcultural settings as well. The expectations of guests and visitors, be they international or domestic, are influenced by their primary cultures and subcultures alike. Hospitality businesses and tourism organizations can provide a higher level of service quality to their guests and visitors from diverse cultural backgrounds if their employees are interculturally competent through education and training and other human resource functions. </p> <p>The findings from the study bear implications beyond higher education and hospitality and tourism. The study suggests that hospitality businesses and tourism organizations can contribute to building an inclusive community when they are staffed by interculturally competent employees. There have been increasing occurrences of direct and indirect forms of prejudice, discrimination, group profiling, social exclusion, and even hostility both in the United States and around the globe. While these occurrences are rooted in historical, geopolitical, and ideological contexts, they also result from the absence or lack of cultural understanding. Intercultural competence through intercultural learning plays a direct role in promoting harmony and inclusiveness on campus, in the workplace, and in society at large. </p>

No description available.

The aim of my thesis is to study the role of teachers in schools where they help students achieve the objectives of the Swedish curriculum. The aim is also to see if there is a difference in how the school uses students’ experiences, knowledge and desires when planning their lessons, depending on whether they are working in a multicultural school or ethnically Swedish school. Part of the work also discusses the teachers and students experiences around the concept of multiculturalism. The method I have used is the qualitative interview study where I have chosen to interview two experienced teachers and twelve students. One teacher and six students in a multicultural school and then another teacher and six other students of an ethnically Swedish school. I have used various texts in literature, dissertations, articles and other research reviews to discuss the results. The results show that knowledge about the concept of multiculturalism in students in fifth grade is very low, however teachers are more familiar with the term and concept. It shows very clearly that teachers follow the curriculum to help students achieve the desired grades. Students at both schools are well aware off the syllabus available for each topic and why the students’ experiences and wishes cannot always be met during selection of teaching methods. However teachers put an effort into having the students’ experiences and wishes in mind when planning for the lessons.