Assessing The Impact of Cross-Cultural Interactj tjons Between First-Year students in a Learning Community and Internatj tjonal students Presenter Gita Maharaja, Ed.D Duquesne University 23 rd Internatj tjonal Conference on the First-Year Experience Session 11
Purpose of Study • Investjgate the impact of cross- cultural interactjons between freshmen in a Learning Community and E.S.L. students on cross-cultural sensitjvity, cultural awareness and self-awareness over a semester-long period.
Signifj fjcance of the study • Increasing need to prepare our students to be sensitjve to and aware of cultural difgerences in our interconnected and interrelated world • Serve as model for other educators and administrators seeking to increase the efgectjveness of interactjons among their natjve and internatjonal student
Defj fjnitj tjons Cross-Cultural Sensitjvity: : Ability to Cross-Cultural Sensitjvity experience cultural difg fgerences Cultural Awareness : Ability to adjust to Cultural Awareness : cross-cultural situatj tjons Self-Awareness: Ability to learn about Self-Awareness: Ability to learn about oneself as a result of the cross-cultural oneself as a result of the cross-cultural interactj tjons interactj tjons
Literature Review: On- Campus Cross-Cultural Experience • Global perspectjve – cultural pluralism, world- mindedness, support of internatjonalism, cosmopolitan world outlook ( Sharma and Jung, 1986) • More acceptjng of diversity, desire to travel abroad and greater responsibility for foreign visitors ( Stohl, 1986 ) • Personal Development ( Wilson, 1993 ) • Interpersonal Relatjonship ( Wilson, 1993 )
Literature Review ( cont. ) • Cross-cultural Sensitjvity is a skill that can be learned through cross-cultural training (Bennetu, 1986, Cushner and Brislin, 1996) • Cultural Awareness and Self-Awareness can be developed through cross-cultural classroom experiences ( Fantjni, 1997, Hammer, M. R., Bennetu, M. J. & Wiseman, R. 2003, Wilson, 1993 )
Goals of Cross-cultural Interactj tjons On-Campus • Help U.S. students to develop a more comprehensive understanding of their own culture and the culture of others. • Assist internatjonal students in adaptjng and integratjng into the American culture and the culture of their host instjtutjon
Conceptual Framework • Concept of Cross-cultural Sensitjvity based on intercultural experiences (Cushner, 1986) Five dimensions : - Cultural Integratj tjon - Behavioral - Intellectual Interactj tjon - Attj ttjtude Towards Others - Empathy
Conceptual Framework (cont.) • Cultural Awareness and Self-Awareness based on cross-cultural adaptability skills ( Fantjni, 1997, Hammer, M. R., Bennetu, M. J. & Wiseman, R. 2003, Wilson, 1993 ) Four Dimensions: - Self-confj fjdence - Tolerance - Cultural empathy - Independence
Research Questj tjons • Are there changes in students’ cross-cultural sensitjvity through structured interactjons occurring over a semester? • Are there changes in students’ cultural awareness through structured interactjons occurring over a semester? • Are there changes in students’ self-awareness through structured interactjons occurring over a semester?
Research Design • Method: Quantjtatjve Study with a convenience sample; pre- and post-test design • Populatj tjon: Freshmen in a Learning Community (27), English as a Second Language students (23) and upper classmen(6) • Instrument: Inventory of Cross-Cultural Sensitjvity (Cushner, 1986) and Cross-Cultural Awareness questjonnaire (piloted)
Cross-Cultural Interactj tjons • On-line interactjons via Wimba Voice tools • Conversatjon hours as part of regular course works • Face-to face interactjons in and out of classroom • Intercultural actjvitjes with the community
Cross-Cultural Actj tjvitj tjes • Structured with specifjc directjons - Bafa Bafa - Story Reading - Guest speaker - Critjcal Incidents - Barnga • Writuen and Oral refmectjons of cross-cultural experiences
Demographics Variable Total Percentage Gender Male 25 45 Female 31 31 Age Group 18-20 38 68 21-23 12 21 24+ 6 11 Classifj fjcatj tjon E.S.L. Only 9 16 Freshman 36 64 Sophomore 1 2 Junior 2 4 Senior 5 9 Graduate 3 5
Demographics (cont.) Variables Total Percentage Natj tjonality American 33 59 Non-American 23 41 First Language English 33 59 Other 23 41 Overseas Traveling Never 8 14 1-4 weeks 20 36 5-16 weeks 13 23 17-52 weeks 4 7 1+Years 11 20 Major Liberal Arts 38 68 Business 8 14 Other 10 18
Statj tjstj tjcal Data Table I: Paired Samples t -Test Comparisons of Cultural Sensitj tjvity at the beginning and end of the semester Scale Mean (SD) Mean (SD) Pre-test Post-test t (df=56) p ____________________________________________________ Cultural Integratj tjon 42.98(7.97) 46.29(8.07) -3.162 .003* Behavioral Scale 27.55(4.49) 29.14(4.32) -1.999 .051* Intellectual Interactj tjon 33.01(4.59) 35.27(4.38) -2.857 .006* Attj ttjtude Towards Others 13.28(4.93) 10.80(4.47) 3.625 .001* Empathy 22.41(3.30) 22.73(3.92) -0.649 .519 _______________________________________________________________ Total Score 139.25(12.70) 144.23(12.90) -2.571 .013* * p<.05 ( statj tjstj tjcally signifj fjcant difg fgerence)
Statj tjstj tjcal Data (cont.) Table I: Paired Samples t -Test Comparisons of Cultural and Self- Awareness at the beginning and end of the semester Scale Mean (SD) Mean (SD) Pre-test Post-test t (df=56) p ____________________________________ Self-Confj fjdence 34.36(3.57) 35.45(2.88) 2.075 .043* Tolerance 14.05(1.99) 15.59(2.32) -4.280 .001* Independence 21.79(3.50) 23.62(3.58) -3.454 .001* Cultural Empathy 14.60(2.07) 15.70(1.57) -4.312 .001* _________________________________________________________________ Total Score 84.78(8.59) 90.36(7.50) -4.697 .001* * p<.05 ( statj tjstj tjcally signifj fjcant difg fgerence )
Data Analysis of Cultural Sensitj tjvity • Statjstjcally signifjcant difgerence found in: - Cultural Integratjon - Behavioral Scale - Intellectual Interactjon -Attjtude Towards Others -Overall Cultural Sensitjvity No Statjstjcally signifjcant change found in: - Empathy
Data Analysis of Cultural and Self-Awareness • Statjstjcally signifjcant difgerence between pre- and post-results in : - Self-Confjdence - Tolerance - Independence - Cultural Empathy - Overall Cultural and Self-Awareness
Limitatj tjons • Purely quantj tjtatj tjve approach • Carry-over efg fgect of a pre- and post- test research design • Duratj tjon of the research (one semester) • Cross-Sectj tjonal Research – data collected refm fmected feelings at one point of tj tjme at beginning and end of semester
Recommendatj tjons • Mixed Method: Quantj tjtatj tjve and qualitatj tjve for in-depth data • Explore other impacts of cross- cultural interactj tjons between freshmen and E.S.L. students (friendship, compassion, and others) • Longitudinal studies • Comparison to a control group
Conclusion • Cross-cultural interactjons did increase students’ cultural sensitjvity, cultural awareness and self- awareness. • Efgorts to create and implement cross-cultural actjvitjes for both E.S.L. and U.S. students are benefjcial.
References • Bennetu, M. J. (1993). Towards ethnorelatjvism: A developmental model of intercultural sensitjvity. In: R.M. Paige (Ed.), Educatjonal Exchange for the intercultural experience, 21-71. Yarmouth, ME: Intercultural Press. • Cushner, K. (2003). Human Diversity in Actjon: Developing Multjcultural competencies for the classroom (2 nd Ed). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. • Hammer, M. R., Bennetu, M. J. & Wiseman, R. (2003). Measuring intercultural sensitjvity: The intercultural development inventory. Internatjonal Journal of Intercultural Relatjons, 27: 421-433.
References (Cont.) • Fantjni, A.E. (1997). New ways in teaching culture . Bloomington, IL: Teachers of English to Speakers of Other languages (TESOL), Inc. • Sharma, M.P. & Jung, L.B. (1986). How cross-cultural partjcipatjon afgects the internatjonal attjtudes of U.S. students. Internatjonal Journal of Intercultural Relatjons , 10, 377-387. • Stohl, C. (1986). The A.M.I.G.O. project. Internatjonal Journal of Intercultural Relatjons, 10, 235-254.
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