Kia ora koutou,

On Thursday 5 October, a collaboration between UC Library, Canterbury Tertiary Alliance, Lincoln University and ASC has resulted in a visit by Professor Shanton Chang from the University of Melbourne. He will present on “Teaching and Learning Across Cultures” and “Understanding International Students’ Digital Environment” in the morning and afternoon respectively at UC, and at Lincoln University on Friday 6th October.

I would encourage staff working with students to attend either of these workshops. Because we hope that many academic staff will wish to attend, and because numbers in the venues are limited, we may need to implement a ‘family hold back’ approach closer to the time. At the moment all please register if you are interested.

9.00am – 12.00 noon Teaching and Learning Across Cultures (Engineering E14)

This session investigates the impact of culture on student attitudes and behaviours as part of a strategy for effective curriculum development and teaching in a multicultural classroom.

Content

• Background and theory on cultures in organisations
• The impact of culture on learning behaviour
• The multicultural classroom
• Working and facilitating in cross-cultural settings
• Curriculum development, group work, participation, online learning across cultures, plagiarism
• Strategies for Success

Register online at: http://canterbury.libcal.com/event/3601628

2.00-4.00 pm Understanding International Students’ Digital Environment (Kirkwood KE06)

While there is a general assumption that digital natives are familiar with the online environment, there is substantial evidence that cross-cultural differences exist. This workshop highlights the phenomenon known as “Digital Journeys” to explain the online experiences of international students as they move across countries and its impact on the way students seek information and engage with online communities. It will also explore how this phenomenon might impact on institutions’ assumptions around information provision, blended learning and domestic-international student engagement.

Register online at: http://canterbury.libcal.com/event/3601629

Dr Shanton Chang is an Associate Professor at the School of Computing and Information Systems, University of Melbourne. His current research areas include the Online Behaviour of Internet Users in Health and Education, Information Security Culture, Information Needs and the Relationship between Cultures and Information Technology.