The Diversity & Inclusion Train the Trainer Workshop, co-facilitated by Core Collaborative International (CCI), was held with 14 faculty and staff from various universities in Japan, the Philippines and the United States from June 22nd - July 1st, 2022.  

 

Against the backdrop of an increasingly globalized digital workforce, diversification of national and international work environments have precipitated the need to provide diversity and cross-cultural communication skill development. To address this need, CCI developed an (asynchronous) five-module online course and provided three synchronous sessions to mentor trainers to learn best teaching practices and how to embed the course into their own COIL and virtual exchange initiatives.

 

In the first session, CCI introduced the overall course and how it can be used in COIL and virtual exchange. The discussions focused on module 1: why diversity matters. In plenary, participants shared their diverse understandings of what diversity and inclusion means and looks like, how they are engaging with the topic in their work, and their motivations for joining the workshop. This was followed by break-out group discussions of the content of Module 1, which highlighted the importance of creating psychological safe spaces to advance collaborative and intercultural learning. Participants also shared challenges and good practices for introducing the topic of diversity to university students from diverse backgrounds. 

 

Session 2 focused on modules 2 (diversity in the global workplace) and 3 (communication across differences). In break-out groups, participants discussed how these modules and topics can be incorporated into their own teaching. Looking at the course content from the perspectives of both student and instructor, participants discussed which aspects they thought would work and would not work, as well as how to adapt the course to make it a better fit for the cultural contexts in which they teach. In plenary, CCI shared various resources and strategies to further engage students with these topics and how to manage student socio-emotional responses to content regarding diversity and equity.

 

In session 3, modules 4 (emotional intelligence for teamwork) and 5 (applying and reflecting on inclusion) were discussed. Participants also shared their learnings in final group presentations. The discussions focused on creating psychological safe spaces in COIL courses and best practices to approach the topic of emotional intelligence- which can be sensitive topics for some students. CCI also introduced various resources and assessment methods to facilitate application and reflection among students. During the group presentations, participants shared their key take-aways from the workshops and their next steps to further incorporate diversity and inclusion into their teaching. Everyone shared a keen interest to stay in touch after the workshop and to continue the dialogue about effective practices to facilitate intercultural learning and diversity and inclusion through innovative and creative application of pedagogy in virtual exchange. After the workshop, participants also had the opportunity to explore potential COIL collaborations via the ImmerseU platform.

 

IGE hopes to further facilitate such opportunities for COIL collaboration during our COIL match-making fairs in July and December. In addition, IIGE’s Professional Development Workshop Series in FY2022-2023: "Building Global Resilience with I.D.E.A. (Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Access)," will also explore these themes in the hope of raising awareness about the importance of Diversity and Inclusion among faculty and students through innovative COIL initiatives. 

For more information on the J-MCP Diversity & Inclusion Module:
https://kuiige.wixsite.com/j-mcp/coursemodules

 

For more information on the upcoming December Forum 2022 and COIL matching fair:
<>

 

For more information on the IIGE Professional Development Series:
https://kuiige.wixsite.com/iigeseminars22