Month: June 2019

The director of International Affairs from National Cordoba’s University (UNC), Mirian Carballo talks about how the school lives students mobility.

Guglielmo Marconi University conducted a Study Visit, at the University of Guadalajara and the University of Veracruz, two Mexican Universities, within PROFIC project. PROFIC -Professional Development in Intercultural Competence in Higher Education Institutions– is a three years Erasmus Plus project lead by the Glasgow Caledonian University, aimed at supporting academic and administrative staff of Latin American Universities in developing Intercultural Competencies (IC). GMU, as project partner, is currently involved, alongside with other European partners, in the first research phase, that consists in collecting data on the HEIs’ staff needs in terms of intercultural competencies.

The first day of activities of the University Internationalization Seminar was a space for reflection for academics and students
The University Internationalization Seminar presented on its first day of activities a series of conferences and panels that addressed, from different perspectives, the ways in which internationalization transforms higher education. The first keynote address was: Internationalitation or ‘interculturalisation’ – the case for intercultural competence development led by Dr. Dane Lukic, coordinator of the Profic project. One of the most relevant points he addressed was the model for intercultural competence, made up of four aspects: knowledge, awareness, skills and abilities, which in turn are complemented by critical reflection and intercultural emotional intelligence.

The importance of developing intercultural skills lies in being able to interact effectively, not only with people from other countries, but also with those we live with on a daily basis and who belong to different socioeconomic strata or indigenous groups, for example. These skills are not acquired by the mere fact of traveling or getting to know another culture – which, if not reflected upon, leads to acquiring or reinforcing prejudices; rather, they consist of harmoniously addressing the differences generated by beliefs, values ​​and behaviors that are alien to our customs, through dialogue and joint work. If handled correctly, these differences bring with them innovative solutions for the community, which cannot be obtained from a homogeneous point of view. Intercultural competence then, takes advantage of diversity and builds new things from our differences.

Then, at noon, the master panel The importance of internationalization in online education was held by teachers Susana Correnti and Sara Cella, academics from the Universitá degli Studi Guglielmo Marconi, Italy. Teacher Alma Rangel García, coordinator of Internationalization at CULagos, also participated in this panel. Starting from the premise of internationalization as a key element today for the comprehensive project in academic training, the professors stated that attending to and developing the international profile of students is necessary and fundamental not only for their professional development, but also for the environment in which they operate, contributing values ​​and knowledge in their competent areas.

The complexity that lies behind defining internationalization in a single concept responds to the possibilities that it implies. According to the teachers, it is a multiple exercise in which factors such as new information and communication technologies intervene, as well as work strategies in both institutions and companies that involve daily life in a global atmosphere. That is why it is of primary interest to position the university as the space to train people who have the necessary tools and skills in the face of this globalized dynamic; generating competencies and appropriate resolutions in the face of the various conflicts that afflict us.

In their presentation, they also addressed the advantages of the institution to which they belong: Universitá degli Studi Guglielmo Marconi offers high-quality virtual education. They specified that studying online has qualities such as accessibility, flexibility, economy and learning in the use of interactive tools and new technologies.

In this discussion, the strategies, purposes and current state that we have in the Los Lagos University Center to meet the needs of the university community and the region in general regarding this issue were also addressed. To begin with, teacher Alma emphasized understanding internationalization as a way of learning and knowing that does not always imply going abroad, but goes beyond this, since it can be carried out from the same university to the one that belongs. In relation to the above, she commented on the advantages and possibilities that the UDG Virtual System allows, such as efficient access for study and to develop internationalization.

Lastly, the CULagos academic addressed the issue of the internationalization of the curriculum and the different ways to develop it, such as integration with programs and platforms from other universities, carrying out studies with a double degree and attending seminars, diplomas or conferences such as It can be the same International Summer University, spaces where different fields of knowledge are linked and interrelated.

The activities of this June 4 continued with the panel What is internationalization? Experiences, globalization, globalization and internationalization, by Dr. Roberto Escalante Semerena, Secretary General of the Association of Latin American and Caribbean Universities. Dr. Escalante spoke of internationalization as a nuanced phenomenon: “Things are neither black nor white, they are brownish, they are gray.” According to Dr. Escalante, internationalization is based on several principles and one of them is cooperation for integration. Another characteristic is that the dynamics of internationalization allows rethinking when compared with the other, it is a transforming and restructuring process of the substantive functions, management and social responsibility of the HEI.

On the other hand, internationalization must be moved in three fundamental axes: training, research and linkage. Another of the points he addressed were the threats or aspects that must be taken into account to avoid mistakes in this area, such as: the belief in the exchange between North America and Europe as the only possibility of having a more comprehensive learning, as well as how to assume internationalization in an elitist logic, but as a path for all. In conclusion, Dr. Escalante mentioned some of the suggestions for creating a strategic internationalization: knowing where one is going and the benefit one can have in serving the environment and society.

On June 4, the inauguration of the IV University Internationalization Seminar was held, an event that at the same time opened the activities of the International Summer University 2019. In his welcome message, Dr. Aristarco Regalado Pinedo, Rector of CULagos, He highlighted the important work that the University of Guadalajara has done for more than 30 years in terms of internationalization.

Since then, the work between our university and those abroad has proven to be a positive element, beginning with improvements in research and in the professionalization of teaching and administrative practices. This work has led our alma mater to establish agreements abroad, in universities on all continents.

He shared that CULagos was born with a vocation towards internationalization: before the General University Council approved its creation as a Center, the International Summer Seminar that we know today as the International Summer University already existed. Now, fifteen years after its creation, our university life enjoys the benefits of internationalization.

Through various agreements, our professors are inserted in networks that expand around the world, in such a way that they collaborate in research with academics from countries such as China, Spain, Italy, France and Latin America. Also at CULagos we have researchers from Eastern European countries and Russia. Our students do mobility stays and we are the only university center in the Network that participates in the Profic program, in addition to other international programs of which we are a part.

But these types of activities are not only carried out abroad. We also practice Internationalization at home here: several languages ​​are taught here – in addition to English, courses in Japanese, French, German and Italian are taught, since we believe that the plurality and diversity of languages ​​is part of understanding foreign cultures . Our awareness programs abroad stand out.

“I say this because when there are complete, complex internationalization programs in a university, there can be no room for us to be branded with a concept of academic tourism, when our students go abroad”. He stressed that this is a job that is done with great effort and that it will be preserved as one of the important activities in the coming years: “we are convinced that internationalization is an important part of the training of students and of the research that is carried out. do at the university. We believe that the closure towards the outside, on the contrary, brings many damages”.

To carry out this event, our community met in the Aula Magna Dr. Cirilo Medina Gutiérrez. The ceremony was presided over by doctor Aristarco Regalado Pinedo, Rector of CULagos, accompanied by professor Roberto Chávez Sánchez, Administrative Secretary, and doctors Dane Lukic, and Roberto Iván Escalante Semerena, guests of Glasgow Caledonian University and the Union of Universities of Latin America and of the Caribbean, respectively.