The PROFIC consortium piloted the first training workshop together with university colleagues from their institutions.
During 3 weeks in March, a group of participants from seven PROFIC partners will participate in six training workshops as part of the workshop phase of the professional development programme. The workshop stage includes both synchronic and asynchronic activities delivered through a Moodle platform provided by PROFIC. The objectives of this stage are to reflect on intercultural competence and how it relates to the practices of academic and administrative staff. The workshops will be coordinated by international and local facilitators and carried out during these three weeks simultaneously at the Universidad Nacional de La Plata (Argentina), Universidad Nacional de Lanús (Argentina), Universidad Nacional de Córdoba (Argentina), Universidad Don Bosco (El Salvador), Universidad Tecnológica de El Salvador (El Salvador), Universidad de Guadalajara (Mexico), Universidad Veracruzana(Mexico). The workshop phase addresses several learning objectives in the development of individual and pedagogical intercultural competence, the support of intercultural competence and the professional practice of reflection on the development of IC. Once this stage is concluded, a community phase will take place in May. During this phase, participants from all the universities will exchange experiences. Emphasis will be placed on collaborative work, participative learning and reflection around intercultural issues experienced by the participants throughout their work. Activities will be carried out on the Moodle platform with some synchronous sessions. The purpose of this phase is to continue with the development of intercultural competences and to develop action plans in order to implement the knowledge and skills acquired by working with students and colleagues in the next phase. Following the PROFIC Learning Programme, a third phase will be piloted in LA HEIs. During this final phase, staff who attended the training will implement knowledge gained from the PROFIC Learning Programme in their work.
The International Relations Directorate of UNLP started the Workshop on competencies intercultural, within the framework of the ERASMUS + PROFIC project, co-financed by the European Union. This initiative seeks to strengthen and promote the development of these skills in the community university. The first virtual workshop was attended by 20 attendees from the different units academics and members of the International Relations Department, it was also led by the Dr. Dane Lukic, researcher at C– GCU- based in London and Project coordinator. During the meeting, the E-LEARNING Program was formally presented PROFIC, prepared by the institutions that are part of the consortium, discussed in detail the objectives of this initiative and various practical activities were carried out with the active intervention of the participants through the zoom platform. In the coming weeks, the 6 virtual workshops that make up this intensive workshop, as well as asynchronous activities through Moodle. Subsequently will begin the stage called Community Stage, during which experiences will be exchanged, witness cases, etc., will be presented with participants from other national and foreign institutions on an online platform. Finally, the participants are expected to elaborate a small project or activity to put into practice what was learned in the workshop and help students or colleagues to develop their intercultural skills. The ERASMUS + PROFIC project was selected by the European Union and started in February 2019. Its purpose is to research, develop and put into practice a curricular program and holistic, personalized, flexible and reflective professional who will provide institutions of higher education in Latin America greater knowledge and tools to train professionals with intercultural skills.
Dr Dane Lukic, PROFIC Coordinator, gave a session on Intercultural Skills in the framework of a workshop on Soft Skills organised by Guglielmo Marconi University
PROFIC presented to Palestinian Universities On Friday the 27th of May 2022, Dr Dane Lukic, PROFIC Coordinator, gave a session on Intercultural Skills in the framework of a workshop on Soft Skills organised by Guglielmo Marconi University, partner in the REACH (Reinforcing access to cross border employment at Palestinian higher education institutions) project (http://reach.iugaza.edu.ps/). REACH is an Erasmus Plus Capacity Building in the field of Higher Education project, coordinated by the Islamic University of Gaza and it aims at enhancing the capacity of Palestinian Universities in promoting cross-border employability of their students and graduates. The workshop, hosted by Guglielmo Marconi University, has been an opportunity for discussing the importance of Intercultural Competencies for University professionals, get the workshop participants involved in the Healing-Wheel Cycle of Stereotyping game and introducing them to the PROFIC project, highlighting its main results, like the Learning Programme and the Toolkit. It was an engaging, interesting, and interactive session, where more than 25 Palestinian Universities’ professors and staff members debated on prejudices and stereotypes, questioned about intercultural conflicts experiences at their universities and wondered on the potential support that the PROFIC experience might provide to their local.
