Transcultural Literacy in College
In a Science Daily article, Professor Mark Dressman of the College of Education at the University of Illinois says that recent college graduates will enter their careers needing to be prepared for “significant contact with the rest of the world.” In other words, the environment will be multicultural, as Dressman points out that the world’s economies are inevitably connected and highly interdependent.
Dressman points out that the “traditional rite-of-passage trip to western Europe” is not enough to push college students outside the bounds of their comfort. He emphasizes that a profound, visceral experience with foreign cultures is required to develop the cultural skills necessary to enter any profession. Since learning in the classroom and through textbooks is limiting, study abroad is the best way to acquire these skills. He’s started a course that focuses on transcultural learning and takes a group of students to Morocco where they learn with Moroccan students, rather than about them.
Furthermore, he encourages the use of Web 2.0 tools like Facebook and YouTube to facilitate learning. “Online tools really can make the world smaller,” Dressman said. “If you take a few students somewhere and they take photos and videos of their experiences, they can share it with their peers and inform a broader range of students.” How else can cultural learning be transmitted through the internet? Do you have any powerful transcultural learning experiences you’d like to share?
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