How do you foster global competencies and skills among students through curriculum internationalization?

1 Define global competencies

Global competencies are the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and behaviors that enable students to interact effectively and respectfully with people from different backgrounds, perspectives, and contexts. They include critical thinking, intercultural communication, global awareness, ethical reasoning, and social responsibility. To foster global competencies, you need to define them clearly and align them with your course objectives, learning outcomes, and assessment criteria. You can use existing frameworks, such as the AAC&U Global Learning VALUE Rubric or the OECD Global Competency Framework, to guide your curriculum design and evaluation.

3 Use active and collaborative methods

Active and collaborative methods are pedagogical approaches that engage students in interactive and cooperative learning activities, such as discussions, debates, simulations, role-plays, group projects, and peer feedback. They promote students' participation, communication, problem-solving, and reflection skills, and foster a sense of community and interdependence among learners. To use active and collaborative methods, you can design tasks that require students to work in diverse teams, share their opinions and experiences, listen to and learn from each other, and produce a common output or outcome.

4 Integrate virtual and physical mobility

Virtual and physical mobility are opportunities for students to interact with and learn from people and places beyond their own campus, country, or region. They include online exchanges, e-learning platforms, study abroad programs, internships, service-learning, and field trips. They enhance students' exposure to and immersion in different cultures, languages, and environments, and stimulate their curiosity, adaptability, and intercultural sensitivity. To integrate virtual and physical mobility, you can partner with other institutions, organizations, or communities, and create meaningful and structured experiences that align with your course goals and expectations.

5 Assess and evaluate global learning

Assessment and evaluation are essential components of curriculum internationalization, as they provide feedback and evidence of students' progress and achievement of global competencies and skills. They also inform and improve your curriculum design and delivery, and demonstrate your accountability and quality assurance. To assess and evaluate global learning, you can use multiple and varied methods, such as portfolios, reflections, rubrics, surveys, and interviews, that capture students' cognitive, affective, and behavioral dimensions of global learning, and that involve self, peer, instructor, and external feedback.

Curriculum internationalization is a dynamic and ongoing process that requires commitment, collaboration, and creativity from all stakeholders in higher education. By fostering global competencies and skills among students through curriculum internationalization, you can enhance their academic, personal, and professional development, and prepare them for the global challenges and opportunities of the future.