Multicultural and international competence (5 cr)

Evaluation scale

H-5

Content scheduling

The course will focus on the following themes:
- How does culture influence our thoughts and actions?
- What is multiculturalism?
- Why is multiculturalism important?
- What kind of multicultural competence do we seek?
- Multiculturalism at Turku University of Applied Sciences
- How do we act in a multicultural learning community?
- What is language awareness?
- Multilingualism and language awareness in the learning and working community
- What is a clear language?
- Supporting inclusion and anti-racism
- Equality and diversity in working life

The topics of the lectures included in the course will be specified before the start of the course.

Objective

- You develop your competence for the multicultural and international world of work.
- You understand the significance of multiculturalism in society and your own role and responsibility in promoting equity.
- You learn to communicate and find common ways of action in a multicultural group.
- You develop your language skills and the ability and courage to operate in a multilingual environment.
- You get to know the multicultural aspects of Turku and its increasingly international working life.
- You strengthen your own and others’ sense of belonging and becoming a part of a multicultural higher education community.

Content

In addition to the topics listed below, the course includes theoretical knowledge and contemplation tasks on the topics below, and workshops, expert lectures and events which explore the themes in more detail.

- The central phenomena and concepts related to multiculturalism.
- Preconceptions and the impact of cultural identity on our thinking and ways of action.
- The benefits of diversity, cultural and linguistic responsibility and antiracism.
- The importance of multiculturalism in the world of work and higher education.

Materials

The course material consists of the following:
- the itslearning course to be completed independently
- materials from the lectures, workshops and events/activities
- students' own final assignments

Teaching methods

The course consists of the following components:
- a kick-off meeting
- an itslearning course to be completed independently
- lectures (successful completion of the course requires participation in at least 3 lectures)
- workshops (successful completion of the course requires participation in at least 2 workshops)
- events (successful completion of the course requires participation in at least 3 events)
- a final meeting
- a final course assignment.

The course can be completed in full in English. The language of instruction is English, which means that the course materials and instructions, workshops and lectures are in English. Students can choose the language of study (English or Finnish) for the following course assignments:
- the itslearning course to be completed independently
- events and activities
- the final assignment

Exam schedules

The course does not include an exam.

Pedagogic approaches and sustainable development

The course will take place in a multicultural, multilingual and multidisciplinary group. The course is open to exchange students, but it is also available to all students of Turku UAS from Finland and abroad, regardless of their field of study and language of instruction. The course's pedagogical methods support students' networking and active collaboration. The course and the way it is implemented promote socially sustainable development.

Student workload

- the kick-off meeting, 2 h
- the itslearning course to be completed independently, 30 h
- familiarisation with the course implementation and timetable and preparation of study plan, 5-12 h
- lectures + reflection on learning (for successful completion of the course you must attend at least 3 lectures), 10-22 h
- workshops + reflection on what has been learnt (for successful completion of the course, participation in at least 2 workshops is required), 5-14 h
- events + reporting on them (for successful completion of the course, participation in at least 2 events is required), 8-22 h
- final meeting, 2 h
- final course assignment, 20 h
- final feedback on the course, 1 h

Evaluation methods and criteria

The following conditions must be met in order to get an accepted grade for the course:
PART 1:
- An approved mark for the self-study itslearning course (80% correct answers in all tests).
PART 2:
- Attendance at 3 lectures at minimum + reflection on learning
- Attendance at 2 workshops at minimum + reflection on learning
- Participation in at least 2 events + reflection on learning
PART 3:
- final course assignment

The final course mark will be made up of two parts:
PART 2: Participation in lectures, workshops and events: 50%.
PART 3: Final course assignment and providing peer comments: 50%.
A pass mark for the course requires at least grade 1 for both PARTs.

PART 2 will be marked as follows, with a maximum of 14p:
- Attendance at lectures (3-6 lectures): 3-6 points
- Participation in workshops (2-3 workshops): 2-3 points
- Attendance at events (2-5 events): 2-5 points
Based on the number of points, the student will receive a grade of 0, 1, 3 or 5 for PART 2.
- 11-14 p = 5
- 9-10 p = 3
- 7-8 p = 1
- 0-6 p = 0

PART 3 will be assessed according to the criteria defined in itslearning. Students will be awarded a grade of 0, 1, 3 or 5 for PART 3.

Failed (0)

The student has been awarded 0-6 points for PART 2 of the course (i.e. participation in lectures, workshops and events).

The student has not completed the final course assignment (PART 3) or the assignment has been inadequately completed:
- The student does not present or reflect on their own learning outcomes.
- The student does not refer to any sources or refers to irrelevant ones.
- The student does not refer to any course activities or materials.

Assessment criteria, satisfactory (1-2)

The student has been awarded 7-8 points for PART 2 of the course (i.e. participation in lectures, workshops and events).

The student has completed the final course assignment (PART 3) in a satisfactory manner:
- The student presents their own learning outcomes without any proper reflection or examples.
- The student refers to relevant sources but without adequate analysis of their learning.
- The student refers to some course activities or materials but without any proper analysis of their learning.

Assessment criteria, good (3-4)

The student has been awarded 9-10 points for PART 2 of the course (i.e. participation in lectures, workshops and events).

The student has completed the final course assignment (PART 3) well:
- The student presents their own learning outcomes but with less reflection and limited examples.
- The student refers to relevant sources but with limited analysis.
- The student refers to some course activities or materials with limited analysis of their learning.

Assessment criteria, excellent (5)

The student has been awarded 11-14 points for PART 2 of the course ((i.e. participation in lectures, workshops and events).

The student has completed the final course assignment (PART 3) in an excellent manner:
- The student presents and reflects on their own learning outcomes extensively with concrete examples.
- The student refers to at least 2-3 relevant sources and analyses them extensively.
- The student refers to some course activities or materials and analyses their impact on their own learning.

Further information

During the course, communication on issues related to studying and the learning assignments takes place with the message function in itslearning. It is recommended that students send the message jointly to both teachers of the course (Elli Sillanpää, Ana Kupri-Karenmaa).
Students can communicate with each other either with the targeted message function in itslearning or with the course's joint announcements function with the entire course group. The messages sent with the announcements function are automatically shown to all course participants.