Internationalizing at Home: Examining US Students’ Intercultural Effectiveness Across a Collaborative Online International Learning Experience in Kinesiology Courses

ABSTRACT

The curriculum evaluation described in this paper documents the efforts of a group of university faculty to implement Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) in two kinesiology-related courses at the undergraduate and graduate levels. The engaged students (n = 34) completed pre-post questionnaires measuring changes in intercultural effectiveness and a series of self-reflective prompts regarding their experiences in the involved courses. The evaluation suggests intercultural effectiveness may be best supported when COIL course design: (a) nurtures students’ interest in cultural exploration and learning; (b) engages students in peer-to-peer interaction and social connection across cultures at the beginning and throughout the experience; and (c) supports students’ emotional growth and resilience by providing opportunities to be challenged and problem-solve. Directly informing the sustainability of COIL innovations are administrative supports and strategic prioritization of intercultural engagement amid a higher education climate shaped by supercomplexity factors.

KEYWORDS:

• Kinesiology
• curriculum
• globalization
• pedagogy
• digital technology

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences COIL Mini-Grant Program [N/A].