Using Formal and Informal Curricula to Improve Interactions Between Home and International Students

TLDR

Improved interactions between home and international students depend on using both formal and informal curricula to encourage and reward intercultural engagement, requiring broad institutional engagement over time. The study proposes principles and guidelines for structuring formal and informal curricular activities and services to enhance intercultural engagement. The authors draw on multiple research studies to present strategies that facilitate meaningful interaction between culturally and linguistically diverse students both inside and outside the classroom. The article concludes that developing intercultural competencies is a key outcome of an internationalised curriculum, which necessitates a campus environment that motivates and rewards interaction between international and home students inside and outside the classroom.

Abstract

This article argues that improved interactions between home and international students are dependant on the way we use both the formal and the informal curricula to encourage and reward intercultural engagement. It draws on the results of several research studies to present some strategies for facilitating meaningful interaction between students from different cultural and linguistic backgrounds in and out of the classroom. Principles and guidelines for structuring formal and informal curricular activities and services are proposed. This article concludes that the development of intercultural competencies in students is a key outcome of an internationalised curriculum, which requires a campus environment and culture that obviously motivates and rewards interaction between international and home students in and out of the classroom. This means that a range of people across institutions need to engage with the internationalisation agenda over time to improve interactions between home and international students.