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Section: February 1998

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Thriving in Academe

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Thriving in Academe

I would like to help my students better appreciate what it means to live in a global community. How can I encourage them to recognize that their perceptions about issues and events are framed within a national rather than global perspective?
The Internet provides one of many ways to address this significant educational challenge.
Because students experience their lives "locally," many find it difficult to think "globally." Global economics, communications, transportation, and politics, however, have now inextricably interconnected all the nations of the world.
One exciting out-of-class research assignment can be completed by either individuals or by small groups. This assignment challenges students to critically analyze---compare and contrast---how course-relevant stories have been looked at from a local, national, or global perspective.
Students can use primary source materials from other countries that can be found on the Internet. By searching: http://webcrawler.com/WCGuide/news/world_newspapers/, for example, students can access over 30 news sources from countries in Asia, the Middle East and Africa, Eastern Europe, Western Europe and Oceania.
With this type of access to English language versions of newspapers from around the world, instructors can ask students to prepare in-class, oral presentations or complete out-of-class writing assignments designed specifically to encourage analytic thinking, perspective-taking, and empathic understanding. Doing this helps them recognize global perceptions about course-related issues and events.
The news story students research might be about a prominent person, a current event, a recent discovery, or an important global issue related to one's course.

This NEA Higher Education Advocate column will address the instructional challenges that face faculty throughout higher ed. Have other ideas on strategies to encourage students to complete assigned readings before class? You can contribute your insights to a new electronic NEA resource for college and university faculty. Just send concise descriptions, for posting on the NEA Web page, to jeison@helios.acomp.usf.edu or mail to: James Eison, Center for Teaching Enhancement, University of South Florida, 4202 East Fowler Ave, SVC 1088, Tampa, FL 33620. Or Fax: 813-974-5620.

Also post your insights on our "Thriving in Academe" discussion board.