Purdue InterCultural Learning Community of Practice (PICLCoP)

Thursday, January 30, 1:30pm-3:00pm EST via Zoom
Facilitated by Aparajita Jaiswal, Kelsey Patton, and Eric VandeVoorde

Intercultural learning is vital for STEM students navigating a globalized workforce. This session highlights a series of five intercultural learning workshops embedded in an Engineering Management course in Fall 2024, developed by Intercultural Research Specialist Aparajita Jaiswal and Intercultural Learning Specialist Kelsey Patton. Designed to foster collaboration, cultural awareness, and adaptability in multicultural teams, the workshops were part of a course led by Eric VandeVoorde, Senior Director of Professional Master's Programs in Engineering. Eric will discuss the course design, the intersection of intercultural competence and STEM/engineering management, and the workshops' impact on students. Aparajita and Kelsey will share reflections, feedback, and workshop data, along with strategies for adapting these activities to various contexts.

Participants will engage in an experiential activity to understand its objectives and outcomes, followed by a discussion on tailoring such approaches to different disciplines. Attendees will leave with practical ideas for integrating intercultural learning into their teaching or training, equipping students with essential skills for global collaboration and innovation. This session aims to inspire educators to enhance intercultural competence development through experiential learning in STEM and beyond. 

An edited video of the community of practice session is below.

Tuesday, February 11, 3:00pm-4:30pm EST
Wilmeth Active Learning Center (WALC) 2051
Facilitated by Michael Bittinger and Ellen Schellhase

Adding Intercultural Learning into a Study Abroad Itinerary
Facilitated by Michael Bittinger

As educators, we want students to engage in powerful, transformative experiences. The allure of travel is attractive but can cast a powerful spell – that learning spontaneously occurs just by arriving overseas. In truth, the airline and hospitality industries are not cultural bridge-builders. By blending the excitement of travel with intentional pedagogical approaches to experiential education, meaningful intercultural development can be achieved. In this session we’ll take an educational journey together. You’ll experience intentional elements of our itinerary and curriculum that create meaningful, assessable growth. Join us to see how easy it can be to plug them into your own endeavors abroad, or even on-campus.

Building a Bridge: Intercultural Learning within International Experiences in Pharmacy Practice
Facilitated by Ellen Schellhase

This session will address intercultural learning during orientation sessions and international clinical experiences. A case example will demonstrate how learning activities have been embedded within both didactic and experiential settings. Faculty will share examples of intercultural learning activities used to engage learners.

Wednesday, March 5, 1:30pm-3:00pm EST
Facilitated by Annette Benson

The ubiquity of emojis makes them an accessible vehicle for teaching verbal and nonverbal intercultural communication for both the resistant and the avid learner. Paired with various communication models, the content of this session will have even the most reluctant participant chiming in about when they’ve been misunderstood or have misunderstood someone else—even when communicating in a first language. Adding in culture to the communication models, students in all stages of intercultural development will be able to see and explore differences and similarities in cross-cultural communication. 

This is a repeat of a presentation given at the 2025 WISE conference, sponsored by Wake Forest Global, and at the NAFSA IV, V, and VI regional conferences, with expanded content for PICLCoP and the virtual context.

Wednesday, April 2, 1:30pm-3:00pm EDT via Zoom
Facilitated by Tessa Sutton

Why build a connected culture?  In a world of possibilities that is ever-changing, breaking down silos and building a connected culture is essential for facilitating collaboration across the business, education, and community sectors. This World Café dialogue is an opportunity for participants to explore innovation and what it means to be connected while breaking down siloed barriers. The synergy of cross-sector worldview perspectives can lead to groundbreaking solutions and ignite a positive ripple effect in our interconnected world. Together, we will navigate transitions, share ideas, and ponder what it truly means to build bridges for a sustainable future.

Thursday, April 17, 3:00pm-4:30pm EDT
Stanley Coulter (SC) Hall 108
Facilitated by Stephanie Bowers, Aparajita jaiswal, and Kelsey Patton

Cross-Cultural Kids (CCKs) grow up navigating multiple cultural environments, shaping unique perspectives that challenge traditional understandings of identity, belonging, and global citizenship. This panel discussion brings together CCK students to share their experiences of living between cultures, exploring how these backgrounds influence their educational journeys, interpersonal relationships, and worldviews. Through personal stories and interactive dialogue, participants will provide insight into the joys and challenges of their cross-cultural upbringing, highlighting how their perspectives can enrich educational and professional settings. This session aims to foster a deeper understanding of cultural complexity and inclusivity, encouraging attendees to consider how institutions and communities can better support CCKs. Attendees will leave with actionable ideas for integrating the strengths and needs of CCK students into intercultural and global learning initiatives.

Facilitators: Cindi Koh-Knox Sharp & Katherine Yngve

In this introductory level and interactive professional development event, two experts from differing backgrounds will help you understand the various purposes of assessment, what the terms “lifelong learning” and “intercultural effectiveness” have meant to them and their students and how to use AI techniques to better understand students’ learning.

 

Facilitator: Melinda White

Have you ever taken a deep look at your own cultural beliefs? Departed from a conversation and wondered what went wrong? Critical reflection starts with self-awareness: personal, cultural, and global. By understanding ourselves and where we come from, we will be able to better analyze our interactions with others and empathize with them, helping us achieve greater success in the roles we fill both personally and professionally. Critical reflection is a framework for individual goal setting and development. In this introductory-to-intermediate level workshop, we will begin on the path to self-discovery, explore possible new meanings of our life experiences, and engage in conflict resolution activities with other participants.

Facilitator: Horane Diatta-Holgate

Assessing the degree to which learners are developing the requisite attitudes, skills, and knowledge to communicate and navigate different intercultural situations requires intentionality and structure. In Part 1 of this two-part webinar on assessing intercultural development, we will discuss how to effectively use the Attitudes, Skills, and Knowledge Short Scale (ASKS2) as a formative assessment tool for teaching and learning. We will examine ways to utilize the ASKS2 in designing intercultural learning experiences and support learners in self-monitoring their intercultural development.

 

Facilitators: Annette Benson and Stephanie Bowers

This workshop offers a survey of activities and assessments which can be used in discussing with learners the importance of cultural humility. In order to clarify terms, the session will begin with a discussion of the difference between the oft-used terms intercultural competence and intercultural effectiveness as compared to cultural humility. Experiential activities surveyed include a video, a case study, a meme, and the suggestion of two assessments—one particularly for the measuring of cultural humility and the other for the willingness to listen.

 

Facilitator: Horane Diatta-Holgate

Assessing the degree to which learners are developing the requisite attitudes, skills, and knowledge to communicate and navigate different intercultural situations requires intentionality and structure. In Part 2 of this two-part webinar on assessing intercultural development, we will discuss how to effectively use the Attitudes, Skills, and Knowledge Short Scale (ASKS2) as a data source for curricular and program-level evaluation. We will also review different use cases and applications of the ASKS2 across various disciplinary contexts.  

 

We are so glad that you want to know more about our community. Please use the QR code to let us know your contact information.

Before virtual events became such a regular part of our everyday reality, PICLCoP events were by invitation only for those outisde of the Purdue University-West Lafayette campus. However, we now welcome our intercultural colleagues to join us, regardless of location, for most events. Just register for virtual events by going to the Zoom links provided on the CILMAR calendar. If you do not have Purdue credentials and would like to visit us for an in-person event, please contact us at cilmar@purdue.edu to register.

We'd love to know how we can better serve you! Please let us know how we can best accommodate by using the QR code below.