Impact of International Collaboration on the

Learning Environment

Amir W. Al-Khafaji

Krishnanand Y. Maillacheruvu

INTRODUCTION

• Vision of Dr. Amir Al-Khafaji• CEC Department recognized value of

internationalization as early as 1995, well before the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) established the eleven student outcomes

• Significance of the international experience on the growth and development of young engineers and construction professionals

• Importance of international experience in a rapidly changing multicultural world

MECHANISMS

• Global Explorer Program

• Semester Abroad Study

• Faculty Sabbatical

IMPACT ON PARTICIPANTS

• Students and Faculty learned to function in multicultural world

• Time management skills

• Strengthening of bond between students and professors

• Adjusting to local customs and getting appreciation of how people live

SCANDINAVIAN EXPERIENCE

LEARNING IN A DIFFERENT CULTURE

• Exposure to perspectives of other cultures

• Learning to understand established concepts in a new light

• Learning about new technologies and how to be efficient

• Learning about economic issues that impact professional decisions

SCANDINAVIAN EXPERIENCE

• Denmark

• Norway

• Sweden

• Collaborations with universities

• Balancing learning with a cultural immersion experience

SCANDINAVIAN EXPERIENCE

• Denmark

• Norway

• Sweden

• Collaborations with universities

• Balancing learning with a cultural immersion experience

EGYPT-JORDAN EXPERIENCE

• Cultural differences between countries in the Middle East

• Cost of living and economic conditions

• University connections

• Petra, Jerash, Dead Sea, other sites

• Great Pyramids, Nile, Luxor, Alexandria, Mediterranean Coast

EGYPT-JORDAN EXPERIENCE

INDIAN EXPERIENCE

INDIAN EXPERIENCE

INDIA EXPERIENCE

• Sabbatical at IIT Bombay

• Student attitudes towards learning

• Cultural differences and student culture in India vs. US

• Scholarship and research

• Travel

INDIA EXPERIENCE

• Conferences and Workshops

• Writing books and book chapters

• Engaging in research with students and faculty

• Long-term professional relationships with colleagues and how to keep them alive

• Academic exchanges since return

INDIA EXPERIENCE

• Interaction with high-level decision makers from Indian Government

• USDoE Workshop on Energy and the Environment

• Meeting with high-level Chinese Team in Mumbai on collaborative work

Glimpses of Study Abroad Experience

• http://www.bradley.edu/academic/departments/cec/studyabroad/jordan09/

• http://www.bradley.edu/academic/departments/cec/studyabroad/uk/

Glimpses of Study Abroad Experience

IMPACT IN CLASSROOM

• Faculty bring back learning from other cultures and share with students

• Students share experiences with other students

• Understanding of importance of internationalization and how to function in a global marketplace

IMPACT IN CLASSROOM

• Awakening of curiosity about learning about the world

• Students working for companies that do business overseas

• Alumni who have become significant players in the global civil engineering industry

IMPACT ON EDUCATION & RESEARCH

• Sustainable technologies

• Appropriate technologies

• Teaching styles

• Learning styles

• Cultural immersion

LESSONS LEARNED

• Changing educational landscape of higher education at US Universities

• Cultural sensitivity

• Undergraduates from other countries

• Educating world leaders of tomorrow

• Meeting student outcomes through the process

• Creating a new vision for the future

SUMMARY

• Impact of Internationalization on the Learning Environment

• Uniqueness of CEC Initiatives

• Challenges and Opportunities

• Bright future of the program

• Model for many to use