Engineers are very much part of the ongoing globalization and they are encountering problems of cross-disciplinary nature Team working skills respecting other peoples＇ qualifications are required so therefore interpe...Engineers are very much part of the ongoing globalization and they are encountering problems of cross-disciplinary nature Team working skills respecting other peoples＇ qualifications are required so therefore interpersonal skills are becoming more and more important, including communications skills, leadership and awareness. Consequently, educational programs for teaching engineers should work with the fact that the capability of communicating with people with different background competences is important, nevertheless the engineering education has traditionally focused on technical skills rather than on personal development. In order to reform the B.Sc. courses to guide students to become better and more efficient engineers on all levels, the DTU （Technical University of Denmark） and Helsinki Metropolia University of Applied Sciences （Metropolia） modified their education according to the CDIO （conceive, design, implement and operate） approach in the autumn of 2008. The CDIO pedagogy encouraged to develop an interactive course in interpersonal skills, where the students have to take an active part in the exercises as well as involve themselves in the interactive communication process. The course consists of various exercises from which the participants will develop their awareness and knowledge of communication. It is the intention to give the students a personal understanding and idea of a different approach to communicating between people. The students evaluated the course, and the four key questions dealing with the quality of the course show a very high satisfaction with the instruction. The grades one and two （1 best/very much, 5 worst/very little） of the responses ＂to these four questions are ranging on average from 69.5% to 88% （on a yearly basis）. The positive responses indicate that the students are very satisfied with the course recognizing the need for education on international communication.展开更多
South Africa is a country of many cultures. Before the first democratic elections in 1994, people of different cultures found it difficult to interact because of legislated racial segregation, which made it difficult ...South Africa is a country of many cultures. Before the first democratic elections in 1994, people of different cultures found it difficult to interact because of legislated racial segregation, which made it difficult for blacks to mix with whites in almost all spheres of life. The only place interaction could take place was in the workplace. As a result, children from different cultural groups had few opportunities to interact. This made it impossible for South African children to learn about the cultures of other racial groups. With the introduction of a democratic government, all segregation laws were relaxed and people mixed freely in all spheres of life. Intercultural communication became commonplace. This new scenario presented a challenge to many South African children, but despite the limits imposed before 1994, children from all racial groups associated successfully. Their ability to cope with this situation with so much more ease than adults was remarkable. This paper seeks to highlight the communication skills used by South African children from all cultural backgrounds to achieve intercultural competence in a relatively short space of time. The paper will further reflect on the impact made on African children by intercultural interaction and competence.展开更多
文摘Engineers are very much part of the ongoing globalization and they are encountering problems of cross-disciplinary nature Team working skills respecting other peoples＇ qualifications are required so therefore interpersonal skills are becoming more and more important, including communications skills, leadership and awareness. Consequently, educational programs for teaching engineers should work with the fact that the capability of communicating with people with different background competences is important, nevertheless the engineering education has traditionally focused on technical skills rather than on personal development. In order to reform the B.Sc. courses to guide students to become better and more efficient engineers on all levels, the DTU （Technical University of Denmark） and Helsinki Metropolia University of Applied Sciences （Metropolia） modified their education according to the CDIO （conceive, design, implement and operate） approach in the autumn of 2008. The CDIO pedagogy encouraged to develop an interactive course in interpersonal skills, where the students have to take an active part in the exercises as well as involve themselves in the interactive communication process. The course consists of various exercises from which the participants will develop their awareness and knowledge of communication. It is the intention to give the students a personal understanding and idea of a different approach to communicating between people. The students evaluated the course, and the four key questions dealing with the quality of the course show a very high satisfaction with the instruction. The grades one and two （1 best/very much, 5 worst/very little） of the responses ＂to these four questions are ranging on average from 69.5% to 88% （on a yearly basis）. The positive responses indicate that the students are very satisfied with the course recognizing the need for education on international communication.
文摘South Africa is a country of many cultures. Before the first democratic elections in 1994, people of different cultures found it difficult to interact because of legislated racial segregation, which made it difficult for blacks to mix with whites in almost all spheres of life. The only place interaction could take place was in the workplace. As a result, children from different cultural groups had few opportunities to interact. This made it impossible for South African children to learn about the cultures of other racial groups. With the introduction of a democratic government, all segregation laws were relaxed and people mixed freely in all spheres of life. Intercultural communication became commonplace. This new scenario presented a challenge to many South African children, but despite the limits imposed before 1994, children from all racial groups associated successfully. Their ability to cope with this situation with so much more ease than adults was remarkable. This paper seeks to highlight the communication skills used by South African children from all cultural backgrounds to achieve intercultural competence in a relatively short space of time. The paper will further reflect on the impact made on African children by intercultural interaction and competence.
