The number of international students at FHWS is increasing continuously. Thus, intercultural competence is gaining more and more importance. That is why FHWS employees can acquire the Intercultural Certificate. A story of success.
An intercultural “driving licence” may sound strange at first. But it is quite logical that intercultural skills can be learned – after all, where would you get them if you haven't lived for a long time in another country with a different culture? Of course, driving licence should not be understood in the truest sense, explains Eva Maria Scholtyssek from the Campus for Language Proficiency: “You don't learn how to drive a car on foreign roads, but how to encounter each other in intercultural encounters as free of conflict and misunderstandings as possible.” With the Intercultural Certificate, which has been offered from the International Office since the winter semester 2017/18, administrative staff at FHWS can go through a learning process to increase their intercultural skills. At the end, they receive a kind of “driving licence” in the form of a stamp book: For each completed module, participants receive a corresponding stamp. According to Martin Gleißner, the project's coordinator, the impetus for this training measure was an increased need. “Thanks to the internationalisation of FHWS, the numbers of international students are increasing – we now have five degree programmes that are offered in both German and English.” There are about 9,300 students at FHWS, 2,100 of them internationals. “So naturally one or two problems arise that need to be solved.” Incidentally, the counterpart of the Intercultural Certificate for students is the “International Compass”.
But what does intercultural competence mean?
Gleißner describes it this way: “By engaging with other cultures, we reflect on our own values – this should help us to better understand our own culture and other cultures at the same time.” Intercultural competence is not innate, but can be learned. In the programme, FHWS employees can learn how to classify and interpret certain student behaviours in situations and encounters. “It is important to show understanding and respect for other ways of thinking – in other words, to be tolerant,” says language coordinator Scholtyssek. This way, staff can classify whether a behaviour is cultural or character-based and then better decide how to deal with the person. Martin Gleißner explains: “For example, it can happen that a student enters an office in silence, creating an unpleasant tension. In the student's culture, however, politeness is observed with a short bow. And one can better appreciate these differences.” At the same time, it should not only be about the intercultural contrasts, but also about similarities that one might not expect.
Of course, the foreign language is also part of intercultural competence. “We need language, no matter in what form – otherwise it would be very complicated,” says Scholtyssek. English, in particular, is essential for communication, since many international students have limited knowledge of German.
One certificate – three building blocks
The Intercultural Certificate consists of three building blocks – one of it being language acquisition. Language courses in English or another foreign language, which the teaching assistants conduct, are offered by the Campus for Language Proficiency. Another module is intercultural training: Here there is an introductory seminar as well as regional training courses. The selection is based on the countries and regions of origin from which most international students come: Taiwan, China, Japan, India, the Arabic cultural area, Eastern Europe, Latin America, West Africa and Turkey. “The regional trainings are conducted by colleagues from the International Office and me. This has the advantage that we know the FHWS, our colleagues and students and know what problems have arisen and where,” Gleißner explains. Eva Maria Scholtyssek also held a training session, as she lived in Taiwan for many years. And Martin Gleißner is in charge of the Japan regional training, as he lived there for six years and worked in various international companies. Since his wife is Japanese, his private environment is also characterised by multilingualism and internationality. Each training looks different, as individual cases and questions are also discussed. “It is generally about the country, the culture, differences and similarities, but also about life and behaviour as a student in this country,” describes the language coordinator. She says it is helpful for FHWS employees to talk about this, as some have not had as many international experiences in life or in the work environment.
That's why there is also the third module: the experience abroad. Here, participants can travel to local regions and gain their own experience at a partner university. Alternatively, participants can take part in three in-depth regional training courses in English.
Two certificates can be obtained within the International Certificate: Base and Base+. For the Base certificate, participant must have passed the language course, the introductory seminar and two regional trainings. For Base+, Base must have been passed and additionally an experience abroad or three in-depth regional trainings are required.
FHWS employees appreciate the offers
Since the intercultural training courses have been offered, Gleißner says they have been well received: “So far we've had a good response and I think our colleagues appreciate our Intercultural Certificate offer.” The University Service International has already been able to issue the certificate 21 times. On average, 59 employees are taking part each semester. As with learning to drive, how long participants need to obtain their Intercultural Certificate depends on their own commitment and individual time frame. “But you can do it well in three to four semesters,” Martin Gleißner assures. Eva Maria Scholtyssek also receives a lot of positive feedback. “It's a useful offer for FHWS employees, plus it can be used free of charge.” In the future, she says, the International Office and the Campus for Language Proficiency want to expand the offer even further. The language coordinator hopes for the possibility to offer other languages besides English. Gleißner expects that the offer will remain in demand. “I love to look at topics from different angles and our international team has a wealth of experience that we are happy to share.” He therefore urges everyone to attend one of the events. “We look forward to it!”
