For this blog post, I review Varner's (2001) examination of the status of intercultural business communication pedagogy and her suggestions on how to address three key challenges that teachers must overcome. The article provides useful lessons for my independent project, which involves designing a course in intercultural communication for business to be taught in a community college context.
Varner (2001) notes the growing interest in the study and teaching of intercultural business communication in recent times, but points out that three key challenges remain. She identifies the challenges as follows.
1. The challenge of linking culture to business and striking a balance between these two domains
The author notes that intercultural business communication courses tend to be skewed either towards business management or cultural studies instead of evenly integrating both aspects. She observes that instructor (in)experience plays a role in this, in that teachers without a business background may lean towards a focus on cultural aspects, while teachers with academic or professional experience in business are likely to treat culture as an “aside” in the course. There may also be ideological factors with anti-globalization and pro-globalization academics approaching the course as a critique or as a promotion of international business activities, respectively. A good course should not be inclined heavily towards one or the other orientations.
Varner (2001) suggests that one way teachers can achieve this balance is by applying intercultural communication concepts directly to business practices in areas such as business strategy development, financial policies, HR, corporate culture, and specific types of business communication, such as the development of business letter and annual reports. She also suggests the use of case studies, allowing students to examine how international companies such as Motorola, IBM, and DaimlerChrysler have addressed intercultural business challenges.
2. The challenge of static and traditional views of culture
The article argues that teaching intercultural business communication needs to go beyond studying what cultural behaviors are seen in various countries and contexts to understanding why these behaviors exist and how they are relevant for business. Course content should not place too much emphasis on front stage aspects such as cultural taboos, and the dos and don’ts of etiquette, because “such images are intriguing, but they won’t sustain the deeper scrutiny into cultural attitudes, values, and norms necessary for business relationships” (Varner 2001, p. 101). Instead, students should be introduced to the fundamental worldviews underlying these behaviors.
Teachers should also address this challenge by debunking the idea that culture is largely a tourist attraction persevered in the exotic past. One way the author suggests doing this is by having intercultural business communication classes regularly discuss newspaper stories that show the interplay between culture and business. Instructors can also turn to various theoretical models and research-based articles in publications such as the Journal of Business Communication that address the link between culture and business realities.
3. The challenge of teaching students to overcome biases and to be aware of differences within cultures
The third challenge addressed by the author relates to cultural lenses that students employ in viewing other cultures and how to make them aware of this in order to help them avoid bias and prejudice. Varner (2001) suggests that this can be a difficult pedagogic goal because students are often not aware of these self-reference criteria that they use to judge all cultures. The author addressed this challenge in her course by inviting a panel of international students to share their cross-cultural experiences with the class, an activity that exposed learners to the cultural blinders that generally impinge on how we view those with a different worldview.
Related to this is the blurred perspective students may have of other cultures as a result of what Varner (2001) terms “sophisticated stereotyping” (p. 102). Although the work of intercultural communication scholars such as Hofstede and Hall continues to be key components of courses in the field, students must be cautioned against imposing the cultural profiles developed by these researchers across national and ethnic groups in a monolithic fashion.
The intercultural business communication course must therefore make students aware of paradoxes in the application of concepts that categorize large groups according to some predetermined cultural schemata. Intercultural communication teachers must help students understand that while the subject draws on broad cultural categorizations to help understand differences in worldview and behaviors, people in the same culture can be different, sometimes dramatically.
Reference
Varner, I. I. (2001). Teaching intercultural management communication: Where are we? Where do we go? Business Communication Quarterly, 64(1), 99-111.
Wednesday, August 13, 2014
How the ADDIE framework can add context and continuity to course design
In this blog post, I review Peterson’s (2003) discussion of the ADDIE approach to instructional/course design because I think it provides a useful framework for developing effective instructional programs, especially for novice course designers. In the article, Peterson (2003) describes how the ADDIE framework (the acronym stands for Analysis, Design, Development, Implementation, and Evaluation) was used to teach a graduate course in instructional design at Waynesburg College in Pennsylvania. As the author notes, the ADDIE concept “provides educators with useful, clearly defined stages for effective implementation of instruction” (Peterson, 2003, p. 227), adding that it leads to learner-centered pedagogy.
I particularly liked the author’s step-by-step breakdown of the ADDIE process.
1. Analysis
The analysis phase focusses on understanding the target audience for instruction, including their characteristics, prior knowledge, and needs. The instructional designer can perform a competency or skills “gap analysis” by investigating what the intended students already know versus what they need to know (e.g. in order to perform a specific job, or to graduate). This phase also includes analysis of any existing course material, including syllabi from other institutions offering a similar course, and review of pertinent textbooks and journal articles.
2. Design
Work in this phase involves determining the specific learning objectives for the course (or program/product), the best methods and media for attaining these objectives, and how accomplishment will be measured. The design phase must incorporate information gathered during the analysis stage. For example, assessment activities and exercises selected in the design phase must be diverse enough to resonate with the various learning orientations discovered during analysis. This link between assessment and design is important because “if goals, objectives, and assessments do not align, learners may find themselves losing interest in the course or program” (Peterson, 2003, p. 230).
3. Development
This refers to the “production” of the tangibles required to deliver the course or learning experience. For my individual project, this would refer to the drafting of the entire syllabus and course outline and creation of any other material or products needed to deliver core course information. According to Peterson (2003), this phase must also include evaluation, because “designers are to determine if the students or audience will learn from the product and how it can be improved before implementation” (p. 231).
4. Implementation
This is the deployment and delivery phase. The author however emphasizes that “no product, course, or program can be effective without conducting an evaluation and necessary revisions throughout the implementation phase” (Peterson, 2013, p. 231). This means that the course designer/instructor must remain open to revising aspects of the course, sometimes even while it’s in progress (I assume this will be more likely if it’s a course been taught for the first time).
5. Evaluation
This refers to the “summative evaluation” that takes place at the end of the course, in addition to, and separate from, the “formative evaluation” that takes place in the development phase. Summative evaluation asks questions such as:
- Has the problem been solved?
- Have the objectives been met?
- Has the course had the intended impact?
- What changes are required for future delivery?
References
Peterson, C. (2003). Bringing ADDIE to life: Instructional design at its best. Journal of Educational Multimedia and Hypermedia, 12(3), 227-241.
I particularly liked the author’s step-by-step breakdown of the ADDIE process.
1. Analysis
The analysis phase focusses on understanding the target audience for instruction, including their characteristics, prior knowledge, and needs. The instructional designer can perform a competency or skills “gap analysis” by investigating what the intended students already know versus what they need to know (e.g. in order to perform a specific job, or to graduate). This phase also includes analysis of any existing course material, including syllabi from other institutions offering a similar course, and review of pertinent textbooks and journal articles.
2. Design
Work in this phase involves determining the specific learning objectives for the course (or program/product), the best methods and media for attaining these objectives, and how accomplishment will be measured. The design phase must incorporate information gathered during the analysis stage. For example, assessment activities and exercises selected in the design phase must be diverse enough to resonate with the various learning orientations discovered during analysis. This link between assessment and design is important because “if goals, objectives, and assessments do not align, learners may find themselves losing interest in the course or program” (Peterson, 2003, p. 230).
3. Development
This refers to the “production” of the tangibles required to deliver the course or learning experience. For my individual project, this would refer to the drafting of the entire syllabus and course outline and creation of any other material or products needed to deliver core course information. According to Peterson (2003), this phase must also include evaluation, because “designers are to determine if the students or audience will learn from the product and how it can be improved before implementation” (p. 231).
4. Implementation
This is the deployment and delivery phase. The author however emphasizes that “no product, course, or program can be effective without conducting an evaluation and necessary revisions throughout the implementation phase” (Peterson, 2013, p. 231). This means that the course designer/instructor must remain open to revising aspects of the course, sometimes even while it’s in progress (I assume this will be more likely if it’s a course been taught for the first time).
5. Evaluation
This refers to the “summative evaluation” that takes place at the end of the course, in addition to, and separate from, the “formative evaluation” that takes place in the development phase. Summative evaluation asks questions such as:
- Has the problem been solved?
- Have the objectives been met?
- Has the course had the intended impact?
- What changes are required for future delivery?
References
Peterson, C. (2003). Bringing ADDIE to life: Instructional design at its best. Journal of Educational Multimedia and Hypermedia, 12(3), 227-241.
Designing a course in intercultural business communication
For this post, I review an article by Sokuvitz (2002) discussing the process he followed in designing a course in intercultural business communication. This will be helpful for the course I’m creating in Intercultural Communication in the Global Workplace. Although the course developed by the author was at the graduate (MBA) level, I found some good ideas for the community college/undergraduate-level course I am creating, given the similarity in goals.
The author argues that strategic business communication in the global marketplace requires competency in interacting across cultural, gender, and ethnic barriers. His intent, then, was to develop a course that “explores the impact of cultural variation and identity on business communication in a global setting” (Sokuvitz, 2002, p. 56).
Sokuvitz (2002) provides a rationale for the course stemming from the internationalization of business, resulting in new tensions that business leaders must manage. The growth of multinational companies is being driven by globalization and the economic advantages of off-shoring. At the same time, otherwise competent business leaders thrust into managing multicultural teams face the risk of failure without the needed cultural intelligence. In this environment, organizations, leaders, and employees must understand different customs and customers, manage and collaborate with a culturally diverse workforce, and learn how to use computer communication in culturally sensitive ways to connect employees in different countries.
To develop the course, the author first conducted focus groups of students in the MBA program at Babson College. Findings affirmed students’ interest in a course to address issues such as cultural stereotyping, how to engage with other cultures without shedding their own cultural identity, and the need to gain understanding of business communication behaviors practiced in other countries and by other cultures. Students also wanted to practice skills that would help them become better intercultural business communicators. Students in the course planning focus group indicated “awareness of the increasingly global nature of business affairs as the primary reason that effective leaders should understand not only others’ cultures but also the interaction between culture, world view, and what it means to be a successful leader” (Sokuvitz, 2002, pp. 61-62).
The writer also conducted a benchmarking review of cross-cultural business communication programs offered in graduate management programs in 14 U.S. schools, including Boston College, Harvard Business School, Dartmouth College and Duke University. He also conducted interviews with faculty. The results revealed different emphasis in programs, as suggested by course titles such as “Talking Business: Negotiation and Communication in Cross-Cultural Perspective,” “International Communications and Media Networks,” “Managing Across Cultures,” and “Cross-Cultural Communication and Business.” The final phase in the course development process entailed six weeks of research and reading by the author to update himself on latest scholarship in the field.
The result of this process was a course in “Global Business Communication” that included objectives such as “to provide theoretical and ethical frameworks for understanding the role of culture, gender, and ethnicity in global business communication” and “to explore best practices in cross-cultural business communication which improves one’s effectiveness as a leader” (Sokuvitz, 2002, p. 65).
The teaching methods selected for this course were lecture-discussion, case analyses, simulations, and experiential exercises. Evaluation was in the form of class exams, class participation, individual papers and presentations, and team papers and presentations. To provide currency to the course and link it to the real world of business, each week students were required to select and present media clippings on business and culture to the class, from papers and magazines such as The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times. Each student also had to produce a “Survival Guide” on how to conduct business in a foreign country of their choice, applying intercultural communication principles learned in the course, and provide a copy of the guide to the whole class.
Below are some lessons from this paper that can help in the design of similar courses:
Sokuvitz, S. (2002). Global business communication: The design and delivery of MBA instruction (Focus on intercultural communication). Business Communication Quarterly, 65(1), 56-69.
The author argues that strategic business communication in the global marketplace requires competency in interacting across cultural, gender, and ethnic barriers. His intent, then, was to develop a course that “explores the impact of cultural variation and identity on business communication in a global setting” (Sokuvitz, 2002, p. 56).
Sokuvitz (2002) provides a rationale for the course stemming from the internationalization of business, resulting in new tensions that business leaders must manage. The growth of multinational companies is being driven by globalization and the economic advantages of off-shoring. At the same time, otherwise competent business leaders thrust into managing multicultural teams face the risk of failure without the needed cultural intelligence. In this environment, organizations, leaders, and employees must understand different customs and customers, manage and collaborate with a culturally diverse workforce, and learn how to use computer communication in culturally sensitive ways to connect employees in different countries.
To develop the course, the author first conducted focus groups of students in the MBA program at Babson College. Findings affirmed students’ interest in a course to address issues such as cultural stereotyping, how to engage with other cultures without shedding their own cultural identity, and the need to gain understanding of business communication behaviors practiced in other countries and by other cultures. Students also wanted to practice skills that would help them become better intercultural business communicators. Students in the course planning focus group indicated “awareness of the increasingly global nature of business affairs as the primary reason that effective leaders should understand not only others’ cultures but also the interaction between culture, world view, and what it means to be a successful leader” (Sokuvitz, 2002, pp. 61-62).
The writer also conducted a benchmarking review of cross-cultural business communication programs offered in graduate management programs in 14 U.S. schools, including Boston College, Harvard Business School, Dartmouth College and Duke University. He also conducted interviews with faculty. The results revealed different emphasis in programs, as suggested by course titles such as “Talking Business: Negotiation and Communication in Cross-Cultural Perspective,” “International Communications and Media Networks,” “Managing Across Cultures,” and “Cross-Cultural Communication and Business.” The final phase in the course development process entailed six weeks of research and reading by the author to update himself on latest scholarship in the field.
The result of this process was a course in “Global Business Communication” that included objectives such as “to provide theoretical and ethical frameworks for understanding the role of culture, gender, and ethnicity in global business communication” and “to explore best practices in cross-cultural business communication which improves one’s effectiveness as a leader” (Sokuvitz, 2002, p. 65).
The teaching methods selected for this course were lecture-discussion, case analyses, simulations, and experiential exercises. Evaluation was in the form of class exams, class participation, individual papers and presentations, and team papers and presentations. To provide currency to the course and link it to the real world of business, each week students were required to select and present media clippings on business and culture to the class, from papers and magazines such as The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times. Each student also had to produce a “Survival Guide” on how to conduct business in a foreign country of their choice, applying intercultural communication principles learned in the course, and provide a copy of the guide to the whole class.
Below are some lessons from this paper that can help in the design of similar courses:
- A course in intercultural communication in a business context can address topics such as globalization and how to engage with multicultural markets and diverse employees, stereotyping, cultural identity, and best practices in intercultural business communication.
- The course can also examine the use of media technology to connect global workplaces and the impact of culture on this process.
- Research (asking students) can be helpful in course design, if this is possible.
- Research by the course designer can include evaluating similar programs offered by other institutions, in addition to reading the latest literature in the field.
- Course designers should consider including theory and ethics as part of the course.
- Course designers should consider including a practical focus to the course, with opportunities to develop a useable end product.
- Use of news stories about business and culture can help connect classroom teaching to the real world.
Sokuvitz, S. (2002). Global business communication: The design and delivery of MBA instruction (Focus on intercultural communication). Business Communication Quarterly, 65(1), 56-69.
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