My Funny Valentine: towards an international campus
“The main point is that most teachers don’t realize the problem.” That is how Hans-Georg van Liempd, the chairman of My Funny Valentine, summarized the event that took place this afternoon. It aimed at explaining that the international classroom is not merely a Dutch lecture translated into English.
The event, controversially named “We hate you. All very welkom”, addressed the issue of social and academic integration on campus. These problems, such as unclear course descriptions and a lack of communication guidelines, are not only felt by international students. A Dutch student commented: “Many Dutch students also identify problems that are considered ‘international’ issues.”
During the afternoon, solutions to the internationalization issues were also sought. Exchange student Alex Güntert and American master student Ellen Thompson offered presentations addressing some practical solutions. Van Liempd, Senior Program Manager of Towards an international campus, was pleased. “I’m glad they not only identified the difficulties international students face, but also proposed how to solve them.”
The students also made it clear that not all international students are the same – exchange students who stay in the Netherlands for few months have different needs than degree seeking students who don’t have such a time constrain. Güntert’s presentation was ended with a strong slide: “Bedankt voor uw aandacht. (No translation available).”
Prof. dr. Sjaak Kroon from the department of Culture Studies gave an insight from a language policy making perspective. He advised professors, who fear to get lost in translation from Dutch to English, to make use of the already available recources. “Lecturers shouldn’t be afraid to ask for direct (language) feedback from international students in the classroom,” says Kroon.
The event was ended with an entertainment part. A humorous scene staged by the Rataplan improvisation group was followed by a performance of campus poet Lars Bregonje.
Van Liempd wants to push the internationalization issue even further and plans to involve more teachers into the process. “Today we had mainly members of International Office and international students in the audience. I wish that the next event will include more teaching staff of the university”.
