So I like to keep them busy on multiple tasks, so most teaching is spent explaining all the little projects I want them working on....
I am under the impression that these students are accustomed to more lecture time in class so I am accommodating this slightly.
Thursday I spend about 30 minutes talking about culture and how important it is to be a cultural sponge----trying to pay attention to customs, habits, non-verbal communication, sub-cultures, aesthetics(my favorite!), values, social structure, etc., I try to emphasize that criticism of a culture's idiosyncratic (and terrifying) characteristics is somehow counterproductive. And in business, this can mean that you will not be successful. This is easy to talk about in Russia, given all the crazy differences.
My multitude of projects assigned in this class are as follows:
-They need to master the geography of the Americas and the Caribbean.
-I put them into groups of 4, assign them a country from the above area and ask them to prepare a 5 minute presentation on some cultural aspects of that place---to be done in the next class--this WED.
I also lecture on globalization in general. I am asking them to read The World Is Flat by Thomas Friedman. It is not a perfect description of what is happening to our world, but I love his perspective---especially on how tech is changing us and how education(though certainly not in the direction the U.S. is headed) is so critical to climbing out of poverty. At some point I will likely give you my view on the "no Child Left Behind", "Common Core", Test, Test , Test initiatives that we(Americans) are all swallowing like lemmings on the way to the ocean,; but I will spare you that today.Let us just say that I find Michelle Rhee to be despicable---sorry.
I assign them all a side in the debate on Free Trade/globalization argument, touching on some of the common arguments:Inexpensive everything? Peace dividend? Environmental degradation? Job Loss?
Coca Colaization of the entire world? Loss of languages, etc., etc.,
We will debate for a half an hour in the next class.
They'll also pick a basket of their choice of international equities(stocks), pretend to buy them, and track them over the course of the next few weeks.
All for now on class....I thought I would give a perspective. we are also likely to talk a lot about basketball. Several of my Chinese fellows love the NBA and I of course must indulge them!
I am under the impression that these students are accustomed to more lecture time in class so I am accommodating this slightly.
Thursday I spend about 30 minutes talking about culture and how important it is to be a cultural sponge----trying to pay attention to customs, habits, non-verbal communication, sub-cultures, aesthetics(my favorite!), values, social structure, etc., I try to emphasize that criticism of a culture's idiosyncratic (and terrifying) characteristics is somehow counterproductive. And in business, this can mean that you will not be successful. This is easy to talk about in Russia, given all the crazy differences.
My multitude of projects assigned in this class are as follows:
-They need to master the geography of the Americas and the Caribbean.
-I put them into groups of 4, assign them a country from the above area and ask them to prepare a 5 minute presentation on some cultural aspects of that place---to be done in the next class--this WED.
I also lecture on globalization in general. I am asking them to read The World Is Flat by Thomas Friedman. It is not a perfect description of what is happening to our world, but I love his perspective---especially on how tech is changing us and how education(though certainly not in the direction the U.S. is headed) is so critical to climbing out of poverty. At some point I will likely give you my view on the "no Child Left Behind", "Common Core", Test, Test , Test initiatives that we(Americans) are all swallowing like lemmings on the way to the ocean,; but I will spare you that today.Let us just say that I find Michelle Rhee to be despicable---sorry.
I assign them all a side in the debate on Free Trade/globalization argument, touching on some of the common arguments:Inexpensive everything? Peace dividend? Environmental degradation? Job Loss?
Coca Colaization of the entire world? Loss of languages, etc., etc.,
We will debate for a half an hour in the next class.
They'll also pick a basket of their choice of international equities(stocks), pretend to buy them, and track them over the course of the next few weeks.
All for now on class....I thought I would give a perspective. we are also likely to talk a lot about basketball. Several of my Chinese fellows love the NBA and I of course must indulge them!
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