The GSS Faculty and Staff webinar series focuses on ways to better serve our international student populations. These quick webinars:
- Promote internationalization at our institution
- Pull from current research on intercultural competency
- Offer concrete professional development opportunities for faculty and staff
Language and Academics | Advising and General Support | Culture | Global Education
Language and Academics
A Conversation about Second Language Learners in Higher Education
Patricia Duff, PhD, answers questions about second language learners in higher education and academic English socialization across disciplines. This webinar discusses challenges in integrating international students in the American educational environment and offers effective teaching strategies.
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A Conversation about Second Language Development
Diane Larsen-Freeman, PhD, focuses her research and interests on understanding the process of second language acquisition. This webinar addresses: What is the connection between research on language learning and language teaching? How do individual differences impact the outcome of second language learning?
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Using Turnitin Feedback Tools in Face-to-Face and Online Classes
This webinar showcases the different means instructors can provide writing feedback to international non-native English speakers by using the feedback/comment tools available through Turnitin. Discussion topics include: How can comment categories be edited and organized for the purpose of your class? How comments can be color coded in the Quick Marks section?
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Repurposing Turnitin to Teach Academic Writing
Turnitin software is designed to both support academic writing instruction and detect plagiarism. This webinar discusses relevant scholarship on plagiarism detection software and also illustrates how to use Turnitin as a teaching tool.
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Integrating ELL Techniques and Methods into Content Courses
This webinar discusses practical ways to implement and fold English language techniques and methods into content-specific courses. Learning outcomes include both theory and skills on creating a welcoming classroom environment that fosters both language and content acquisition for learners.
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English Language Acquisition and Culturally Situated Learning: Implications for American Academic Context
International students in American universities encounter numerous challenges in their new environments, ranging from English academic literacy to distinctly different pedagogical practices. This webinar addresses the most salient issues in second language acquisition, including language, aspects to be learned, the role of age, cognition, and culturally situated learning. Pedagogical suggestions informed by research and practice in teaching/learning English as a second language are offered.
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Interpreting Scores on English Language Proficiency Tests
This webinar will examine the following questions: How do English language proficiency tests (ELPTs) differ from classroom assessment? How are ELPTs designed and developed? And, how are scores on ELPTs calculated, reported and interpreted?
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The Corpus-Based Approach to Language Teaching and Learning and Its Relevance to International Students
Randi Reppen, PhD, discusses the importance of the corpus-based approach to language learning and teaching for international students. Corpus linguistics draws on analyses of large databases of natural language stored on computers, thereby enabling the exploration of vocabulary, grammar, discourse, and register variation. Discussion questions include: How can higher education benefit from the corpus linguistics approach? How can professors of various disciplines benefit from this pedagogical innovation?
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Writing Proficiency and Academic Honesty: Strategies for Faculty
This webinar focuses on three of the top concerns when teaching second language learners: writing proficiency, plagiarism, and ensuring academic standards. Tips for effectively working with students, available resources, and pedagogical and cultural approaches to improving writing across the curriculum are offered.
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Advising and General Support
Introduction to Student Management Teams as a Faculty Resource
This webinar introduces the concept of initiating student management teams within your classroom to benefit instruction and international student populations. It defines what student management teams are, examines research into this topic from other leading institutions, and discusses its implementation. The webinar presents benefits of this resource in the classroom for both faculty and students, while also providing information on how faculty can initiate a student management team within their classroom.
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Nine Tips for Working with International Students
This workshop benefits anyone working with or teaching international students. These tips cover techniques and suggestions and give examples from real student interactions.
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Supporting Chinese Students on Campus
This workshop covers the different stages of culture shock and addresses the cultural and educational challenges that Chinese students face in both the U.S. education system and culture.
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Supporting International Graduate and Professional Students
This workshop explores the role culture plays in adjustment, challenges international students face, and discussions for possible programming and instructional solutions to the challenges.
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International Student Advising and Office of Global Services
How does international student advising intersect with OGS? This presentation discusses strategies for advising international students, the key role of OGS, and the resources available. Faculty and staff learn useful ideas and information to incorporate into their daily interactions and advising of students.
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Culture
Teaching International Students: Cross-Cultural Perspectives
This webinar discusses teaching international students from cross-cultural perspectives through a dialogue held among faculty, international students, cross-cultural researchers, and a visiting scholar from China. The presenters use research as well as firsthand experience to discuss themes.
View Recording (Recording of the Dialogue with Presentation Slides)
View Recording (Recording of the Dialogue)
Pronunciation of Chinese Names
Baffled by the pronunciation of Chinese names? This workshop explains the Chinese use of a phonetic system called pinyin and provides practical strategies for accurate pronunciation.
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View Pronunciation Guide
Chinese Students: How Much Do You Really Know about Them?
This webinar presents general information about China, education in China, and Chinese culture for American educators to gain an understanding about Chinese students’ cross-cultural challenges. Learning outcomes include: education in China, Chinese students’ motives to study in the United States, Chinese students’ transition challenges in U.S. universities and colleges, and the gap between Chinese and American students.
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Global Education
Teaching Expectations and Learning Experiences in Boston and Abroad
This webinar is based on faculty experiences in the global academic and cultural environments of Australia, Vietnam, and China. Discussions include the importance of getting to know students, finding ways to connect, and maintaining lifelong relationships. Self-developed techniques that have succeeded in engaging students in classroom discussions, group work, and team or individual presentations are offered.
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Globalization and Preparing Graduates for the 21st Century Workforce
This webinar addresses the learning and professional development needs of students who now think of themselves as global citizens and who study outside of their native country to learn another language, understand another culture, and prepare to compete in the global knowledge economy. The webinar offers insights on the benefits and challenges of internationalization trends and the implications for faculty roles.
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Creating a Web-Based Learning Experience Where International and U.S. Students Succeed
This webinar provides an overview of the challenges and opportunities in teaching an experiential, web-based course to a group of predominantly international students. Student, industry data, and instructional best practices are discussed. Learning outcomes include common challenges of international students and ways to connect students with each other for mutual benefit while creating an experience that engages all types of learners and develops them into employees who can think for themselves.
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Resources from Presentation: Syllabus Resources, Article: “Engaging Across Differences”
International Students’ Perspectives on University Classroom Culture (Part I)
This is part one of a two-part series on the experiences of international students on campus. A panel of international graduate and undergraduate students respond to questions about how they understood the expectations of their university courses and how they adapted. Students’ insights will shed light on cultural practices in the classroom that can be taken for granted by those who are already familiar with the classroom culture.
View Recording — Student Feedback on Additional Questions
International Students’ Perspectives on University Classroom Culture (Part II)
The second part of this two-part series on international students on campus discusses the issues and themes that were raised in the student panel from part one. Topics include the student experience in terms of classroom participation, student-faculty interaction, and integration to the American campus.
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