J-Source.ca -- The Canadian Journalism Project

J-Source.ca -- The Canadian Journalism Project

The latest research on race and microblogging by Farhad Manjoo

Interesting article on Salte about Manjoo's observation on "How black people use Twitter"

You can access this story by clicking here

If this is not enough, you may want to get into how Quebeckers use Twitter. The article from the Globe & Mail is is called: Bless me, Twitter, for I have cried during Glee. You can access it here

What do you think? Do you "tweet"? Have you ever watched "Glee"?

Conference of the Americas on International Education (Oct 20-23, 2010)

For additional information please click here

CONFERENCE HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:

• Opening keynote address by Shawn A-in-chut Atleo, National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations (AFN)
• Luncheon address by Peter Kent, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs (Americas)
• International plenary debate: "Be it resolved that, for higher education institutions to be globally competitive, creating a higher education space in the Americas is a strategic imperative."
• Interview panel conducted by Phil Semas, President and Editor in Chief, The Chronicle of Higher Education, on the importance of internationalization of higher education (with an emphasis on the Americas)


• Workshops:
o Performance Metrics in Internationalization (for institutional heads and senior leaders)
o TUNING the Americas
o China-Americas Roundtable
o Measuring Global and Regional Student Mobility in Higher Education
• CBIE pre-conference professional development sessions
• Over 40 concurrent sessions on the following themes:
o Joint Academic Programming in the Americas
o Innovative Partnerships
o Internationalization Research
o Indigenous & Non-Traditional Populations
o Languages
o Branding, Marketing, Promotion & Retention
o Open Dialogue: An opportunity for off-the-record conversations on a hot topic

The Ombudsperson

The Ombuds should be an impartial advisor, and an investigative and informational resource for the student body.

At Algonquin College you can contact the Ombuds if:

•You have a concern about any aspect of student life at the College.

• You are unsure about the policies, rights, procedures, and responsibilities that apply to your situation. The Ombuds can guide you with respect to your concerns.

•You need someone to listen to your circumstances and to assist you in making appropriate choices.

•You feel that your student life has been adversely affected by the conduct and behavior of another person.

•You need someone to facilitate communication between yourself and another member of the College community.

For more information please click here.

Do you know where this term comes from? Have you ever been to se an Ombdusperson? What has your experience been?

Algonquin College's Ombudsperson is Mr. Hervé Depow. He was appointed in June 17, 2003.
 
You can contact Mr. Depow at
Office of the Ombudsperson

Algonquin College
Woodroffe Campus
1385 Woodroffe Avenue
Ottawa, Ontario K2G 1V8
Tel.: (613) 727-4723 ext. 5306
Fax: (613) 727-7708
email : depowh@algonquincollege.com

The Ombudsperson maintains an office in Room C145 at the Woodroffe Campus.

Appointments:
You can arrange appointments by phone or email. The Ombudsperson can sometimes see you the same day and will certainly see you within a day or two of your contacting the office.

You are welcome to take your chances and visit the Ombudsperson's office. If the Ombudsperson is in and not busy he will see you then. If the Ombudsperson is not available please feel free to complete the Intake Form and slide it under the door in the Confidential Envelope provided. The Ombudsperson will contact you at his first opportunity.

The fax machine is also Confidential and can only be accessed by the Ombudsperson.

France and the Roma - News Story form 19 Aug 2010

Since this blog deals with different topics related to "border-crossing", I have included a few news stories on a controversial issue where race and culture are being heavily politicized. For second opinions, you can read these articles from The New York Times and The Toronto Star.

For Debate: How do you view this situation? Do you agree with the way it is being handled on the media? What is your take on the specific challenges faced by the parties involved? What would you do differently?

Centre for Intercultural Learning

Very interesting online tool put together by DFAIT Canada. This centre is "Canada's largest provider of cross-cultural and international training services for internationally-assigned government and private sector personnel". The site offers an official perspective on countries and cultures, particularly useful when traveling abroad.

The intercultural magazine also offers articles to take into consideration.

A Vision of Students Today

"A short video summarizing some of the most important characteristics of students today - how they learn, what they need to learn, their goals, hopes, dreams, what their lives will be like, and what kinds of changes they will experience in their lifetime. Created by Michael Wesch in collaboration with 200 students at Kansas State University" (Taken from the YouTube Summary)


For debate: Is this happening worldwide? What is the experience in other countries? What are educational institutions doing to address these changes? Where do I fit in?

The Canadian Journal for the Study of Adult Education

For information about contributing submissions, please contact Tom Nesbit, the Journal editor. Submissions are accepted in English and in French. Click here to acces the journal site and find author guidelines!

Khairoon Abbas - Tanzania

Algonquin Program: Graduate Certificate in Scriptwriting
Year of graduation: 2006

1. How did you first hear about Algonquin College (and your program of studies)?

I lived in Ottawa since 2002, and had known about Algonquin College while I was studying at Carleton University. I also had a friend at Algonquin and through her, I realized how practical the programs were. I learnt about Scriptwriting through the college website. I liked what I read, I contacted the coordinator and shortly thereafter I was accepted into the program within a matter of days!

2. How would you describe your experience at Algonquin College? Did your program (including professors, classmates, facilities, resources) meet your expectations? – Please explain.

I had the time of my life and Algonquin. The professors were always helpful; they responded to emails on time, met with students whenever help was needed. I really enjoyed my time there. The program more than exceeded my expectations. The assignments were really helpful in preparing me for the market, and it was really enjoyable. Most of all, the program allowed me to see where my passion lies, and that is in journalism.After my program at Algonquin, I landed my dream job as a writer/journalist for Algonquin College's Small World Big Picture Expedition Africa project, and I know I only got that job because of my training at Algonquin! I was also the recipient of the School of Media and Design's Dean's Award and that was the highlight of my time at Algonquin College!

3. What are you doing today? Are you working, studying or looking for employment? How did your studies at Algonquin contribute to your life today?

I am currently working with the United Nations Environment Programme's Regional Office for North America in Washington D.C., United States, as a Communications Consultant. I have been working here since May 2009, and my contract ends in February 2010. I do a lot of communications work, writing, outreach and so forth. My studies in Algonquin contribute to my life today because at Algonquin, I learnt how to write for different audiences in different formats (i.e. broadcast vs. non-broadcast); At Algonquin, I learnt about how to write for websites, and how to write for theatre audiences. It is this experience that allowed me to know how to write.

4. How can the Algonquin International Student Centre continue to support you in the achievement of your personal goals?

In many ways: first, by inviting Alumni to the College on a regular basis to unite with other International Students, or perhaps by linking up alumni who are around the world. This way we can connect and help each other grow professionally and personally. I think alumni can really act as mentors to each other...you can even link up international alumni to current students or prospective students - this way, not only do alumni get to share their love for their alma mater, but also, they get to help others. I think it also allows us, as alumni, to feel like we are making a difference, and that Algonquin College is part of our lives continuously.

International Educators Training Program (IETP)

During this summer I have been involved in two different programs offered by Queens University. The first one is part of the Summer Institute where I took "Working more effectively in a intercultural workplace"(June 13-18, 2010) with Kyra Garson and Ben Yang. The second program I took online, and it is called Learning with Adults in an Intercultural Setting (June 21 - August 6, 2010) with Robert Mizzii. I am now officially working towards my Certificate for International Education Professionals. 
For more information please refer to the IETP website. This is a great resource for those working in international environments who would like to not only learn about intercultural studies but also network with other professionals in the field. 

Inter Cultural Effectivness - Culture Shock Video

This is an interesting link to coping with culture shock

Conflict Resolution - Study Guides and Strategy

Difficulties are meant to rouse, not discourage.  The human spirit is to grow strong by conflict.

William Ellery Channing, American, 1780-1842

Study Guides and Strategy is a public service that provides interesting insight on different topics such us time management, learning to learn, problem solving and so on. Check this link on Conflict Resolution

What is identity?

Buddhist temple Kyoto - Japan

Trying to answer the question "Who am I?" sounds quite existential. The following link gives us an overview of the concept of identity and invites us to reflect on it. Worth taking a look at it:
Immigrants and Cultural Identity

Share your thoughts!

When Borat came to town - Documentary by Mercedes Stalenhoef

The visual elements of motion pictures are powerful, I believe they contextualize each story and frame each character involved in it. What “I see” is as powerful to me as what I am verbally told. In my opinion, if well organized, images can tell a great deal… if taken out of context and composed in disarray, they can only distract. When Borat came to town (2008) is a documentary by director Mercedes Stalenhoef depicting a few episodes in the life of Lonela, a seventeen year old from Glod (Romania). I believe that documentaries aim to portray reality but there is a medium separating me from that reality (while possibly bringing me closer to it as well). Documentaries are viewpoints and they are saturated with subjective elements, some obvious, some subtler.  Commenting on a film is not always easy for me. I am uncomfortably concerned about intertwined layers of meaning. There are technical elements that require understanding of equipment and filming techniques. There are limitations such as format, language, styles (I am watching this story from the lens of somebody’s camera; the story has been translated from a language I don’t understand into my second language through short subtitles; I, as a viewer, have limited ‘knowledges’ about the cultural elements involved in the depicted environment; I am biased about what I see and how I see it). Nevertheless, when I watch a movie, I try to ignore those ‘layers’ by simply stating my emotional reactions to it. Did I like it or did I not? In this case I did… and why was that? Well… let’s see.

From a visual perspective I found it beautifully shot, not only because of the composition of each frame but also because the images were not redundant, they complemented the story, they ‘spoke’ as well. The imagery pleased my eye and the subsequent story came across as being honest, personal, close to one’s heart. I could sense a director taking some time to observe, to establish rapport with the participants in order to make them feel comfortable with the camera … perhaps to the point of it becoming invisible to them (or at least to some of them).

I also tried to connect to those characters as if I were there in Glod (Was it the music? Was it the type of narration? Was it their search for love and belonging?)  How can an emotional connection be possible if documentaries show me only bits and pieces of a reality? There are ‘different stories’ involved in one film: what was really happening, what the camera captured, what the director wrote about in her script, what she (or her crew) edited after the fact in order to weave the different sections. I witnessed only 59 minutes of what I assume were days if not months if not years of shooting. Then some questions arose: Did this director trick me? Was Mercedes Stalenhoef as opportunistic as Sasha Baren Cohen (Borat) had been portrayed in her film? Are the lawyers that came to town as deceitful as Cohen who omitted his ‘true intentions’ to the villagers of Glod? What was the motivation behind this film? Was it to show another angle to the same story? To vindicate the characters? To illustrate how they had been treated by different ‘cunning exploiters’? Or on the contrary, to prove that they are not as naïve as they seem? Or that they are uneducated? Or greedy but with no tools to succeed due to their ‘disempowered condition’? Perhaps the director had no clear intentions and tried to be as neutral as possible (to the best of her ability) showing me how life ‘happens’ in the ‘post Borat’ village of Glod.

I believe that in general, there is an element of ‘sensationalism’ in documentary filmmaking. Topics may be chosen based on shock value or viewer attention-grabbing tactics (otherwise they would defeat their purpose, no?) I guess I can live with that. What becomes more crucial for me is the degree of commitment to ‘the truth’ and the ethical approach to the characters involved in each story. In this case, I perceived a level of compassion in director Mercedes Stalenhoef. She came across to me as being respectful and sensitive towards the characters in her film. I never felt she wanted to ridicule them…. Unlike the Borat she showed me.

I enjoyed the way the different characters expressed their emotions, their contradictions, their passions and transgressions in, let’s say, a more genuine way.  By genuine I mean, “honestly felt”, not scripted. In this film they had a voice, in Borat, they were given a caption: ‘abortionist’, ‘prostitute’. However, could they be professional actors and this story a fictional film? I guess that is possible. The docudrama Radian City (Brown and Burns, 2006) is an example of ‘enacted reality’.

When Borat came to town indirectly talked to me about context, about taking time to experience a moment in time from different perspectives in order to hear other voices. It might have helped that I watched Borat a while back. I laughed at times throughout that movie. I found it politically incorrect and awkwardly painful to bear at instances but yet ‘brilliant’ in its own ‘degradation’. By that I mean that I am not as critical of the results as I am critical of the method. Sasha Baron Cohen (SBC) managed to question my moral values and my double standards by ‘making fun of me’. He also reminded me what I am directly or indirectly capable of doing to others. Almost like putting a mirror in front of my face and saying, “look at you”, “Can you see yourself reflected here”? I may have answered “no” but … don’t I judge people often? Don’t I oversimplify other people’s cultures? Haven’t I played with many of the ideas Borat raised? I believe that SBC created Borat as a character that would reveal my ‘nakedness’ and project it onto the screen (thus the awkward feeling it generated in me)… Borat also embodied those lawyers that came to encourage the town of Glod to sue Hollywood… and who didn’t see the people of Glod as who they were but as who the lawyers wanted to believe they were. In the end the lawyers acted the same way if not worse than Borat and his creator Cohen. Was SBC trying to gain fame and earn big bucks? Or was he also questioning our society with more dramatic methods? I find Borat disturbing but I don’t disagree with the points he rose by questioning many of my own actions and reactions. How critical is our judgment beyond the obvious? Why did Borat become a box office success if we all felt it was so ‘wrong’? What did we not understand about Borat? I am sure there are different takings on this topic and that’s for me a lesson for intercultural relations. From a teaching perspective I would emphasize taken steps towards visual literacy by not only observing and experiencing the intercultural aspects of each character involved in a story, but also by dealing with the ‘language’ of film and the ‘messages’ derived from this medium.   When Borat came to town left me with a good feeling precisely because of the human contradictions present in the whole story. I enjoyed the evolution of Lonela, negotiating with life, fighting her paradigms and working hard to become Carmen (or the mother or Carmen) without having to move to Spain.

Learning Resources Bulletin from Statistics Canada

This link takes you to an e-mail subscription to the latest free teaching tools!


E-Bulletin

Intercultural Sourcebook by Fowler & Mumford

Volume two of this sourcebook includes articles by twenty-three leading cross-cultural trainers and covers new or divergent training methods for cross-cultural skill development and intercultural learning.

Reference: 

Fowler, S. & Mumford, M. (Eds.). (1995). Intercultural sourcebook: Cross-cultural training methods, vol. 2. Yarmouth, USA: Intercultural Press, Inc.

ISBN 1-877864-64-1 (v.2)

Adult Learning Principles

Useful resources to keep in mind. My special recommendation: the ones in red. 

Agar, M.H. (1996). The professional stranger: An informal introduction to ethnography, 2nd Ed. San Diego: Academic Press.

Amobi, F. (2004). Crossing borders: Reflections on the professional journey of a teacher educator in diaspora. Intercultural Education, 15 (2), 167-178.

Baldwin, J. (1985). The price of the ticket: Collected non-fiction. New York: St. Martin’s Press.

Caudron, S. (2000). Learners speak out: What actual learners actually think of actual training, Training and Development, 52-57.

Coulby, D. (2006). Intercultural education: theory and practice. Intercultural Education, 17 (3), 245-257.

Freire, P. (2002; 1970). Pedagogy of the oppressed. New York: Continuum.

Giroux, H. (2005). Border crossings: Cultural workers and the politics of education, 2nd Ed. New York: Routledge.

Grace, A. (1996). Adult educators as border crossers: Using transformative pedagogy to inform classroom practice. Paper presented at the 37th Annual Adult Education Research Conference, University of South Florida, 145-150.

Haig-Brown, C. (1992). Choosing border work. Canadian Journal of Native Education, v. 19, n. 1., 96-116.

Kidd, J.R. (1973). How adults learn. New York: Association Press.

Lindeman, E. (1925). The meaning of adult education. New York: New Republic.

Merriam, S. & Caffarella, R. (1999). Learning in adulthood: A comprehensive guide, 2nd Ed. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Merriam, S., Caffarella, R., & Baumgartner, L. (2007). Learning in adulthood: A comprehensive guide, 3rd Ed. San Francisco: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Smith, L.T. (1999). Decolonizing methodologies: Research and indigenous peoples. London: Zed Books.

Taylor, E. (1994). Intercultural competency: A transformative learning process. Adult Education Quarterly, 44 (3), 154-174.

Tight, M (1983). Education for Adults, volume I: Adult Learning and education. Beckenham, Kent: The Open University.

Thomas, AM. (1998). Learning Our Way Out. In: Scott, SM, Spencer, B & Thomas, AM (Eds.). Learning For Life: Canadian Readings in Adult Education. Toronto, ON: Thompson Educational Publishing, Inc.

Wekker, G. (2006). The politics of passion: Women’s sexual culture in the Afro-Surinamese diaspora. New York: Columbia University Press.

Zachary, L.J. (2002). The role of teacher as mentor. New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education, 93, 27-38.

Join the International Educators Association of Canada (IEAC)

For more information on the "Curry House Manifesto" visit the IEAC Website!

One of IEAC's objectives to provide professional development and training the trainer activities through workshops, seminars and courses alone or through partnerships with existing training programs!

Seal Ban: The Inuit Impact

The EU ban on seal products has profoundly affected Canada's Inuit community. Despite the fact that the Inuit are exempt from the ban, they no longer have a market for sealskins; a by-product of their subsistence hunt.

This short documentary brings together commentary from Inuit hunters, community leaders and an emotional testimonial from Lisa Eetuk Ishulutak, who is affected by the ban because she is learning Fur Design at the Arctic College, and her main design material is sealskin.
(Info from: Eye on the Arctic - CBC/Radio Canada)

Seal Ban: The Inuit Impact

EAIE 2010 Nantes (France) - September 15-18, 2010

Join fellow international higher education professionals for hands-on workshops and cutting-edge sessions highlighting the latest trends in the field