Presentation to GCU Blended Learning Coffee Club

1. COILing Across a Decade
10th Anniversary COIL conference
April 2016
(Coffee club)
Sabine McKinnon
Anne Smith
Michael Bromby

2. What is COIL?
http://coil.suny.edu/
 Center for Collaborative Online International Learning at SUNY
 SUNY is largest comprehensive uni in US
 64 campuses, nearly 500,000 students
 started in 2006; non-commercial
 24 SUNY campuses
 28 Global Network partners
 worked with 50 HEI’s from around the world
 published 24 case studies

3. SUNY

4. The COIL approach
 form of virtual exchange and globally networked learning
 brings together geographically distant academics and students
from different cultural backgrounds to communicate and
collaborate through online communication tools
 from 4 weeks to entire module
 promotes interactive shared coursework, emphasizing experiential
learning
 Students get to know each other while developing meaningful
projects together
 broadens and deepens their understanding of course content
 builds cross-cultural communication skills and international
awareness through engaging with the perspectives of peers from
abroad
 Encourages interdisciplinary approach

6. 3 GCU presentations at COIL conference
1. Sake and Irn Bru: Using COIL to
internationalise entrepreneurship education
in Scotland and Japan (Kansai University,
Osaka) (Anne Smith and Sabine McKinnon)
2. Scale and Polish or Scales of Justice? Filling
the gap in interdisciplinary teaching (SUNY
Monroe Community College) (Michael
Bromby)
3. Pecha Kucha 20 slides for 20 seconds
Assessment and feedback for asynchronous
discussion (Michael Bromby)

7. • Wikispaces: interactive online platform for student
engagement in assessment
– Gather data and share with Kansai partners
– Produce comparative group report
• Skype/Facebook: Communication tools to interact
on project
The question of tools

8. Interaction on FacebookXXXXXX
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9. Synchronous interaction on Skype

10. Interaction with Wikis

11. Method:
Entry questionnaire
• Establish perceptions of cultural awareness and subject knowledge
Assessment set up
• Design assessment to incorporate test with a feedback/feedforward system
Communications set
up
• Set up Fb page to encourage social learning, set up Wikis with tuition for formal learning,
set up skype for planning communications
Cultural and
Knowledge lectures
• Delver knowledge based lectures and guest lecturer delivered session on Japanese
culture
Workbook on IIP
• Prepare work booklet for Kansai and GCU students
Exit questionnaire
• Review level of Cultural Intelligence and Subject Knowledge
Entry questionnaire
• Establish perceptions of cultural awareness and subject knowledge in pre-intervention
survey
Assessment set up
• Design assessment to incorporate test with a feedback/feedforward system
Communications set
up
• Set up Fb page to encourage social learning, set up Wikis with tuition for formal learning,
set up skype for planning communications
Cultural and
Knowledge lectures
• Deliver knowledge based lectures; guest lecturer delivered session on Japanese culture
Workbook on IIP
• Prepare work booklet for Kansai and GCU students
Exit questionnaire
• Review perceptions and subject knowledge in post-intervention survey

12. Reference
McKinnon, S., Smith , A. and Thomson, J. (2015) A Window to the World:
Using Technology to Internationalise Entrepreneurship Education, Journal of
Perspectives in Applied Academic Practice, Vol 3, issue 3, pp.15-23
http://jpaap.napier.ac.uk/index.php/JPAAP/issue/view/12

13. Learning from the conference
COILing across differences is the most rewarding
• Geographical
• Disciplines
• Levels of study

14. Examples from conference: COILing across countries
 Potsdam University and
Tecnologico de Monterrey
 SUNY and Bilkent University
 San Jose State University and
Allama Iqbal Open University
 De Paul University ; Symbiosis
International University and
University of Dubrovnik
 SUNY and Hanze University of
Applied Sciences
 SUNY and Universidad de
Cartagena

15. COILing across disciplines
SUNY Oswego and Tecnologico de Monterrey
o project management
o multimedia design
o creative writing / theatre and script writing
o electrical engineering
Task: create a design for stage set

16. COILing across disciplines
o Marketing and Engineering
o Law, opthalmic dispensing and dental assistants
o ‘common good projects’ with 30 international
partners
o Psychology and teacher education
o Archaelogy and New Media Art
o Criminology and Photography

17. Challenges
 Different institutional contexts
 Different pedagogic approaches
 Different levels of familiarity with tools
 Different levels of student commitment
 Composition of international groups
 Time zones
 Assessment
 Language

18. Feedback from students
“As a result of this module I feel that I have learnt a lot about not only Japanese
culture but also the Scottish culture as well. I also feel that it has improved my
intercultural skills as I now want to learn more about different cultures throughout
the world.”
“ (Conducting business in Japan) is very different from Western ways; to be
successful in Japan one would require a very good prior working knowledge of
cultural sensitivity and awareness . As a result of this module I actually feel it is
something I could go ahead and do with much more confidence than before.”
“My knowledge of Japan has improved but their culture is so different from
Scotland’s – I feel that there is probably more to learn over a longer period of
time.”

19. What can we learn from the Japanese way of conducting
business?
“(They are) very polite .”
“Patience is important and can lead to long-term working relationships.
Respect is highly valued.”
“We could mimic the ways in which they do business such as building
respectful relationships with companies before deciding to trade with
them.”
“To always be humble and respect your peers’ views and opinions. Don’t be
too brash or boastful.”

20. Benefits
 Learning outcomes achieved in innovative way: students
demonstrated understanding of developing
entrepreneurial organisations through innovation practice
in international settings
 Enhanced intercultural literacy, curiosity and sensitivity
through real-world international group working
 Enhanced confidence with tools and processes involved in
collaboration with remote partners → employability

21. COIL is real world learning
“The problem is that the students might get
upset. This doesn’t work. What now? But that is
entrepreneurship”.

22. Recommendations
 Careful risk assessment in advance
 Always have a plan B
 Work with existing learning outcomes
 Provide cultural background information in advance
 Prepare a glossary of common terms
 Include IT staff in planning process