"This is foreign to me!" - Cultural diversity in teaching

Content:

Culture and identity shape our interactions - especially in everyday university life. In an educational institution such as the University of Siegen, diverse perspectives, life plans and biographies enrich the exchange between colleagues, teaching staff and students.
In teaching, advising and working together, people with diverse biographical, social and cultural experiences come together. This diversity is reflected, for example, in origin, different perspectives, communication methods and institutional approaches. The associated dynamics are not always
immediately tangible, but offer a valuable opportunity to reflect on one's own professional actions.
The focus is not on the juxtaposition of a supposed "own" and "foreign", but on the examination of transcultural dynamics, overlapping identities and structural framework conditions.
This training raises awareness of cultural diversity in teaching. We reflect on our own preconceptions and prejudices, get to know helpful tools and develop strategies for action to shape encounters in a confident and appreciative manner. The aim is to gain impulses for a professional approach
to diversity and to strengthen communication in the globally networked structure of the university.

Learning objectives:

- Raising awareness of one's own cultural roots, sensitization,
better understanding of cultural differences.
- Getting to know helpful tools and methods for working in
intercultural contexts.
- Expanding knowledge and skills in transcultural communication.
- Having communication tools at hand to deal professionally with "alienating" situations.

The workshop is aimed at lecturers and staff who want to further develop their practice in dealing with diversity in a power-critical manner and make it more inclusive. Participants are invited to reflect on their own perspectives, think about institutional contexts and expand their scope for action in terms of discrimination-sensitive and reflexive action.