Reflections on a Teaching Exchange in Psychology

Abstract

Following a teaching exchange between universities in the UnitedKingdom and the United States, we taught together for one term at the same university. Teaching together prowided an opportunity for extended discussion, the collaborative nature of which produced an appraisal different from those in which authors independently report their experiences. We describe our perceptions of similarities and diferences between the two university departments with regard to students, pedagogical approaches, and faulty issues.

International experience and academic careers

“…The majority of academics in this study also perceived synergy between their personal competitive advantage and that of their institution. Specifically, they accorded with views that academics with overseas experience are likely to be more attuned to cultural differences having gained new insights into teaching processes and practices (Clack and Joynson, 1992). Inkson et al 's (1997) observation about the organisational value of international experience is especially pertinent here.…”

Academic Expatriation to Emerging Economies: A Career Perspective

“…Academics continuously feel the urge to develop skills and expertise that are essential for long-term academic career success, which involve mostly teaching and research skills [12]. In terms of teaching, research shows that academic expatriates are motivated to develop teaching skills that are required to deliver strong teaching performances [25]. Emerging economies need human resources that can help to facilitate the transition to a knowledge-based and entrepreneurship-or innovation-driven economy [7].…”

“…In these developed countries, the cultural values that support innovation such as risk-taking behavior are prevalent [27][28][29][30]; thus, teaching practices are also likely to be in line with such values. To develop a unique set of teaching skills in emerging economies, academic expatriates aim to transfer their technical knowledge and their own cultural values [31], and adapt their teaching style to local cultural standards [3,25]. This could result in a unique set of teaching skills and expertise that are accumulated both in the home and the host countries, which allow for academic expatriates to adopt the right teaching style in emerging economies while teaching students new theories and practices that are prevalent in their home countries.…”

Psychology Teaching in Europe

“…The American journal Teaching of Psychology also includes occasional articles on psychology as taught in different countries, though the articles published tend to be a little less formally structured than those in the Annual Review of Psychology . In recent years there have been articles on psychology in Estonia (Sommer & Sommer, 1991; Tomusk & Tomusk, 1993), and a number on psychology in the United Kingdom as seen through the eyes of exchange staff (Clack & Joynson, 1992) or visiting scholars (Hettich, 1994).…”