The course, ‘Learning in an International Environment’, was delivered at Hanoi University in Vietnam in a two week short burst style for Westminster’ Department of Politics and International Relations and Hanoi students to learn together.
Twenty students studing Politics and International Relations at Westminster joined twenty students from Hanoi University last month to attend ‘Learning in an International Environment’, an international learning module covering domestic, regional and global dynamics of Vietnamese politics, society and economics.
The course, run by Dr Farhang Morady, assisted by Dr Ricardo BLAUG from the University of Westminster, was delivered over two weeks with lectures and seminars run by academics from both institutions. The module included visits to local museums, day trips to local villages, to Halong Bay and to the British Embassy. The module concluded a Conference on the New Asian Century where staff from both universities spoke.
Mr. Long DANG, Program Coordinator and Lecturer from Hanoi University said of the course: “The experience was fantastic for both sides, both academically and practically. Joint academic activities have given students a wonderful chance to learn from one another and thus to enrich their own knowledge about issues in international relations and development. Joint field researches in the context of changes in a developing country with huge contrasts such as Vietnam also exposed the students to a reality that they would never get by staying at home and reading a book. Every minute of the exchange program counts towards making participants mature and ready for working in a multi-cultural and developing environment.”
The module was an outstanding success, students deepened their international understanding and were able to reflect on the value of inter-cultural learning. The combination of travel, immersion and multicultural interaction delivers profound and rapid learning, enhancing the student experience and making learning fun.
Professor Dibyesh ANAND, Head of the Department of Politics and International Relations commented: “Running a module in a foreign country is a challenging task, because of the commitment of our colleagues, enthusiasm of our students, and full support from the host institution, this was a big success. We will continue to run such modules to enhance our students learning experience and to support our University’s commitment to being a globally engaged institution.”
