In an effort to provide an authentic-as-possible learning experience to international students who could not come back to campus this semester due to COVID-19, English for Academic Purposes Course Coordinator, Matthew Jellick, has created a specialized class for the five international students enrolled in the EAP program. Meeting every Monday evening online at 7pm China time, Matthew hosts a separate class, live on Zoom, with international students from Cambodia and Kazakhstan joining for an engaging, interactive and rather demanding course.
Aiming to replicate the in-class experience as closely as possible, the international students participate in discussion, as well as get a personalized lesson, including slides, examples and content sharing in a seminar-like setting. While the current set of global circumstances are constantly fluctuating, this approach of getting all the international EAP students into one class seems to benefit everyone involved, providing discourse which may be overlooked through video sharing alone.
Internationalization can act as a catalyst for expanded worldviews, which in turn create opportunities for idea sharing, and through this specialized class, we aim to do just that, trying to make the most out of a complicated situation.
