GSIK

Global Systems and Intercultural Competence

Education for People with Emotional and Behavioural Disorders in the Interfaculty Teaching Project of the University of Würzburg

Univ.-Prof. Dr. Roland Stein,
Prof. Dr. Thomas Müller,
Miriam Lohrmann

Disorders of behaviour and experience in different social contexts are often generated by cultural differences, as cultures define norms of adequate behaviour and experience. These norms may differ greatly depending on the constellation of the cultures meeting. Moreover, misunderstandings and conflicts recur due to social contacts between persons from different cultural backgrounds. In addition, especially children and young people as well as adults with migration background frequently show disorders of their behaviour and emotions. One of the reasons is that they try to cope with cultural tension.

The tasks of the Chair of Special Education V in the interdisciplinary project 'Global Systems and Intercultural Competences' are very complex. The combination of a special educational perspective with the promotion of intercultural competences and global learning is fundamental. One of the main objective is to teach students of all fields of specialization basic competences such as tolerance of ambiguity, flexibility concerning thinking and acting, openness and an optimistic attitute. These are aspects of intercultural competence, which are of central importance in all areas of life and occupational sectors because of the progressing globalisation, internationalization and the increasing number of migrations and refugees. Furthermore, intercultural (action) competence also consists of an intercultural professional competence as well as a social and strategic competence. These fields will be worked out and reflected inter alia by seminars on the topics of intercultural/culturally sensitive counselling, intercultural communication, experiential education in an intercultural context, migration and escape or a simulation game on the topic of migration in Europe. These competences ensure that possible intercultural misunderstandings are either prevented, identified and remedied sooner or accepted. Therefore they have both a preventive and an interventional effect.

Courses on offer, pojects and future projects at a glance

The seminars on the subject area consulting promote understanding and sensitivity to the psychosocial stress which migrants, refugees and asylum seekers experience before and after a cultural change. Furthermore, problems and possibilities of integrating foreigners in German educational and training institutions, but also in social life, are discussed. Selected consulting approaches are dealt with in a theoretically well-founded manner, too. Various methods are used to work on communication and intercultural competences.
These skills are also being developed in the context of the series of courses 'Intercultural Competence in the Classroom', networks are linked to internal and external partners and experts and thus bringing together interested parties. In the summer semester 2020 a workshop took place on the topic of 'Changing Perspectives: Escape and Prejudice'. Okba Kerdiea, speaker of the project 'Education Meets Development', presented new perspectives to students from different fields of spezialization. He broadened horizons and eliminated or weakened some of the prejudices by stimulating discussions and answering many questions. There are more workshops considered for teachers in order to reach this target group in the second phase of training, who actively need these competences in their professional life and use them daily more or less consciously. Due to their current experience they contribute further perspectives at the same time.
The networking of different actors of the global educational work should still be objective in future. On the one hand there is a possibility to develop an intercultural training for interested students, on the other hand to network education projects that are already existing.
Currently an intercultural country-specific training has been developed for trainees coming from Laos to Germany. This has been done in the context of a seminar together with students and in cooperation with the company BHS Corrugated Maschinen- und Anlagenbau GmbH. This training will be tested this year, if necessary revised and integrated in the in-company training at BHS. Moreover, a real field of application of intercultural work is presented to students.
There are also online offers in form of e-learning courses in preparation in order to transmit knowledge in the digital field and promote intercultural competences, too.
In the summer semesters of 2018 and 2019 GSIK participated in the lecture series on vulnerability in Würzburg, which resulted in a publication with numerous intercultural references and topics: Keul, H. & Müller, T. (2020) (Hg.): Verwundbar. Theologische und humanwissenschaftliche Perspektiven zur menschlichen Vulnerabilität. Echter Würzburg https://www.echter.de/verwundbar-2117/