Using Discovery-Based Learning to Develop International Business Soft Skills: Foreign Country Issue Analyses in Term-Long Cross-Cultural Projects with ESL Students
João Neiva de Figueiredo, Sangcheol Song, and Alfredo Mauri
Saint Joseph’s University, USA
Volume 10: 2015, pp. 59-82; ABSTRACT
This article describes a semester-long Cross-Cultural Project that uses a discovery-based learning approach to develop international business soft skills in the absence of direct international exposure. The tacit knowledge required for cross-cultural competence is developed through the pairing of U.S.-based students with ESL students from the same country to form augmented teams who then jointly engage in a multi-stage project. Each augmented team needs to address, analyze, and propose an implementable solution for a specific foreign country issue of their choice, offering an added opportunity for interdisciplinary collaboration. In a second stage each team works together on a cultural assessment of the respective foreign country. In a third stage students synthesize their reflections, both individually and collectively, on the whole discovery-based process. A description of the successful implementation of the Cross-Cultural Project in international business education is provided as well as a discussion of specific benefits and lessons learned.
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