Global Education – Internationalizing Plant Pathology at the University of Saskatchewan.mp4

FESCH.TV INFORMIERT:

Presented by Randy Kutcher

Students successfully met the learning outcomes in an undergraduate plant pathology course by engaging in a collaborative online international learning (COIL) experience at the University of Saskatchewan (UofS) from September-December 2021. With limited ability to travel internationally due to the pandemic, COIL provided all 84 Canadian students registered in the UofS course with an opportunity to investigate a topic of mutual interest with 28 students from Universities in Ecuador, Ukraine or in the USA. Colleagues at the universities abroad were consulted and three topics pertaining to plant pathology were chosen on which to base an assignment. The topics were plant disease diagnosis, pathogen resistance to fungicides and biological control of plant diseases. Using a free online social annotation tool, students were given the choice to select one of the three papers. Students participated in an online discussion of the topic, guided by a teaching assistant, over two weeks. Students were then organized into sub-groups of three UofS students and one student from one of the three partnered countries. A broad open-ended question was asked on each topic; the four students in each subgroup worked together to draft a response. Students were encouraged to meet their subgroup over video chat and to edit their document collaboratively. The paper was included in the assessment for the UofS course (10%) and at some (not all) of the universities in Ecuador, Ukraine and the USA. Students were able to develop their disciplinary knowledge while practicing the skills of a globally minded plant pathologist. The COIL exercise was considered a success based on feedback obtained from UofS students and students from other countries. Students reported growth in their intercultural competence after the experience.