We recently hosted our first in-person, post-Covid International Week at Cardiff School of Technologies with Cardiff Met's Global Opportunities team just weeks ago! It was fantastic to be able to, once again, welcome students from Denmark, the Netherlands and Belgium to our new home on campus for a week-long game jam. As always, it was a rewarding experience for all involved, and it was brilliant to be welcoming students from partner institutions through the Businet IT working group. We have long benefitted from our collaboration with them and have hosted these events annually for some time now.
As this was our first post-Covid event, however, I thought I'd use this opportunity to fire off a quick blog post to share just a few of the things we've learned without listing the more mundane stuff like remembering to check the right software is installed or that students will have the necessary wifi codes (they may not have roaming on their phones).
Keeping the Brief Broad
Choosing a project brief can be tricky. It is not always easy to anticipate the skills and experiences that students from different Higher Education environments will bring to the table. Keeping the project brief fairly broad allows for some flexibility regarding what students will be expected to deliver at the end. Incorporating different elements into the deliverable at the end can ensure that everyone has the opportunity to contribute in a meaningful way. Depending on the individual student and their background, this contribution could be in programming the software, developing the pitch, graphics design or writing supporting documentation. The trade-off, of course, with such a short period of time is that it's no longer about producing something industry standard or a project with significant depth. It's really about focusing on the experience itself and what the students should be getting out of it (teamwork, intercultural experiences, professional development etc.). They can learn to code anywhere, but this is a unique opportunity to work with others in a global context.
Don't Be Afraid of Competition - They Aren't!
We chose not to make the process competitive. Instead, each team received verbal and written feedback on their projects. Based on discussions, however, it was pretty clear that the students weren't afraid of a little healthy competition. This is certainly something to consider for next time. I know that a few of our partner institutions have invited industrial colleagues to come in and help with the judging process and sponsor prizes.
Birthdays in the Cohort
It turned out that one of the students visiting us had a birthday. The School quickly sorted the cake, and some of the students had already arrived wearing party hats and brought balloons. Whilst making no assumptions about students wishing to share that it is their birthday, I'll remember to check next time!
Notable National Holidays
During the students' visit, the Koningsdag (King's Day) festival in the Netherlands (and other places!) was taking place. It was fantastic to see the students wearing orange tops to mark the occasion and Willem written on the CleverTouch screen when I walked in. With some forward planning, it would have been fun to try to bring Koningsdag into the week. Nevertheless, the bus drivers who took us to St. Fagan's that day enjoyed chatting to the students about it. It certainly made the day more festive than anticipated, and I think Cardiff benefitted later that evening! Again, when hosting International Weeks, it's definitely worth anticipating such national or cultural events falling within the timescale and using that as another opportunity for cultural exchange.
Looking Forward to Next Time
The students did themselves and their institutions proud. They all arrived with keen interest and a willingness to learn. From the get-go, they were innovative and professional in their approach to all that they did, but they were also fun to be around. With games being produced on various topics from climate change to, um, beer-drinking (whilst being chased by a tree), every team was unique. If you've not hosted an international student week at your institution, we recommend the experience.
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