UF Faculty Department College
Marina Klimenko Psychology College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
Partner Faculty Department Partner Institution
Ramilya Mustafina English Language Kazan Federal University, Russia
Title:
Culture and Human Development
Project Description:

This virtual exchange project is a collaboration between undergraduate students at University of Florida, studying Developmental Psychology, and graduate students at Yelabuga Institute, who are studying English as second language.  Throughout the course, UF students learn how culture shapes human development.  As part of the course curriculum, UF students (1) participate in one synchronous zoom discussion with students from Yelabuga Institute or (2) complete a presentation focusing on culture and pop culture. Students from Yelabuga institute have also developed several learning presentations for UF students, describing cultural differences in language and romantic relationships. These presentations are used as learning tools in the course.   

Learning Outcomes:
  • Compare and contrast cultural differences and similarities in human development
  • Develop cultural self-awareness and cultural competence  to promote effective communication in global world
  • Understand the science of human development
Participating Countries:
Russia
Number of Participants:
313 UF students and 25 students from the partner institution
Discipline:
Psychology
UF Course Code & Name:
DEP3053 - Developmental Psychology
Project Duration:
14 weeks
Activity Type(s):
Student-to-Student Dialogue
Student-to-Student Project
Time allotted to each activity:
Synchronous Activities: 1 hours
Asynchronous Activities: 1 hours
Local group activities: 1 hours
Individual work: 10 hours
Technology Tools:
Videoconference (Zoom)
Learning Management Systems (Canvas)
Email
Sequence of Activities:

Orientation- All assignments and instructional materials are immersed with the Canvas course. Students will watch an introductory video which was created by the partners from Yelabuga Institute. The synchronous zoom meeting dates are scheduled at the beginning of the semester so that students can prepare in advance. Students who are unable to attend one of the virtual exchange zoom meetings are allowed to create a presentation focusing on culture as its theme (instructions provided).  

Icebreaker- We introduce each other at the beginning of the zoom meeting.  

Student-to-student collaboration- Students from the two schools only engage in a discussion.  

Reflection- UF students engage in group discussions where they are encouraged to reflect on what they learn. For example, one of the group discussions is about cultural differences in language pragmatics.  UF students watch a presentation created by the partners from Yelabuga Institute and are encouraged to reflect and expand on what they notice the differences are between Russian and English pragmatics or differences with other cultures. 

Assessment- Students receive an automatic credit for participation in the cultural virtual discussion.  Assessments of other activities are done based on the correctness of their answers on quizzes and final exam.