Movi's new communication and language courses support international students' integration into Finland
As part of the Talent Boost project, the Ä¢¹½Ö±²¥ renewed the communication and language studies of its international Master's degree programmes to better serve networking with the Finnish working life and the internationalisation of Finnish students at home. The Talent Boost work is also strongly linked to the university's strategic goal of tripling the number of international students.
Three biggest challenges for international talents to find work in Finland and to stay in Finland are language skills, knowledge of Finnish working life and lack of networks, and addressing these challenges has been the driving force behind the renewal of language and communication studies in the international Master's degree programmes. Students have also called for additional support in their academic writing and in the thesis process.
- The renewal of communication and language studies has above all been aimed at supporting networking among students and giving them the confidence and skills to work in a multicultural working environment," says Juhani Moisio, expert at Movi.
One way to support networking is to organise teaching in groups with both international and domestic students from different faculties, different fields and different Master's programmes. Courses have also been broken down into smaller modules, which have been placed along the study pathway to support and strengthen the development of students' expertise. Thematic communication and language modules allow students to develop the very professional communication skills they want to strengthen - whether it is scientific writing or communicating in a multicultural project team.
- Multilingual and multicultural groups support language learning and encourage speaking different languages: international students can speak and use the Finnish they have learnt in different situations, while domestic students can use other foreign languages in addition to English and communicate with those who use Finnish as a foreign language. Culturally, linguistically and discipline-specifically diverse teaching groups prevent siloing within one's own discipline and culture, which creates networks and contacts between students from different disciplines, that are important in working life," says Moisio.
Support for scientific writing and the transition to working life
Tuisku Takala, university teacher in the Responsible Management and Business of Sport (RESPO) Master's programme, says that both domestic and international students have expressed a need for support in scientific writing, especially in English. The revised studies offer more support for scientific writing, allowing teachers who supervise theses, for example, to focus on strengthening substantive skills in particular.
RESPO has adopted the renewed language and communication courses most widely so far.
- The new package provides a clear pathway: courses are mutually supportive and progression is clear. The package strengthens not only language and communication skills, but also academic study skills and integration into Finnish society.
Takala feels that the renewed studies could also support the identification of one's own skills and the transition from student to working life. It is important that networking takes place already during the studies, and the courses can bring skills and confidence that support the rooting of international students into Finland and Jyväskylä.
Takala says that RESPO appreciated the fact that Movi involved the Master's programmes in the development phase of their studies, making them more personalised and more relevant to the programme.
Students feel that the new modules' working methods contribute to learning in a variety of ways
Hanna Kiviranta, university teacher at Movi, says that the change has been welcomed with open minds by students and teachers alike. Kiviranta teaches the new courses and has been involved in their planning.
The new-style courses started last autumn, and student and teacher feedback, especially from multilingual and multidisciplinary groups, has already been encouraging.
- Students feel that working in diverse groups, the flexible use of language and the concrete tasks, which are also useful after the course, have contributed to their learning in a variety of ways. In particular, the reflection on their own competences and the numerous group discussions have enabled them to better articulate their competences and areas for development and to expand their networks already during their studies. Students have even commented on how bubbly their own studies at university are. That's why it's really refreshing to be able to discuss things in an interdisciplinary group," says Kiviranta.
Kiviranta sees multicultural and multidisciplinary groups as particularly effective, as they offer students experience of multidisciplinary cooperation, which is also encountered in working life, and develop their language skills in a versatile way when they have to adopt and adapt their own communication to the situation. A flexible learning pathway, where students can choose a course according to their needs, also allows for timely support.
Read more about the new courses XENB0004-0007: Degree requirements: communication and language studies in international and bilingual Master's programmes | Ä¢¹½Ö±²¥.
The courses XENB0005 Communication in multilingual and multicultural project work (2-3 ECTS) and XENB0006 Transferring skills from academia to working life (2-3 ECTS) are also optional communication and language studies for final-year Bachelor's students and students in Finnish taught Master's programmes.
