The Development, Implementation, and Evaluation of a Model for Teaching Intercultural Competency through the Content Areas at Faith School of Theology.

N

356

Church Related Colleges; College Programs; Cross Cultural Training; Cultural Awareness; Cultural Education; Curriculum Design; Demonstration Programs; Higher Education; Intercultural Programs; Models; Multicultural Education; Student Development; Theological Education

In light of the cross cultural understanding and communications skills likely to be demanded of those in evangelical Christian ministry working all over the world, this project developed, implemented, and evaluated a model for infusing intercultural competency (ICC) into a seminary curriculum at the Faith School of Theology in Maine. From a study of the literature, extant models, and the perceptions of consultants and participants, a 4-quadrant scheme for classifying 36 extant ICC models emerged and a 7-step curriculum infusion model was developed. The model contained four domains--cognitive, affective, behavioral, and organizational--and involved leadership, administration, and faculty in a comprehensive program to infuse ICC into all aspects of the seminary program. The project led to the following conclusions: (1) it was difficult to establish a clear theoretical basis for ICC due to the wide band of theories among interculturalists; (2) developing such a program requires support from the social sciences; (3) the most important ICC skills are adaptation, interaction, flexibility and internal integrity; (4) ICC is a developmental process and not easily reduced to a set of discrete skills isolated to a dedicated course. Appendixes contain additional information on the model and its development, materials for a workshop on the model, evaluation instruments, and input from multiple disciplines. (Contains over 250 references.) (JB)

1995

ED385185