Student exchange as a process - orientation, supervision and reflection

All students who apply for the international exchange must take an orienta-tion course before going abroad. That applies also to students in the English Degree Program (DSS), even if the students go to their native country for placement. Although the decision of going abroad is made at early stages of studies, the international studies take place not earlier than after professio-nal study units (courses) have been done. Usually the students have studied about two years before the international placement.

I remember what happened after the first big group of students I had sent abroad from Kirstinkatu in 2001. There was not yet an organized orientation for the group, but we used part of the multicultural studies’ lessons for the preparations. It was the first group that spent three months abroad and they had to take a one week’s seminar afterwards related to the exchange. It cluded presentations of each student, general discussions and one day of in-dividual reflective discussions. A couple of students gave feedback that they felt like idiots when they had to share so much of their experiences. Already during the next semester an orientation program started at Kirstinkatu. In Alppikatu there was an orientation booklet Study and practice abroad: guide-book for international study possibilities in Diak. 1997 which was one of the elements of orientation programs developed in different parts of Diak.

Kyösti Voima recalls that he and some colleagues had arranged orienta-tion for students going abroad also in Alppikatu in 1997. He had got some feedback from a person working in Foreign Ministry that there were some problems in placements in Asia. Diak students had left abroad without any orientation. The same thing was said by Ms Mallik in her feedback of the early years of exchange. Kyösti and his colleague Riitta Järvinen asked for a permission to arrange orientation for students on an experimental basis.

It meant lessons on cultural topics in the afternoons at Alppikatu. Several teachers were involved with short lectures from their area, such as religions, transcultural nursing, and communication. (Kyösti Voima, personal commu-nication 2.4.2012.)

From 2002 on orientation was organized jointly in Diak Helsinki. Kyösti Voima and I started to develop a program and in the early years also the in-ternational managers were involved. All students from Southern Finland were invited to the orientation as well as students going to developing countries from any Diak unit. Some students came; some did not, because there was no arranged funding for coming from other parts of Finland at that time.

Yet, the feedback from the partners was clear: the better the students were prepared, the fewer problems came up. Of course it wasn’t always that way.

Just one immature student could get the whole group carried away and the stupidity was multiplied.

In 2003 Kyösti and I applied for funding to plan a virtual orientation course that was to be used in all Diak units. We had seen a few examples of other polytechnics’ virtual orientation courses and it was clear to us that we wanted something else. We decided that we would never go to only virtual orientati-on but always organize face to face teaching as the main thing in orientatiorientati-on.

Our goal was to help the students to go deep into the process of orientating themselves to a new culture, new working habits, personal change, group dy-namics as well as help out with practical arrangements starting with finances and vaccinations. Excellent support has been given for years by Diak South school nurse Merja Toivainen. (Meretmaa & Voima 2006.)

Orientation has been one of the strengths of Diak’s exchange program.

Feedback from the field is positive and as mentioned before in comparison with the early days of Diak it has been said that the students are better pre-pared for the new culture than before. (Bijli Mallik 2012; Esther Thapa 2012.) That can be seen also in the reflection discussions held always after the pla-cement as well as read from students’ reports. My experience is that students say quite directly and honestly if they haven’t been prepared well in advance.

Diak’s international people, coordinators both here and there have an impor-tant role in preparing the trip, realizing it and making it successful. Teachers’

excitement was also very ”contagious”. Not to mention the peer support. (Kati, Nepal 2004.)

During the international placement the students work and study under the tutoring and supervision of a local supervisor of the partner organiza-tion. To help that process the Supervisor’s handbook was first published in 2002, made as the part of my thesis work in teacher education. Later on the booklet has been revised and modified to meet the changing needs of Diak’s curriculum and placements. Diak teaching staff supervises the practices and coordinates the cooperation with the partners. Soon after the students have returned back to school, a reflection is organized. In the reflection day the fo-cus is on the personal growth process and professional development. Also a personal discussion with the supervising teacher is used to help the students to analyse their experiences in personal and professional levels. (Meretmaa

& Voima 2006.)

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PICTURE 14: Diak students at reflection discussion after placement 2010.

Photo: Kyösti Voima

Later on team Hälikkä, Kainulainen and Voima developed a model of these principles where the whole process of exchange is visualized in one picture.

personal discussion with the supervising teacher is used to help the students to analyse their experiences in personal and professional levels. (Meretmaa & Voima 2006.)

PICTURE 14: Diak students at reflection discussion after placement 2010. Photo: Kyösti Voima Later on team Hälikkä, Kainulainen and Voima developed a model of these principles where the whole process of exchange is visualized in one picture.

During the international placement the students work and study under the tutoring and supervision of a local supervisor of the partner organization. A contact person living in Swaziland has also an important role in tutoring and supervision. In addition to the assistance of these local tutors Diak teaching staff supervises the fulfilment of the study goals of the students, and coordinates the cooperation with the partners. Soon after the students have returned back to school, a reflection is organized. In the reflection day the focus is on the personal growth process and professional development. Also a personal discussion with the supervising teacher is used to help the students to analyze their experiences at personal and professional levels. (Hälikka, Kainulainen & Voima 2010.)

4.4 Thesis in developing country – model developed by Anne Määttä

The idea of modelling Diak’s thesis process abroad was further developed so that Anne Määttä

Virtual course

Visa, security, challenges of humanitarian work, Survey of circumstances (health of population), Human right issues (incl. women and children)

A supervisor from Diak, once

Data collecting period with university students, Option: course on research metodology Country coordinator

in Diakand in contry Profess. supervisors In working place and Diak

Reflection -Adequate health and psychic stamina -Suitability for exchange, progress of studies &

language skills -suitability of placement unit

-Commitment in preparation process for intl. exchange, and information for the next group of exchange students

Reflective exchange

process

During the international placement the students work and study under the tutoring and supervision of a local supervisor of the partner organization.

A contact person living in Swaziland has also an important role in tutoring and supervision. In addition to the assistance of these local tutors Diak te-aching staff supervises the fulfilment of the study goals of the students, and coordinates the cooperation with the partners. Soon after the students have returned back to school, a reflection is organized. In the reflection day the fo-cus is on the personal growth process and professional development. Also a personal discussion with the supervising teacher is used to help the students to analyze their experiences at personal and professional levels. (Hälikka, Kainulainen & Voima 2010.)

4.4 Thesis in developing country – model developed by