Teaching Curve 26 Alex Cromwell on Integrating International Video Interactions into IR Courses

Dr. Alexander Cromwell is a Professorial Lecturer and the Associate Director of the Dean’s Scholars and Experiential Learning program at the Elliott School of international affairs at George Washington University in Washington, DC in the United States. He is the coauthor, along with Saaya Miyashiro, of a recent article in International Studies Perspectives entitled “Promoting Learning about Precarity and Resilience in War: Virtual Encounters between Afghan and American Students in International Studies Courses.”

The episode explores 

·       The value of cross-cultural interactions for teaching students what it means to have empathy on a global scale. 

·       Logistics and common problems of integrating international interactions into a global politics course. 

·       Suggestions for how to improve the process now that online video interactions are more accessible and normal. 

The interview was edited for length.

Acknowledgements:

Thanks to the steering committee for International Studies Association’s Innovative Pedagogy Initiative, the folks at ISA HQ, and special thanks to Sarah Dorr, Joel Lorenzatti and Josephine Anderson for logistical and technical support. 

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Email: TeachingCurve@isanet.org

For 23 more stories about innovative and effective teachers of international studies, including one from Naeem, check out Pedagogical Journeys through World Politics, Palgrave Macmillan, 2020: https://www.palgrave.com/us/book/9783030203047