It takes more than grades for academic success
in the Canadian classroom.

International Student Development

Vital skills for academic success and wellbeing in class

International students often arrive unprepared for the demands of the Canadian and American classroom environment.

Stories abound of the struggle to participate in class, challenges around group work and not being perceived as an asset to the group learning. Although technically strong, many international students are often unaware of the classroom expectations beyond grades and exams. 

I have also personally heard from hundreds of university faculty and instructors who have complained about the hardship of international students on their classrooms and teaching. 

If you are either an international student, new immigrant student, or an educator, and you can relate to this, I have a solution that has transformed the learning experience for both international students and their faculty. 

FOR INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS

• Soft-skills for succeeding in the Canadian classroom

I regularly facilitate 2 to 3-hour interactive workshops specifically developed for international students, proven to provide a critical understanding of the vital "soft skills" needed to succeed in the Canadian classroom environment, and to educate international students of the Canadian expectations around respect, inclusion and multiculturalism.

Training includes how students can enhance the experience of their instructors and improve the quality of teaching they receive. 

Thousands of international students have received this workshop, often as orientation for first-year, specifically students admitted to UBC in the Conditional Admission Program at the English Language Institute, Vantage College (UBC's international undergraduate college) and first-year students in the Faculty of Arts, Faculty of Science and Faculty of Applied Science.   

WORKSHOP SPECS

FORMATS

• 90-minute introductory workshop
• 2 to 3-hour interactive workshops

All workshops include rich visuals and use dynamic facilitation techniques that are engaging and transformative. 

BACKGROUND

In response to both students' despairing stories of struggle and faculty grievances over how difficult it has become to teach today's multicultural classes, this workshop has been fine-tuned to ensure international students have a clear grasp of how their behaviour might affect their academic performance. 

I have helped hundreds of students who have never shaken a hand, nor raised one, their entire education. And for many, asking questions in class or speaking out loud is either an entirely foreign idea, or an unthinkable act. Imagine how shocked they are to learn that they are being judged and marked on behaviours that they have never considered "academic".