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Changing Horizons in Geography Education - HERODOT Network ...

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facilitated the <strong>in</strong>troduction of <strong>in</strong>ternational case studies, problem-based and appliedlearn<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>to the curriculum, as well as provid<strong>in</strong>g the opportunity for an <strong>in</strong>ternationalwork experience project for students from five countries on the Russian Black Seacoast. The project was also able to establish an Environmental Tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g Unit <strong>in</strong> theFaculty of Ecology and <strong>Geography</strong> at TSU which provides short courses for teachers,regional government staff and employees <strong>in</strong> the oil and gas <strong>in</strong>dustries. In additionthe centre has been accredited for the tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g of environmental auditors.International fieldworkAs mentioned previously, two <strong>in</strong>ternational student teams undertook a work experiencefield project on the Black Sea Coast, for one month <strong>in</strong> consecutive years, toproduce a fieldwork tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g manual for the staff at TSU. Students, and staff, wereable to share field experiences and methodologies and worked alongside staff toidentify the essential <strong>in</strong>formation to be <strong>in</strong>cluded <strong>in</strong> the manual. Although the edit<strong>in</strong>gof the manual is currently be<strong>in</strong>g undertaken by a member of Wolverhampton staff,the content of the tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g manual is essentially that of the <strong>in</strong>ternational studentcohort.There are two field courses to the USA from Wolverhampton, one each at undergraduateand postgraduate level, with<strong>in</strong> which ICT plays an <strong>in</strong>tegral part. Theundergraduate fieldtrip is organised by Professor Rydant from Keene State College,with staff and facilities also provided by Plymouth State University <strong>in</strong> New Hampshire.The UK students have the opportunity to broaden their awareness of globalissues <strong>in</strong> geography and environmental management, implement<strong>in</strong>g ICT to producemanagement plans dur<strong>in</strong>g the trip. The postgraduate trip is a jo<strong>in</strong>t trip to Arizonawith UK postgraduates and US students from Keene and Plymouth. Prior to the tripthe students work together <strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong>ternational pairs, via the Internet, to prepare materialsand <strong>in</strong>formation packs on various sites they visit. The student pairs were requiredto present a sem<strong>in</strong>ar paper, with handout, dur<strong>in</strong>g the trip on a selected topic/site asa prequel for the follow<strong>in</strong>g field day.International exchange programmesS<strong>in</strong>ce the <strong>in</strong>troduction of student mobility through the EU ERASMUS programme<strong>in</strong> 1987 Wolverhampton has been active <strong>in</strong> promot<strong>in</strong>g opportunities for students to<strong>in</strong>clude a period of study abroad as part of their studies. Walters (2003) suggeststhat European exchange programmes are a relatively easy and effective way toenhance the student experience <strong>in</strong> geography and this is perceived to be the case atWolverhampton. In geography and environmental science these opportunities havebroadened to <strong>in</strong>clude l<strong>in</strong>ks with Keene State College and the University of Arizonaand with other EU <strong>in</strong>stitutions, through the Neptune programme co-ord<strong>in</strong>ated bythe University of Leeuwarden <strong>in</strong> the Netherlands.Issues and BenefitsThere are a number of issues that arise from <strong>in</strong>ternational curriculum developmentand these have been addressed by a number of authors. For example Reeve et al.289

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