AMERICAN BUSINESS EDUCATION IN AN INTERCULTURAL SETTING

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AMERICAN BUSINESS EDUCATION IN AN INTERCULTURAL
SETTING
by DR. JIHAD S. NADER PROVOST CHIEF ACADEMIC
OFFICER PRESENTED AT THE IACBE INTERNATIONAL
CONFERENCE PARIS September 22-23, 2006
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OUTLINE

• I. The Liberal Education Model
• II. The Globalization of American Business
  Education
• III. The Intercultural Setting
• A. The Campus Environment
• B. The External Environment
• IV. Challenges
• A. International Students Educational
  Background
• Focus on Teaching vs. Learning
• B. The Language Barrier
• C. Culturally Sensitive Classroom Management
• D. Curriculum Adaptation
• E. Adaptation of Instructional Methodology

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OUTLINE

• V. Opportunities
•   A. Enrichment of the Educational Experience
  through Cultural Diversity
• B. International Exchange Programs
• C. Partnering with Multinationals
•  VI. Conclusion QA

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I. The Liberal Education Model
Adapted from the Report of the Task Force on
Higher Education and Society (2000)

• A LIBERALLY EDUCATED PERSON
• IS ONE WHO
• can think and write
• clearly,
• effectively, and
• critically
• can communicate with
• precision,
• cogency, and
• force

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A LIBERALLY EDUCATED PERSON

• IS ONE WHO
• has a critical appreciation of the ways in which
  we gain knowledge and understanding
• of the universe,
• of society,
• and of ourselves

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A LIBERALLY EDUCATED PERSON

• IS ONE WHO
• has a broad knowledge of other cultures and other
  times
• is able to make decisions based on reference to
  the wider world and to the historical forces that
  have shaped it

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A LIBERALLY EDUCATED PERSON

• IS ONE WHO
• has understanding and experience in thinking
  systematically about moral and ethical problems,
  and
• has achieved depth in some field of knowledge

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WHAT A LIBERAL EDUCATION DOES

• A LIBERAL EDUCATION
• teaches students
• how to think rather than what to think
• how to learn rather than what to learn
• produces graduates who are better able to adapt
  and respond to the demands of a fast-changing
  economic and social environment

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WHAT A LIBERAL EDUCATION DOES

• A LIBERAL EDUCATION
• Often results in tangible benefits in the form of
  higher incomes and other forms of material reward
  to those who have received such an education
• But there are also both tangible and intangible
  benefits to society, through those individuals
  who have received a liberal education

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THE LIBERALLY EDUCATED COLLEGE GRADUATE

• INDEPENDENT THINKER
• ABLE TO FORM AN OPINION, EXPRESS IT AND DEFEND IT
• ABLE TO ANALYZE AND CRITICALLY EVALUATE
• CREATIVE AND ABLE TO FIND INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS TO
  PROBLEMS
• TOLERANT AND OPEN MINDED
• UNDERSTANDS AND APPRECIATES OTHER CULTURES,
  BELIEFS AND POINTS OF VIEW

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THE LIBERALLY EDUCATED COLLEGE GRADUATE

• GLOBAL IN OUTLOOK
• ETHICAL AND SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE
• UNDERSTANDS AND IS INTERESTED IN THE HUMAN
  DIMENSIONS OF HIS OR HER PROFESSION
• A LIFELONG LEARNER

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II. THE GLOBALIZATION OF AMERICAN BUSINESS
EDUCATION

• Globalization is changing business education
  just as surely as it has changed international
  business.
• Paul Danos, Dean, Tuck School of Business,
  Dartmouth College, August 2006.
• What does globalization of American business
  education really mean?
• More international / cross-cultural content in US
  business school curricula
• Exportation / importation of the US business
  school model and curriculum

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GLOBALIZATION OF AMERICAN BUSINESS EDUCATION
SOME BENEFITS

• US multinationals are able to provide American
  training / education to their employees outside
  the US, e.g.,
• Accounting methods
• Financial practices
• Corporate governance
• Best practices, etc.
• Interdependence between national economies is
  facilitated
• Diversity is enhanced
• Change is accelerated
• Students are exposed to various cultures and ways
  of doing business
• Students save money by not having to travel to
  get this education

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GLOBALIZATION OF AMERICAN BUSINESS EDUCATION
CHALLENGES

• Incompatibility
• with foreign education systems
• with foreign cultures
• with foreign business practices
• Commercialization
• Quality and Credibility of Programs,
  Qualifications and Degrees
• Equivalence (in terms of quality and standards)
  of programs offered in partnership with foreign
  institutions or through branch campuses, to US
  programs and degrees

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EXPORTATION / IMPORTATION OF THE US BUSINESS
SCHOOL MODEL AND CURRICULUM

• US
• Liberal education framework (GenEd)
• Balanced emphasis on soft and hard skills
• Emphasis on self-learning and mutual learning
  (e.g., team work)
• Strong interaction between industry and business
  school

• Old World
• Emphasis on specialization
• Emphasis on theory and conceptualization
• Emphasis on teaching (authoritative knowledge
  delivery)
• Less interaction with industry

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III. THE INTERCULTURAL SETTING THE AUD CAMPUS
ENVIRONMENT

• HISTORY OF AUD
• Private, non-sectarian institution of higher
  learning
• Founded in 1995
• Located in the City of Dubai, in the United Arab
  Emirates (UAE)
• Branch campus of the American InterContinental
  University (AIU), which has campuses in Atlanta
  (2), South Florida (2), Houston, Los Angeles and
  London

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WHERE IS THE UAE?
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WHERE IS DUBAI?
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ACADEMIC PROGRAMS

• DEGREES OFFERED
• MBA (two concentrations)
• BBA (six concentrations)
• BFA in Visual Communication (four concentrations)
• BFA in Interior Design
• BIT (three concentrations)
• BS in Civil Engineering
• BS in Electrical Engineering
• BS in Computer Engineering

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ENROLLMENT

• Enrollment Fall 2006
• Total AUD 2632 students
• 80 nationalities
• Business undergraduate 1250 students
• MBA 135 students
• Roughly 55/45 male/female undergraduate
• Roughly 70/30 male/female MBA

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FACULTY

• 70 Full-Time Fall 2006
• 50 Americans and Canadians
• 60 Adjuncts Fall 2006
• 25 Americans and Canadians
• 25 UK

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ACCREDITATION / LICENSURE

• Accreditation/Licensure
• SACS
• DC Education Licensure Commission
• State of Georgia Non-Public Postsecondary
  Education Commission (NPEC)
• UAE Ministry of Higher Education (Licensure and
  Specialized Accreditation)
• IACBE (All Business Programs and Concentrations)
• IAA (Advertising Concentration)

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CAMPUS IMAGES
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CAMPUS IMAGES
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MULTICULTURAL CAMPUS
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MULTICULTURAL CAMPUS
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WORLD LEADERS COME TO VISIT
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COMMENCEMENT
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DUBAI FACTS FIGURES

• Dubai Emirate The second largest of the seven
  Emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates
• Located on the southern shore of the Arabian Gulf
• Dubai City is a bustling metropolis
• International business hub HQ for most major
  multinationals and international financial
  institutions
• Current population approx. 1.67 million, set to
  increase to 3.5 million by 2010
• About 50 of population is under the age of 20

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DUBAI FACTS FIGURES

• Expatriates make up about 80 of the population
• Dubais official religion is Islam
• Muslims make up about half the population
• the emirates commercial ethos and cosmopolitan
  inhabitants preclude strict enforcement of
  religious rules
• Conservative, but very tolerant society
• Outside the city, the Emirate consists of desert
  and is sparsely inhabited

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DUBAI CITY IMAGES
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DUBAI CITY IMAGES
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DUBAI CITY IMAGES
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THE DESERTS OF THE UAE
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IV. CHALLENGES

• International Students Educational Background
  Focus on Teaching vs. Learning
• Spoonfeeding
• Rote memory
• Wide disparity in learning skills
• Helping students learn how to learn
• Planning and organization skills
• Independent thinking

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IV. CHALLENGES

• The Language Barrier
• Undesirable Effects
• Forcing a slower pace
• Partial completion of course content
• Watering down
• Ensuring/Building Language Proficiency
• Admission standards
• Remedial courses
• Public speaking
• Business communication
• Presentations and written reports in all courses

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IV. CHALLENGES

• Culturally Sensitive Classroom Management
• Respect for other cultures avoiding you vs.
  us Examples
• Punctuality
• Mannerisms
• Judicious selection of materials and activities
• Religious sensitivities
• Gender issues
• Political sensitivities

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IV. CHALLENGES

• Adaptation of Course Content and/or Instructional
  Methodology
• Local relevance, e.g.,
• UCC in Business Law
• Chapter 11 bankruptcy
• Tax shields in Finance
• Ethics, e.g., insider trading, conflicts of
  interest
• Omit irrelevant material?
• Point out limitations
• Add locally relevant material (e.g., Islamic
  Finance)
• Develop local cases
• Assign student work on local applications

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V. OPPORTUNITIES

• Enrichment of the Educational Experience through
  Cultural Diversity
• International Exchange Programs
• Partnering with Multinationals

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V. CONCLUDING REMARKS

• Our Main Challenge

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THANK YOU

• QA