Campus

‘Integration at university should not be imposed too strongly’

The university should not be too forceful in persuading international students to integrate: it is up to them to do so. This was one of the conclusions at an innovation drinks reception for Dutch TU Delft students.


In order to find out how students at research universities and universities of applied sciences view current issues in education, the Interstedelijk Studenten Overleg (‘Inter-City Student Consultation’, ISO), Oras, and the VSSD student union last week held a brainstorming session with twenty TU Delft students. The themes were internationalisation and digitisation of education.


Only one of those present disagreed with the proposition that it was not the task of the university to promote the integration of international students. Among the conclusions were that people cannot be forced to integrate, but the university can create a climate in which students are able to do so. However, the initiative should rest with students themselves – it is not something that the university should impose.


Many students do not have a confident grasp of the English language. However, every master’s programme at TU Delft is given in that language, and the more a student has progressed in their studies, the more confident they become. One of those present pointed out that in the Faculty of Aerospace Engineering (AE), students were given the choice of Dutch or English during the first year of their bachelor’s programme. The remainder of the programme is only in English.


AE also assigns students to groups when they have to work together in work groups. At Architecture and the Built Environment, you can decide yourself which group to be in. Perhaps, the students believed, the barrier is lower if groups are organised by the faculty.


What, then, is the ideal situation? Everything in English? No, said the students, because then you would lose, as a university, the common ground you share with Dutch culture and industry. Can you force the student associations to be more international? “Study associations yes, but not the student associations”, said one student. “This concerns how people spend their leisure time, and they should be free to do as they please.”


According to the students, housing offers greater opportunities to mix. Make sure that some of the rooms on the campus are allocated to international students, and some to Dutch ones. If it begins on the campus, it will work through to the student associations. The students noted a difference in expectations among the two groups. International students first want everything to be arranged and in order, such as their books and housing, whereas Dutch students are more interested in getting involved with student life.


Digitisation

Students see many benefits in online education: deciding when you study, being able to review certain parts of lessons, and using contact time for more interaction. However, they regard online education more as a support tool, rather than a substitute. The campus should continue to be the place for consultation hours, for example.


When it came to online exams, opinions were divided. Students regard filling in forms in Word as ’terrible’, but teachers can mark online exams more quickly, which of course is an advantage. It would mean the end of open-ended questions, expected the students. “Online teaching would be better than online exams,” declared one student. “I don’t mind going to lessons or doing exams manually.”


Another student put forward the idea of an internationally recognised body for holding exams and teaching subjects. On the other hand, this would entail drawbacks: everyone would get the same education, which would undermine creativity and diversity.


The ISO intends to use the results from the innovation drinks reception for its national policies in representing the interests of students. 

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