stimulating intergenerationality: millennials in europe
TRANSCRIPT
Stimulating Intergenerationality: Millennials in Europe
Lisa FleuryVassar Wesleyan Program in Paris, [email protected] – www.en.vwpp.org
&
Laura RaynaudDickinson en France, [email protected] – www.dickinson.edu
CIEE Annual Conference: The Reinvention of Study Abroad Berlin, November 4-7, 2015
Stimulating Intergenerationality: Millennials in Europe - Lisa Fleury & Laura RaynaudCIEE Annual Conference: The Reinvention of Study Abroad – Berlin, November 4-7, 2015
Session outline
• Activity 1 – Generation association
• Presentation: Intergenerationality and our students
• Activity 2 – Intergenerational project
• Wrap-up and conclusions
Generation association activity
Stimulating Intergenerationality: Millennials in Europe - Lisa Fleury & Laura RaynaudCIEE Annual Conference: The Reinvention of Study Abroad – Berlin, November 4-7, 2015
What is a generation?
Three critera for members of a generation:
• Share an age location in history.
• Share some common beliefs and behaviors, including basic attitudes about risk taking, culture and values, civic engagement, and family life.
• Have a sense of common perceived membership in that generation.
Source: http://www.lifecourse.com/about/method/phases.html
Stimulating Intergenerationality: Millennials in Europe - Lisa Fleury & Laura RaynaudCIEE Annual Conference: The Reinvention of Study Abroad – Berlin, November 4-7, 2015
People never “belong” to an age bracket.
Rather, they belong to a generation that happens to be passing through an age bracket—a generation with its own memories, language, habits, beliefs, and life lessons.
Source: http://www.lifecourse.com/about/method/phases.html
Stimulating Intergenerationality: Millennials in Europe - Lisa Fleury & Laura RaynaudCIEE Annual Conference: The Reinvention of Study Abroad – Berlin, November 4-7, 2015
What is intergenerationality?
Related terms: Intergenerational exchange / contact / practice / ties
younger
generation
cooperation
exchange
interaction
older
generation
Stimulating Intergenerationality: Millennials in Europe - Lisa Fleury & Laura RaynaudCIEE Annual Conference: The Reinvention of Study Abroad – Berlin, November 4-7, 2015
Intergenerationality:
a hot topic in Europe• Spain's lost generation: youth unemployment surges above 50
per cent, The Telegraph, January 27, 2012
• Who’d be young and Greek? Searching for a future after the debt crisis, The Guardian, July 26, 2015
• Make space for your grandparents at home, Cabinet ministers tellfamilies, The Telegraph, October 5, 2015
• Where older people support gay marriage, WEST, September 29, 2014
Stimulating Intergenerationality: Millennials in Europe - Lisa Fleury & Laura RaynaudCIEE Annual Conference: The Reinvention of Study Abroad – Berlin, November 4-7, 2015
Intergenerationality = Transversal topic
Social sciences
Law
History/Culture/Heritage
Health & Social
Services
Education
Policy/Politics
Diversity/Gender studies
Finance/Economy
EU: Changing relative size of population
groups over the period 1950-2050 (in %)
Source: UN World Population Prospectushttp://www.fgcsic.es/lychnos/en_EN/articles/population_ageing
Stimulating Intergenerationality: Millennials in Europe - Lisa Fleury & Laura RaynaudCIEE Annual Conference: The Reinvention of Study Abroad – Berlin, November 4-7, 2015
Why focus on
intergenerationality?
uni-generational campus setting with limited intergenerational contact
international setting with increased multigenerational exposure
unchartered territory
Stimulating Intergenerationality: Millennials in Europe - Lisa Fleury & Laura RaynaudCIEE Annual Conference: The Reinvention of Study Abroad – Berlin, November 4-7, 2015
College students spend 85% of their time with people under 35.
Stimulating Intergenerationality: Millennials in Europe - Lisa Fleury & Laura RaynaudCIEE Annual Conference: The Reinvention of Study Abroad – Berlin, November 4-7, 2015
Stimulating Intergenerationality: Millennials in Europe - Lisa Fleury & Laura RaynaudCIEE Annual Conference: The Reinvention of Study Abroad – Berlin, November 4-7, 2015
Stimulating Intergenerationality: Millennials in Europe - Lisa Fleury & Laura RaynaudCIEE Annual Conference: The Reinvention of Study Abroad – Berlin, November 4-7, 2015
Benefits of
intergenerational exchangeOlder people Younger people Community
Increase in vitality
Relief from isolation /
reintegration in the
community
Reflect on life
experiences
Exposure to difference
Develop skills (social,
technological)
Practical assistance
Increased self-worth
Increased sense of
social responsability
Access to adult
support
Less isolation
Positive perception of
older adults
Increased resiliance
Learn about history
Less drugs/violence
Builds social cohesion
Develops bridges
across community
Encourages/creates
models of civic skills
Acts as impetus for
other community
projects
Source: Report to NYARS 2006, Community building through intergenerational exchange programs
Stimulating Intergenerationality: Millennials in Europe - Lisa Fleury & Laura RaynaudCIEE Annual Conference: The Reinvention of Study Abroad – Berlin, November 4-7, 2015
Student feedback:
Intergenerational contactI do enjoy older people and what I can learn from them but it is difficult to connect with them due to their usual conservative background.
The questions he (+/- 60 yrs.)
asked and the conversations we had were much more
genuine that the small talk my classmates
make.
It is interesting to see how older generations view the potential of
younger generations….I try to explain and justify the actions of my generation by using examples from
my life.
Stimulating Intergenerationality: Millennials in Europe - Lisa Fleury & Laura RaynaudCIEE Annual Conference: The Reinvention of Study Abroad – Berlin, November 4-7, 2015
I feel like I gain a lot from their
perspectives.... I believe cross-generational
interactions are really important as
they allow us to gain a broader
understanding of the experiences
and backgrounds
of those around us.
Interacting with younger
generations is very helpful and fun. I've
noticed that younger kids with
whom I've interacted seem to have a little more freedom in what
they do...their parents seem to be
less strict than I'm used to.
I interact with my host (+/-
50 yrs.) every day. Social
and societal differences
are frequently topics of conversation. I view this
relationship as the most
beneficial to my French, as
she corrects me as I'm
speaking. Also, she has lived in Paris for a while,
and can tell me about the
history and how the city
has changed over the
years.
Wesleyan intercultural
competency scale (WICS)*
•A way to measure students’intercultural skills
•Elements of a high degree of cultural competence:
knowledge, attitudes, and skills
* From Stemler, Imada, Sorkin, Development and Validation of the Wesleyan Intercultural Competence Scale (WICS): A Tool for Measuring the Impact of Study Abroad Experiences
Frontiers: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Study Abroad, Vol. XXIV Fall 2014
Stimulating Intergenerationality: Millennials in Europe - Lisa Fleury & Laura RaynaudCIEE Annual Conference: The Reinvention of Study Abroad – Berlin, November 4-7, 2015
Conclusions WICS
Who scored the highest on intercultural competence scale?
• Those who experience a wider variety of situations and experiences where they are interacting more widely and/or deeply with the host community
• Students who reported spending a great amount of time speaking a foreign language while abroad
Stimulating Intergenerationality: Millennials in Europe - Lisa Fleury & Laura RaynaudCIEE Annual Conference: The Reinvention of Study Abroad – Berlin, November 4-7, 2015
INTERGENERATIONAL CONTACT
�
+ VARIETY OF SITUATIONS AND
INTERACTIONS
�
HIGHER INTERCULTURAL
COMPETENCE
Stimulating Intergenerationality: Millennials in Europe - Lisa Fleury & Laura RaynaudCIEE Annual Conference: The Reinvention of Study Abroad – Berlin, November 4-7, 2015
Intergenerational project
Academic
excursion /
Cultural activity
Homestays /
student
housing
Community
service
Course
Understanding
of local
societal
debate, event
or trauma
Pre-departure /
re-entry
Stimulating Intergenerationality: Millennials in Europe - Lisa Fleury & Laura RaynaudCIEE Annual Conference: The Reinvention of Study Abroad – Berlin, November 4-7, 2015
Academic excursion/
cultural event
Ex. Students travel as a group to a planned destination for a short period (weekend).
How is the destination chosen? What preparation is required of participants? Who travels with and accompanies the students during the excursion? What are the housing arrangements? What and how are the activities chosen? What is expected of participants before, during and after the excursion?
or
Ex. Organize a site/cultural/historical visit or an event.
How are participants chosen? How is the venue or the event chosen? What preparation is required of participants? What is expected of participants before, during and after the visit/event?
Stimulating Intergenerationality: Millennials in Europe - Lisa Fleury & Laura RaynaudCIEE Annual Conference: The Reinvention of Study Abroad – Berlin, November 4-7, 2015
Homestays/Student housing
Ex. Students are paired with local hosts to share living space,
some or all meals, etc.
How are student/host pairs attributed? What preparation is
required of participants? What practices/resources should be
put in place to ensure positive outcomes?
Stimulating Intergenerationality: Millennials in Europe - Lisa Fleury & Laura RaynaudCIEE Annual Conference: The Reinvention of Study Abroad – Berlin, November 4-7, 2015
Community service
Ex. Students engage in the local community.
How is the community service environment chosen? What
preparation is required of participants? What is expected of
participants before, during and after the community service?
Stimulating Intergenerationality: Millennials in Europe - Lisa Fleury & Laura RaynaudCIEE Annual Conference: The Reinvention of Study Abroad – Berlin, November 4-7, 2015
Course
Ex. Develop a short or long-term program/course based on the many intergenerational facets present in France today.
How are topics chosen? What preparation is required of participants? What is expected of participants before, during and after the program? Who intervenes in the program?
or
Ex. Develop an intergenerational heritage project where studentscollect oral histories from locals.
How are participants chosen? What preparation is required of participants? What is expected of participants before, during and after the project? Once completed, how is the project presented?
Stimulating Intergenerationality: Millennials in Europe - Lisa Fleury & Laura RaynaudCIEE Annual Conference: The Reinvention of Study Abroad – Berlin, November 4-7, 2015
Understanding of local societal
debate, event or trauma
(planned or unforeseen)Ex. Help students decipher one or several specific events or
societal phenomena through an intergenerational lens (ex. Charlie Hebdo attacks, climate conference, pension reforms, high young-adult unemployment).
What format is chosen? What materials are chosen to help students understand? Who intervenes in this process?
Stimulating Intergenerationality: Millennials in Europe - Lisa Fleury & Laura RaynaudCIEE Annual Conference: The Reinvention of Study Abroad – Berlin, November 4-7, 2015
Pre-departure / Re-entry
Ex. Develop a pre-departure session.How can intergenerationality be included in
preparation for study abroad? Who intervenes in the session?
or
Ex. Imagine how to best continue the momentum of intergenerational experiences when students return to an age-segregated campus.
How can students continue to develop life skills learned in an intergenerational/intercultural experience? What can students contribute to the campus/local community?
Stimulating Intergenerationality: Millennials in Europe - Lisa Fleury & Laura RaynaudCIEE Annual Conference: The Reinvention of Study Abroad – Berlin, November 4-7, 2015
Stimulating Intergenerationality: Millennials in Europe - Lisa Fleury & Laura RaynaudCIEE Annual Conference: The Reinvention of Study Abroad – Berlin, November 4-7, 2015