Dr. Nancy L. Commins Gives U.S. Perspective on Cultural and Linguistic Diversity

January 26, 2012

Dr. Nancy L. Commins Gives U.S. Perspective on Cultural and Linguistic Diversity

U.S. Embassy participated at the first International Mobility Forum of the year, hosted by the Center for International Mobility (CIMO). Guest speaker Dr. Nancy L. Commins urged educators, curriculum developers and administrators to put linguistic and cultural diversity at the center of their work, and to offer direct instructions to students to practice equity and intercultural competence in the classroom. She reminded the audience that all classrooms today are multicultural in one way or another and that students need those intercultural and linguistic skills to respond to the challenges of today’s and tomorrow’s globalized world.

Dr. Commins encouraged the audience to think about how teachers could be prepared to seize the opportunities provided by multicultural classrooms and academic bilingualism, and urged the participants to continue this important dialogue.

Dr. Commins’ presentation “Crafting a Comprehensive Response to Cultural and Linguistic Diversity: A Perspective from the U.S” was followed by commentary from the Finnish perspective by Dr. Katri Kuukka from the Helsinki University/Palmenia Centre for Continuing Education. Links to both presentations will be available on the CIMO website. 

Dr. Commins, who visited Finland twice in 2010 to share her expertise on the integration of immigrant students into the classroom, returned to Finland as a Fulbright Scholar for the academic year 2011-2012. Her project "Immigrant Integration - Preparing the Next Generation of Teachers" is a joint collaboration between the University of Turku, The City of Turku and Norssi / Turku International School.