CEHS faculty travel to China for academic exchange

On an early morning in mid-May, two CMU faculty members began their summer teaching, yet in a place far from Mt. Pleasant. About 7000 miles, to be more precise, in Xi’an, China.  

At the invitation of Dr. Zhang Yi, a professor in the School of Foreign Studies at Northwestern Polytechnical University (NPU), Dr. Troy Hicks, Interim Associate Dean of the College of Education & Human Services and Dr. Chad Waldron, Chairperson of Teacher and Special Education, participated in a two-week academic exchange sponsored by the China National Foreign Experts Bureau.  

During this visit, they co-taught two doctoral seminars, and each of them taught undergraduate courses on academic English writing and presentation as well as delivered separate lectures for faculty and graduate students.  

Hicks and Waldron also served as reviewers for graduate students who delivered research presentations during a symposium. These students offered insights on a variety of topics — ranging quantitative approaches related to female identity construction in historical discourse analysis to qualitative approaches around critical discourse analysis of Instagram posts.  

“Teaching and learning with NPU students – including both Chinese students as well as international students who were studying there, too – was a humbling and inspiring experience,” says Hicks. “Interacting with multilingual learners acquiring academic English, from the first-year undergraduates to the advanced doctoral students, was a good reminder about what we might do to make learning more accessible for all students.” 

In addition to these university-level exchanges, Hicks and Waldron were able to participate in site visits to NPU’s Early Childhood Center for ages 2-6 (or, as they refer to this age range, their “Kindergarten”) as well as the middle school, grades 7th-9th. Though the time in each school was brief, the opportunity to see teachers and students in each setting provided them with insights about how Chinese curriculum, instruction, and assessment practices compare to American schools. 

According to Waldron, “These visits aligned closely with my interests in teacher education and provided valuable insight into curriculum, pedagogy, language use, and school culture in Xi’an. I am thankful for the principals and educators who welcomed us into their classrooms.”  During their exchange, Hicks and Waldron were also fortunate enough to be introduced to a variety of local cultural sites and cuisines, often accompanied by Dr. Zhang or her students who acted as translators and guides. Of note, they were able to visit the World Heritage Site of Emperor Qinshihuang's Mausoleum Site Museum, or more commonly known as “The Terracotta Warriors.” Along with hundreds of other visitors that day, Hicks and Waldron were still humbled to be connected with this “eighth wonder of the world.”  

With many miles and memories behind them, Hicks and Waldron look forward to sharing insights about their experience with colleagues and students in the months ahead.