The goal of the course is to promote “English-language global communication” through the usage of information and communication, while using English as a tool for intercultural communication and discussing key societal issues. The course also highly emphasizes the need for active participation in the classroom. Students must complete presentations about different topics throughout the course, and they start presenting mid-way through the semester. Although the class is conducted offline, presentations are done online, which helps students to talk in front of hundreds of other students from different universities. Public speaking skills like attention to pace, body posture, pitch control, and usage of the right tone are all skills that the students of Global Literacy get to develop, along with confidence and attentiveness.

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic and its aftermath deprived students of the chance to communicate and interact with one another. Yet, Global Literacy has provided students with the chance to overcome this challenge and maintain relationships during the pandemic. The course’s highly supportive approach to student interaction and discussion is distinctly effective, thereby supporting friendships among students. One might call this course an experience of catching two birds with one stone, as students can both hone their English communication skills, as well as create new relationships.

Moreover, Global Literacy gives the students the advantage of re-evaluating their own critical thinking and presentation skills. Giving along with listening to presentations of their own and other classmates is the key factor of the course, as the course provides students with needed instructions to unlock their presentation potentials. According to Go Dabin (’21, Division of International Studies), a KU student who is currently taking the course, “When it comes to this class, I definitely re-evaluated myself when I presented. Hearing a lot of critiques and lectures about presenting, I found out there is a lot for me to improve. I would suggest this course to students who want to improve their presentation skills. We do a lot of presentations in other classes, but often we are clueless on ‘how’ to present. The course also gives students an opportunity to make new friends; I got to meet new people from different universities, and had the chance to make connections with people from different majors and backgrounds, so if you are interested in Global Literacy, I would highly recommend it.”

Furthermore, The Granite Tower (GT) interviewed the course instructor, Professor Kathleen Lee (Department of English Language and Literature) to hear her own thoughts about the class.

GT: What is the main goal of Global Literacy as a course?

Professor Lee: Global Literacy is a chance to promote interaction with KU, WU, and TKU. We as a global community are using English as an international language and moving away from the idea that English only belongs to certain countries, so the course is not just for native English speakers. That’s an idea that I really want to promote in class. Also, it’s a chance for students to develop their intercultural communicative competence. Through this course, students can interact with each other, and they can introduce and interpret presentations and discussions in socially appropriate and relevant ways, which is the overall goal of Global Literacy. This class is open to anyone who has the will to communicate and challenge themselves.

GT: What is your favorite thing about this course?

Professor Lee: My favorite thing about this course is that it gives a chance for students to discuss socially critical issues. They identify the topics they want to discuss. Often those topics are not talked about a lot or are issues that may not directly affect them. In the past, we had discussions about the Olympics. Many people think of it as this prestigious worldwide-celebrated event, which it is. However, there are often under-discussed sides such as costs, environmental consequences, and some social consequences as well, so this is a chance for students to really research these ideas, present them to other students and have thought-provoking discussions about the issues. They really get to take charge of the class. Although I kind of moderate it, in many ways they are the leaders of the class.

GT: How does it feel to collaborate with two other universities? Isn’t it hard?

Professor Lee: On the surface it sounds difficult. But since this class has been around for a long time, we pretty much have a set plan. And since the other two universities are only one hour away, we don’t really have an issue with the time differences. Each university has their own curriculum, it is only the group presentation and the discussion part that involves all three universities. We meet other universities in mid-April, when students are ready for their presentations.

GT: Are there any additional thoughts you would like to share regarding Global Literacy?

Professor Lee: I am eager to learn from other students as much as they learn from me. Sometimes there are topics that I am not familiar with, considering the generation gap between me and my students. So, I feel enlightened whenever I can learn more about the topic by their way of thinking, which most of the time differs from the way I think. This is what makes Global Literacy particularly enriching to me. I definitely think learning is multi-directional. It’s not just me teaching; I learn from them and they learn from each other. On a more lighthearted note, Global Literacy is an incredibly diverse class; I hope this class can continue even after I retire.