Interactive Learning

The IMI conference workshop is definitely one of my best experiences in group learning. I had a really great time in today’s session. The curriculum was well-designed and the instructors were very knowledgeable about the interactive training skill, leading the whole session with effective control of timing, rich material and intensive brainstorming.
The participants surprised me too. Within a friendly atmosphere, the workshop progressed under an organizational culture of sharing in a short period of time, allowing everyone to feel comfortable and confident in expressing his/her point of view. Each of us played the role as both audience and teacher at the same time. While we listened to and enjoyed instructors’ presentations, we were also required to observe and think about the class content, provide feedback and self-reflect to our own abilities as well. Many participants are very experienced trainers in the intercultural area; they not only showed their great passion for this issue, but also share valuable opinions based on their practical experiences, such as tips to motivate audience participation or the importance of dealing with cultural taboos.
Back to the very beginning of the pre-conference workshop, participants reached common ground that intercultural training is not only about knowledge and skills, it is also about attitude (probably the most important element). I got the strong impression that creating interactive cultural exchange is based on the open attitude. Many great books I seen are interesting and could serve as guide books for inter-culturalist, but learning how to implement these methods effectively in the real world is even more valuable for today’s conference.