IFDS Participant Testimonial: Germany

Personally, my experience in the Germany seminar provided me with encouragement to attend subsequent conferences related to European affairs. In particular, I am pursuing my interest in the development of the European economy, and the evolution and revision of social work and social policy in Europe.

Seminar Experience in Germany

The International Faculty Development Seminar experience in Germany has had a very important effect on my teaching, as I update my courses. Last semester, I incorporated the newly expanding role of Berlin in Germany's great increase in trade with central and eastern Europe into my Introductory and Urban Sociology courses. This semester, I am expanding my treatment of the European Union by bringing in material from the seminar sessions and from the personal contacts made in Germany.

As a result of this seminar, I am impelled to revise my courses in such a way as to confront my students with the problems faced by Germany, and Berlin in particular, and to discuss the pros and cons of possible solutions. I feel liberated by my involvement in the seminar in such a way as to liberate my students, by an increased use of and involvement in dialogical interactive learning. My confidence in providing opportunities for challenging the students to size-up problems, weigh alternative explanations, and come to defendable propositions has grown considerably.

My participation on this program provided me with additional material and contacts, enabling me to present a much better paper than I would have otherwise been able to do, at the annual meeting of the European Studies Conference.

The stimuli I received abroad impelled me to expand my knowledge of the Internet, and provided me with the impetus to communicate directly with knowledgeable persons in Germany, particularly those I met during the seminar. I have also established networks with those in the news media - e.g. reporters working for The New York Times, Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, and Christian Science Monitor.

Personally, my experience in the Germany seminar provided me with encouragement to attend subsequent conferences related to European affairs. In particular, I am pursuing my interest in the development of the European economy, and the evolution and revision of social work and social policy in Europe.

The aspect of the seminar most interesting to me was the set of guest speakers who addressed the various dimensions of the German federal government and the Berlin City Council. I was challenged personally by the creative and heroic efforts of representatives and resource persons to make the German government (at its various levels) operate for the benefit not only of the business community, but also for that of the people as a whole.

The advice I'd give to others considering participation in such a seminar would be to do extensive reading about Germany, to view relevant material on the WWW, and to question assumptions, perhaps as yet unexamined, about Germany's nature and history. Hopefully, these actions will help participants maximize their seminar experience, as I did.

The above is an account by William M. Cross, Ph.D., professor of sociology at Illinois College in Jacksonville, IL. Dr. Cross participated in Council's IFDS program to Germany in June 1997.