Last month Bishop Grosseteste University (BGU) students on the BSc (Hons) Health & Social Care programme hosted students on the MA Pedagogy from the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences. The interactive seminars saw exchanges of educational and practice experiences from both the UK and the Netherlands. The first seminar was a “getting to know you” activity asking mixed groups to share their experiences of HE within their respective countries.
The second asked participants to reflect on their own experiences around unpaid carers following two case studies focusing on the “lived experience.” Mixed groups were asked to consider what this meant for their practice and how strategies could be implemented to support carers across all areas of education from primary to tertiary. These were written on a postcard to the relevant H&SC minster in either the UK or the Netherlands then shared with the group.
The sessions were evaluated by the BGU students immediately after the session and the following observations were made:
I liked the fact that everyone interacted and we started to understand and compare H&SC in Holland and England.
Learning a bit of the language beforehand makes the internationals feel welcome.
Speaking to the other students from Holland about their approach towards young carers in their schools gave an international perspective.
The comments were sent to the Dutch Tutors, Herald and Mascha, who responded with the following:
Thank you for your inspiring message and we're pleased to read that it has yielded a lot for you. That feeling is mutual! We evaluated with our students and the extensive reports in which the students describe their learning outcomes are now arriving. In the session you had prepared, it was very visible how daily practice was linked to existing policy from two different contexts. It has encouraged our students to gain new insights.
