This VIS project took place within HU’s Bachelor’s programme of Social Work and involves a revised Virtual International Collaboration. Twenty Dutch students, together with their Spanish fellow students, considered international issues from the theoretical framework of Intersectionality. As a final product, a report was jointly written in which suggestions for improvement of a chosen issue are made. The report is also presented in plenary.

Students learn to be open to another person’s world and perspective, in another country.

Theme, expertise, collaboration and final product

The theme of the VIS project is Intersectionality from an international perspective. In this program, students will be introduced to different international issues that they will look at from the theoretical framework of Intersectionality. Together they (students from the Netherlands and Spain) will discuss international issues such as poverty, migration, sustainability, gender issues, security issues. They explain these from their perspective and connect to the perspective of the other. Students learn to be open to the world and perspective of another, in another country. Specific expertise in International Cooperation, diversity and inclusion themes, social activism and migration history are addressed with this project.

Students write a report together in which they make suggestions for improving a chosen issue. They present this report in plenary in front of the group. Students have 3 or 4 unguided meetings during this program to work on their homework and prepare their final presentation. 3 times they receive an online lecture and 1 time they meet in plenary for the final presentations.

As an additional activity, we organized a study tour to the International Days of the University in Huelva.

Reflection on implementation

The implementation went very well. The teachers all taught from their own expertise. The students filled out an evaluation and the responses were very positive.