Best Practice Guide for Designing and Delivering EPICUR courses
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Multicultural Group Work
Multicultural Group Work
Why multicultural group work?
EPICUR classes will include students from different universities, with diverse experiences and expectations of educational and societal cultures and norms. Bringing these students together in a shared learning environment to work on intercultural and international learning activities is at the heart of EPICUR’s aims for enabling intercultural understanding.
Group work can be a pedagogically effective way for learners to collaborate on learning tasks, and working together with a small group of fellow students provides opportunities for intercultural discussion. However, group work can be challenging even in mono-cultural classrooms. It requires certain skills and attitudes which group members have to be willing to practise and develop.
6 key points about multicultural group work in-person or online
- Plan for multicultural group work during a course
Differentiate between one off group work, for example where you just want students to discuss something in pairs or groups and sustained group work, for example when you want them to work in the same study group in and out of class on a specific learning activity with a defined outcome.
1a. Discussing in pairs or groups in class contributes to students building learning relationships – the technique Think, Pair, Share provides a supportive and efficient dialogic framework.
1b. When planning for sustained, multicultural group work, plan for inclusive group formations. You could invite the students to form their own groups within certain parameters. For example all groups need to include students with experiences of different educational cultures or students who do not all share the same first language or students who are not studying full time at the host university. And if there are not enough sojourning students for all groups to benefit, then focus on competence development – your group needs members with and others who are willing to develop these competences: include a list of competences the students will develop by completing the learning activity. - Purpose
Share the purpose of the group work and the intended learning outcomes with the students. Prepare and share guidance, which clarifies what you expect the groups to do during the group work task. Expect group work to start with check ins, where each student in a group shares what they understand the task to be for that day/session/meeting/ and then discuss and prioritise what needs to be done. - Time
Working in multicultural groups, requires additional time. The students need to get to know each other, clarify tasks and check in regularly for mutual understanding. Include in-class time for introducing group work, providing time for group members to introduce themselves and for getting started on the group work. Avoid leaving the students to meet for the first time in their group between classes, by including this in class time you signal how you value the group work. - Prepare students
Provide students with guidance on working in multicultural groups. Check out the University of Liverpool, UK's guidance for students on multicultural group work. - Inclusive learning opportunities
When designing learning activities for multicultural groups, consider how all students can contribute. Learning challenges which require different knowledge sets and diverse skills and competences can be motivating for group work. Even if the group members do not have the necessary knowledge and skills or competences before embarking on the challenge, they are all tasked with finding ways forward. - Group rules
Encourage groups to develop their own group rules or a group contract to help them identify which behaviours and attitudes will facilitate group work. Check out this list of group rules from the University of Edinburgh, UK.
Multicultural group work in practice
Read how a teacher at a Danish university forms multicultural groups:
https://educate.au.dk/en/teaching-cases/internationalisation/multicultural-group-work
Links to resources for developing multicultural group work in in-person and online classes
English as a Medium of Instruction (EMI) Handbook. Available at: https://www.e-pages.dk/ku/1468/ search for group work.
A trainers guide for participatory training and action. Includes a range of activities to stimulate group work. Available at https://www.iied.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/migrate/6021IIED.pdf
Intercultural Group Dynamics – online module which ‘deals with the issues that arise from diversity in relation to group dynamics, and the opportunities and challenges involved in the facilitation of learning in such contexts. Available at: https://equiip.eu/module/group-dynamics/
Strategies to support group work in multicultural classrooms – these strategies are offered for different multicultural group work scenarios e.g. ‘Students and teachers have diverse expectations of teaching and learning in courses’:
References
- Carroll, Jude (2015) Tools for Teaching in an Educationally Mobile World. London: Routledge.
- Killick, David and Foster, Monika (2021) Learner relationships in Global Higher Education. A Critical Pedagogy for Multicultural World. Chapter 5, Group learning for engagement. p. 130-172. London: Routledge.
- Leask, Betty and Carroll, Jude (2013) Good Practice Principles in Practice: Teaching Across Cultures. Managing Group Work, p.42. Available at: https://ieaa.org.au/common/Uploaded%20files/Research%20Publications/2013/PUB-IEAA-Learning-and-Teaching-Across-Cultures-Quick-Guide.pdf
- Li, W., Otten, S., Van der Zande, I. S. E., & Coelen, R. (2023). Do students value intercultural group work? The effects of perceived value in diversity on intercultural interactions. Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 60(3), 412–425. https://doi.org/10.1080/14703297.2023.2179521
Next steps
If you need further support with developing your course, please contact your local teaching support unit.
If you need further information on offering your course for EPICUR, please contact your EPICUR institutional coordinator.
Local teaching support units
EPICUR Institutional Coordinators
Adam Mickiewicz University
Karolina Choczaj
karmench@amu.edu.pl
Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
Nikos Kouloussis
nikoul@agro.auth.gr
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology
Michael Zacherle
zacherle@kit.edu
University of Amsterdam
Tiffany Boersma
t.a.boersma@uva.nl
Universität Freiburg
Charlotte Langowski
charlotte.langowski@zv.uni-freiburg.de
Université de Haute-Alsace
Léa Ziri
lea.ziri@uha.fr
Universität für Bodenkultur Wien
Nicolas Fries
nicolas.fries@boku.ac.at
University of Southern Denmark
Ida Thøstesen
ilt@sdu.dk
University of Strasbourg
Pascale Nachez
pnachez@unistra.fr
Further use as OER explicitly permitted:
This Resource Sheet within the Best Practice Guide for Designing and Delivering EPICUR Courses was created by Donna Hurford, University of Southern Denmark.
Please attribute according to TASLL rule as follows: Multicultural Group Work (Best Practice Guide for Designing and Delivering EPICUR Courses), by Donna Hurford, University of Southern Denmark. Any icons included are protected by copyright, © The Noun Project, used with permission.
License: This work and its contents are – unless otherwise stated – licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 .
Last edited: 12. Jan 2026, 17:12, Hutz-Nierhoff, Dorthe [dh1076@rz.uni-freiburg.de]