In May, the Warsaw campus of SWPS University became a space for cultural exchange, welcoming students from a range of academic fields and backgrounds. Participants from member universities of the European Reform University Alliance (ERUA), from France, Germany, Greece, and Spain took part in a five-day intensive course titled Intercultural Communication & Understanding, organized by the Faculty of Humanities in Warsaw.
Communication in a Multicultural Context
The course combined experiential, reflective, and inquiry-based learning to explore key concepts in intercultural communication. The curriculum encouraged participants to examine various dimensions of communication, including:
- How cultural contexts shape meaning
- How the same message can be interpreted in multiple ways
- How language can function as a tool for both inclusion and exclusion
The course also strongly emphasized how media and discourse shape social categories, stereotypes, and power dynamics.
Particpants of the ERUA intensive course "Intercultural Communication and Understanding" during a workshop at SWPS University in Warsaw.
Course Format
Through case studies, teamwork, and simulations, students analyzed real-world social examples, enabling them to develop the tools needed to navigate intercultural encounters with a deeper awareness of their context and complexity.
The week concluded with an Oxford-style debate where students put their newfound knowledge into practice. Tasked with defending various perspectives on a given issue, they were able to hone both their argumentation and intercultural communication skills.
As an alliance of eight universities embedded across different countries and cultures, ERUA provides a natural environment for deepening mutual understanding and building a stronger foundation for cooperation in multicultural settings.
ERUA Member Universities
Funding