Transition in the meaning of “international” given the rise of online learning

How do you define an “international” university? Criteria would include active academic exchange with universities overseas, a good number of inbound and outbound students, and alumni active at international organizations and foreign corporations; but it is difficult to describe this in a single phrase. The meaning of the word has changed with time. Iwakiri said, “When I started teaching at ICU a quarter of a century ago, the term “international” was very popular, but somewhere along the line, “global” has taken its place.”

When we look at what’s happening in the world, we tend to confront more global issues than those in bilateral relations. Iwakiri relates this to the increasingly global social structure. “For instance, the problems of economic disparity cannot be solved between two nations but need to be considered in the context of the wealthy and impoverished existing in the world. A thoroughly global perspective is necessary.”

A transition in the meaning of “international” has affected international education, due largely to the ubiquitous use of online modes of delivery accelerated by the pandemic. Suzuki said, “Before the pandemic, people moved across borders for study abroad and other purposes, but now courses are streamed around the world via the Internet. What used to be conducted in a closed classroom, is suddenly on offer to the world. The teaching ability of each faculty, and what he/she has to offer in terms of specialty are highlighted.”

World-class liberal arts education that ICU and AIU aspire to offer

Both ICU and AIU continue to emphasize the international character at the heart of their philosophies, although the meaning of the concept is changing. The other major pillar they have in common is liberal arts education.
ICU offers a major system that allows students to choose from 31 majors, not when they matriculate, but by the end of their sophomore year. They have a well-balanced range of choices across the arts and sciences, in traditional subjects in the humanities and social sciences, as well as in the natural sciences such as biology, physics, chemistry, mathematics and information science. At AIU, the Global Connectivity Program, offered as of AY2021, provides instruction in the latest technology in the natural sciences and AI along with the humanities and traditional social science subjects. Suzuki says, “This program attempts to integrate the arts and sciences at AIU by emulating the well-balanced academic fields on offer at ICU.”

The tradition in Japan that divides the arts and sciences has been questioned, with learning across academic fields arguably the norm in globally recognized education today.

Suzuki added, “The city-states in ancient Greece and Rome initially emphasized physical education and music in educating their youth, followed by mathematics. I would say that the aesthetics and mystifying nature of this subject is a starting point for liberal arts.”

In the Dialogue on the Core Values of ICU#1 between Oriza Hirata and President Iwakiri, Hirata mentioned that, at the time of his own matriculation into ICU, the President had stressed at the Matriculation Ceremony that the university would be teaching the soft sciences. In the course of this speech, the theater, literature and the arts came up as topics, but perhaps pure mathematics can also be regarded as a soft science as it may not benefit society directly.

Delving into the identity of ICU by comparison with AIU

Perhaps the greatest difference between the two institutions is that ICU has Christianity as its founding philosophy. Iwakiri asked, “Having Christianity as the spiritual pillar at ICU made it easier for us to form a community. What were some of the steps you took to build a community at AIU?”

AIU offers a well-equipped international dormitory that all freshmen are required to reside in. The university is now constructing new dormitories which, when completed, will offer a capacity, along with the existing residences, to house all AIU students.

Suzuki talked about the purpose of these buildings. “These dormitories help in creating a community, by strengthening the bond between students. I think this is vital for a university. It also gives them less of a chance to escape, practically forcing them to immerse themselves in their studies in a residential community.”

ICU has several dormitories on campus, where about 30% of the student body lives. Although the two institutions take dissimilar approaches in creating a community, a similar “living and learning” style has taken root at both schools, which may be a key to realizing a world-class liberal arts education.

The other big difference concerns language education. ICU takes a multilingual approach based on bilingualism in English and Japanese, whereas AIU concentrates on English as the single language of instruction.

With the importance of English in an ever more global society, an education that intentionally avoids use of Japanese may attract students who aspire to work in a global environment. But at ICU, the bilingual policy has been firmly in place since its foundation, with an ongoing shift to multilingualism. Iwakiri explained the advantages of this strategy.

“A psychology professor told me that a radical transformation in the structure of the brain occurs between the ages of 18 and 22, in acquiring sociality. On entering university, students learn academic Japanese, something quite different from what they used up to high school. Higher education inducts students into a new culture of academic literacy. I feel it is vital for students to acquire language abilities for academic use in both Japanese and English during this crucial period for their long life ahead.”
“I would also add that we want our international students to immerse themselves in a foreign culture, to study Japanese and see how things look different when thinking in Japanese. This would be far more stimulating than those from an anglophone environment taking classes in English.”

Keys to achieving world-class status: the common good and an open mind

What do the two administrators consider as criteria for a globally recognized university?

Iwakiri’s reply was, “What’s important is an openness to the world. Universities around the world teach and conduct research in more or less the same fields, albeit at various levels. In tackling shared global challenges, solutions that focus on the interests of a particular community would not be recognized globally, however advanced the research. Understanding the global nature of things, with serious consideration for the common good and being open to everything, is a prerequisite for a globally recognized university.”

The spirit of the common good and open mindedness, which form part of the ICU culture, cultivated in an environment where students from all corners of the world converge on campus to form a community, are the very ideas featured in the ICU Medium Term Plan to be implemented between AY2021 and AY2025.

Suzuki expressed his opinion from a different perspective. “When we think of world-class excellence, we need to recognize the dual structure with a tension between locality and globality. To know who we are, we need to understand our native country and the local environment. Only by delving into the locality can we define ourselves and develop a robust understanding of the world.”
Iwakiri notes, “With a significant number of Nobel Prize laureates and abundant cultural resources accumulating throughout our history, Japanese universities can be considered world-class to a certain extent. I am also gratified to see that current students are highly motivated to learn, perhaps more so than their predecessors.”

Suzuki talked about his experience teaching at a university in the U.S. “We included class participation in the criteria for grading students. At American universities, it’s common for students who inject energy into the class by asking good questions, for example, to receive good grades. Active participation requires preparation, which calls for a detailed syllabus that informs students what each class will cover.”

ICU’s mission in the social implementation of liberal arts and challenges

The ICU Medium Term Plan that emphasizes the spirit of the common good is subtitled social implementation of liberal arts. Iwakiri explained its objective, “Until now, the emphasis was on nurturing each student with a background in liberal arts. But in future, the objective of our education and research will be to disseminate liberal arts in society, its thinking styles and perspectives.”

The challenges in the social implementation of liberal arts are manifold, as understanding of the concept of liberal arts is not widespread in Japan. Suzuki explained why.

“To establish universities in Japan during the Meiji Era, a Japanese delegation visited Europe and the U.S. to emulate institutions of higher education. At the time, liberal arts education was implemented in schools in England and France, but Japan chose to adopt the Prussian model with specialized faculties, which remains embedded in the Japanese university system.”

Iwakiri elaborated. “To understand liberal arts properly, you need to go back to Ancient Greece. Perhaps the image of the term liberal arts also causes some misunderstanding. For most people, arts imply the fine arts, but the term also connotes technology and academic learning. This is what we need to clarify. The concept of Liberal arts is often translated into Japanese as general education, which is also why it is misunderstood.”
(For definitions of general education and liberal arts, see Dialogue on the Core Values of ICU #3.)

We confront many issues when it comes to disseminating liberal arts, but we have high expectations for ICU to stand at the forefront in spreading a correct understanding of the concept.