Encompassing Diversity in International Business Education: A Case Study of Virtual Service-Learning

ABSTRACT

Achieving inclusion and equity in international business (IB) education remains a challenge, given the rising costs of college tuition and the increasingly diverse and non-traditional student population. These changes may reduce the feasibility and relevancy of activities, such as study abroad programs, and an MNE-centric IB curriculum for a significant number of college students today. To overcome these challenges, in this paper, we share our findings from a case study on a virtual service-learning project that fostered cross-border interactions between undergraduate students in North America and small business owners in Central America. Over the course of one semester, students worked to draw connections between their unique individual backgrounds and skill sets, connect IB and global strategy concepts to small business operations, and deepen their understanding of sustainable development. Our findings demonstrate that this practice can enhance student enjoyment, academic learning, professional growth, and civic learning. Overall, virtual service-learning can be effective as an alternative teaching and learning approach to address the significant challenges in IB education.

KEYWORDS:

• Diversity
• inclusion
• IB education
• service-learning
• virtual learning

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Hyejin Cho

Hyejin Cho is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Business Management at Farmingdale State College (SUNY). She teaches classes relating to International Business and Strategic Management with a focus on experiential learning techniques. Dr. Cho has published on a variety of topics including internationalization, mergers and acquisitions as well as pedagogy for international business. She received her Ph.D. from Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) in Seoul, Korea.

Jing Betty Feng

Jing Betty Feng is an Associate Professor in the Department of Business Management at Farmingdale State College (SUNY). She teaches various topics related to international business, emphasizing applied learning approaches to enrich students’ learning experiences by solving real-world problems. Dr. Feng’s research interests lie at the intersection of intercultural interactions, internationalization, and sustainable business. She has published articles in the Journal of Business Research, Management and Organization Review, International Journal of Cross-Cultural Management, and among other outlets. She received her Ph.D. in Marketing and International Business from Georgia State University.

Ebru Ulusoy

Ebru Ulusoy is an Associate Professor in the Business Management Department at Farmingdale State College (SUNY). She earned her Ph.D. in Business Administration with a focus on Marketing from the University of Texas-Pan American. Dr. Ulusoy is mainly interested in teaching and conducting research in consumer behavior and marketing. She has publications in prestigious peer-reviewed academic journals, such as the International Journal of Research in Marketing, Journal of Business Research, and Journal of Marketing Management; and presentations at international conferences such as Association for Consumer Research and American Marketing Science.