Teaching/Undergraduate and Graduate Education

摘要

In recent years academic mobility and cultural diversity have constantlyincreased in higher education institutions. Consequently, language barrierhas become an important issue in the learning process in the cases ofEnglish-speaking regions such as the United States and Europe, wherethere are 24 official languages. In animal and veterinary sciences, thecomplexity of the vocabulary used during the learning process exacerbatesthis problem. For instance, species names (e.g., Bos taurus,Staphylococcus aureus, Fasciola hepatica), muscle names (e.g., longissimusdorsi, latissimus dorsi, biceps brachii), organ parts (e.g., corpuscallosum, hippocampus ) or terms such as ad libitum, in vivo, in vitro,in situ, postpartum, which are Latin. In addition, the use of either technicalwords (e.g., methylenedioxymethamphetamine, depolarizability,gluconeogenesis), words uncommonly used in English (e.g., aliquot,supernatant, centrifuge, rumination) or technical concepts (e.g., freshcow, dry cow, white veal) can also challenge the transfer of knowledgefrom lecturers to students. To overcome this problem, lecturers mustcreate an interactive and engaging classroom atmosphere, provide areduced and concise lecture and promote the interaction among studentsthrough the promotion of discussion. In our experience, the useof e-tools, electronic polling, and quiz tools (such as Poll Everywhere,Glogster, Kahoot and Spreaker) also contributes to student’s interaction.We have observed that when teaching complex biological processes,hands-on laboratory exercises (HLE) and case-based activities (CBA)also contribute to overcome language barriers between students andlecturers when teaching complex biological process. For example, infarm animal reproduction, students may study semen evaluation byHLE, whereas in CBA students can learn specific parameters of a realcase to understand estrus cycle, manipulation, and synchronization.In conclusion, lecturers need to create an interactive classroom by theuse of direct and concise language and the use of new technologies topromote learning in an international classroom.