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Learning and teaching partner case study

CETYS is NTU’s most important and active partner in Latin America for physical and virtual student mobility and scholarship of teaching and learning in Employability. Learn more about the history of this partnership and plans for future collaboration.

CETYS

CETYS

NTU’s partnership with CETYS University began back in February 2019 when both institutions agreed to collaborate at the ANUIES-UUKi Institution to Institution Networking Day organised as part of the UUKi delegation to Mexico. Since then, with support from the British Embassy and British Council in Mexico as well as UUKi, CETYS has become NTU’s most important and active partner in Latin America for physical and virtual student mobility and scholarship of teaching and learning.

During the summer of 2019, NTU sent 20 widening participation students on a two-week summer programme at CETYS. The main aim of the programme was to allow these students from disadvantaged backgrounds to challenge themselves, break existing paradigms, and improve their intercultural competencies. There was also a focus on the value of global experiences and community engagement to students' employability.

Whilst studying alongside CETYS students, the NTU students were able to develop a rich understanding of Mexico as well as a network of friendships for life. The classroom study was complemented with industry visits, such as to the Fender factory, and cultural activities, such as a chocolate making workshop and a visit to the local vineyard. An innovative element of the programme was a bespoke community engagement weekend organised exclusively for NTU students. The students visited two rural indigenous communities, the Pai Pai and the Zapotecs. Conscious of wanting to make the visits valuable for both parties, the communities were asked what they would like to get out of the visit. As a result, students learned some Pai Pai language, engaged in traditional handicraft, played team games and took part in traditional dance. The students also taught English to the children and planted trees in the school grounds.

It was incredible. In no other circumstance …would this have been a possible visit. A very unique and grounding experience.

Student participant

Collaborative work

Building on this relationship, NTU and CETYS, with the support of British Council HE Alliances funding, have established a productive collaborative working relationship to share expertise and models of higher education curriculum and business practice, to encourage cultural understanding and foster transnational mobility. A week-long programme of workshop activities was delivered in October 2019 in CETYS Mexicali by two NTU Employability Managers to a range of CETYS personnel and their stakeholders including faculty staff, enrolment officers, employers, students, alumni and young entrepreneurs. Post workshop evaluation identified an appetite for further collaboration between CETYS and NTU, particularly in relation to the development of models and approaches to employability curriculum design and delivery as well as the opportunity to apply learning to particular discipline areas.

It was the most humbling experience and I was very privileged to have experienced it. I was able to put into action what I've learnt in my course (childhood studies) and teach the children at the community.

Student participant