Globally Networked Learning

About GNL

Globally networked learning (GNL) refers to an approach to research, learning, and teaching that enables students, faculty, and non-academic researchers from different locations around the world to participate in, and collaborate on, knowledge-making processes and concrete research projects. With the aid of various forms of technology – including but not limited to, learning management systems, video conferencing software and hardware, cloud computing and social media – they are brought together in a consortium to collaborate on projects that bring together the diverse perspectives of participants to produce a richer, more nuanced, understanding of the issue(s) at hand. A GNL project might entail or produce cross-cultural discussion on a particular course concept, a joint lecture over multiple time zones, a shared assignment, or a collaborative research project, among other possibilities.

GNL pedagogy supports student-centered learning and teaching for the 21st century university. It supports the development of global competencies – among students and instructors – required to adapt, thrive, and succeed in becoming global citizens engaged in complex, intercultural problem solving. As a form of experiential education that transcends borders, the promise of GNL can be reinforced through open pedagogy, development of digital literacy and production, and other forms of innovative knowledge-making practices across cultures.

Get Involved in GNL 2020-21!

If you are a student at York University:

Are you an undergraduate or graduate student who is interested in international mobility, experiential learning, and developing your intercultural competency and plurilingual communication? Do you want to develop strong problem-solving skills for today’s complex problems? We would love to hear your ideas!

If you are a faculty member at York University:

Are you a York University faculty member who is interested in student-centered learning and open pedagogy? Are you planning to develop and mount a GNL course? We are excited that are you planning to engage in a GNL-enhanced course this year and we would love to support you!

We recommend reviewing the following resources in preparation for the GNL Proposal Form.

Resources:

Timelines:

  • GNL Launch Webinar: Tuesday, July 14, 2020
  • GNL Workshop: Friday, August 7, 2020 - 10:00AM to 11:30AM and 6:00PM to 7:30PM
  • GNL Drop-in Consultations: November 9 and 16, 10:00AM to 11:30AM ET
  • Application Deadline (Winter and Summer 2021): Friday, December 4, 2020
  • Award Notification (Winter and Summer 2021): Friday, December 11, 2020

Resources for Partner Matching

300+ York University Partners through York International

Most popular universities for York Students

  • Ewha Womans University (South Korea)
  • Deakin University (Australia)
  • Erasmus University Rotterdam (the Netherlands)
  • Bogazici University (Turkey)
  • Hitotsubashi University (Japan)
  • Hochschule Darmstadt / University of Applied Sciences (Germany)
  • Keele University (UK)
  • Monash University (Australia)
  • Nanyang Technological University
  • National University of Ireland, Galway (Ireland)
  • National University of Singapore
  • OBW (Germany)  https://obw.ouinternational.ca/ ​
  • ORA (France) http://www.ora.ouinternational.ca/ ​
  • Oxford Brookes University (UK)
  • Ph Freiburg (Germany)
  • Uppsala University (Sweden)
  • Universidad Pontificia Comillas (Spain)
  • Universidade Nova de Lisboa (Portugal)
  • Universitat de Valencia (Spain)
  • Universite Bordeaux Montaigne (France)
  • Universite d'Avignon (France)
  • University of Bologna (Italy)
  • University of Chichester (UK)
  • University of Helsinki (Finland)
  • University of Leeds (UK)
  • Utrecht University (the Netherlands)
  • Waseda University (Japan)

View more university partnerships and links here.

SUNY COIL (USA)

Mary Forward, Executive Director of COIL

Email: marylou.forward@suny.edu

Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences (the Netherlands)

Eva Haug, Coordinator Internationalisation and Senior Lecturer of Intercultural Competence

Hemispheric University Consortium (HUC)

TECHNOLOGICO DE MONTERREY (Mexico) 

UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI (USA)

UNIVERSIDAD SAN FRANCISCO DE QUITO (Ecuador)

UNIVERSIDAD PERUANA CAYETANO HEREDIA (Peru)

UNIVERSIDAD ANDRÉS BELLO (Chile)

Learn about GNL at York University

The GNL project at York University began in 2015. “The GNL project at York is currently an autonomous zone bringing researchers, instructors and students together to imagine and experiment with the idea of ‘global thinking’ as a critical skill to acquire for globally networked working environments. GNL can create rich cultural connections by designing a learning environment that engages students locally and internationally in conversations with the goal of advancing collaboratively the latest thinking on global issues,” says Dominique Scheffel-Dunand, the current Project Lead.

Over the past few years, the Project research team has been exploring ways to institutionalize the initiative at York University.

  • We began by working closely with students and faculty members at both of our campuses to build an awareness of GNL pedagogy.
  • Through this work, the project evolved beyond GNL, in response to the needs, interests and expertise of our students and faculty. We recruited students from across faculties with strong problem-solving and leadership skills to design GNL modules and open educational resources (OER) on interculturality, plurilingual communication and academic competencies/informational literacy.
  • Moving forward, our plan for the 2019-2020 academic year is to develop and solidify a virtual ecosystem at York and beyond to further grow and support its learning community.

Learn more about the project’s conceptualization, history, and future directions here.

Get in Touch with the Project Team Today

  • Prof. Dominique Scheffel-Dunand, Academic Lead, Globally Networked Learning Project/Lead, Bilingual Open Educational Resources/former Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies, Glendon dsdunand@glendon.yorku.ca
  • Lisa Endersby, Educational Developer, Teaching Commons lendersb@yorku.ca
  • Vinitha Gengatharan, Executive Director, York International vinithag@yorku.ca
  • Helen Balderama, Associate Director, International Partnerships and Programs, York International, helencb@yorku.ca
  • Marierose Talla, Go Global Projects Assistant, York International, rtalla@yorku.ca