Experiential Artefact for Cross-Cultural Learning in Business Games: First Results

Abstract

The use of simulators in higher education is a common practice in many areas of disciplines by virtue of providing a safe environment for experimentation. In management courses, an established type of simulator is the business game, which has characteristics suitable for learning intercultural competences. In management education, the kind of simulators used performs the context of business games. Not only regulatory agencies but also researchers recommend training in this competency. Existing business games do not have tools to manage the didactic learning of these competences. The purpose of this research was to produce an apparatus for managing intercultural learning, for use with business games. The Experiential Artefact of Cross-Cultural Learning Skills (MCCLS) served as a basis to design a system attachable to any business game in the web environment. After the apparatus has been produced, it can be used by students from different cultures. Teachers will be able to use the apparatus to support intercultural learning. The result shows that the apparatus will help in the teaching-learning process by demonstrating to the teacher that there are competence attributes with deficiencies. From these indicators, teachers can act with adequate didactic procedures, as they deem necessary. It is likely, too, that this system is suitable for distance learning, by the availability in the web environment, contributing to the training of top professionals with intercultural competences.