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Name:

Institution:

Date:

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In terms of international education, numerous institutions have undertaken the aspect of global citizenship because of the positive impact it has on the students. Personally, I study in an international university in Australia pursuing a master’s degree in mathematics. Ultimately, intercultural and international competence endows me with a competitive advantage in my respective field. Additionally, studying in Australia has been a transformative experience as I have been able to forge new friendships and gain new insights. In this case, my understanding on the relevance of global citizen in international education was developed by a particular experience.

In this regard, I had to understand the importance of global citizenship when I encountered a fellow student with whom I was at loggerheads with due to our differences in culture. This particular situation involved an Indian female student called Pria whom I was studying with the previous semester. People are diverse meaning that cultures are different in many aspects including conversation style, mode of dressing, eating style, sense of humor, and many others. The Indian culture in this case has a different perspective on sexual harassment compared to my culture. I came to learn the hard way that parting an Indian woman at the back or soft touch on the arm amounts to sexual harassment in the Indian culture.

I consider myself social in nature, and my culture allows me to touch someone appropriately like a pat on the back. However, patting Pria on the back led her to thinking that I was harassing her and she acted by reporting me to the school authorities. This put me at the risk of being expelled from the school. Ultimately, this experience taught me a valuable lesson on having broad knowledge of the different cultural perspectives that surround us. Additionally, this situation enhanced my skills and understanding of intercultural relations and the capacity of adapting to change.