Wei Zuo鈥攇lobal learning specialist, instructional consultant at the Center for Teaching and Learning, and Affiliate Assistant Professor in English鈥攈as built her career around a deep commitment to global learning. Now, in her new role with UW Global, she is helping faculty design learning experiences that foster students鈥� global competence.
At last week鈥檚 UW Global Community Conversations event, Dr. Zuo shared her personal and professional journey, highlighting the experiences that shaped her approach to global education.
Originally from China, Wei came to the 黑料老司机 in 2010 to pursue a master鈥檚 degree in Educational Leadership. The program left a lasting impression. 鈥淚 remember thinking, 鈥榃ho wouldn鈥檛 want to be an educational leader?鈥欌�� she said. That inspiration set the course for her career in higher education.
Early Years
Her early years in Seattle, however, were not without challenges. Like many international students, Zuo navigated questions of identity and belonging鈥攂eginning with something as fundamental as her name. She reflected on the pressures some international students feel to adopt English names and her own decision to keep her Chinese name and teach others how to pronounce it.
鈥淣ames carry identity, culture, and meaning,鈥� she noted. 鈥淭hey can also shape assumptions.鈥� Through her own experiences, and interactions with others鈥攕uch as a man she met from Africa whose name revealed details about his origins鈥擶ei came to better understand how identity is communicated and interpreted across cultures.
Wei also recalled feeling isolated at times as a young international student among older, more experienced peers. Adjusting to new academic expectations and social norms proved difficult. She eventually found a sense of community in the Master of Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) in the UW English department, where she connected with peers who shared international perspectives and open-minded approaches to learning.
Doctoral research
That experience inspired her doctoral research, which explored the socialization and identity formation of Chinese undergraduate students at UW. Through in-depth interviews and observation with six students over a quarter, Wei uncovered a wide range of experiences. Some students actively built relationships with faculty by attending office hours, while others engaged only when necessary. Approaches to group work also varied鈥攕ome students gravitated toward working with other Chinese peers for comfort and efficiency, while others intentionally sought diverse teams to strengthen their English skills and broaden their perspectives.
These findings revealed the complexity and diversity within international student populations. 鈥淲e cannot assume a single story based on nationality,鈥� Wei emphasized. 鈥淚ndividual experiences matter.鈥�
This insight informs her work today. Wei encourages faculty to move beyond stereotypes and to design learning environments that recognize and support diverse student needs. She also underscores the importance of global competence鈥攏ot only for students, but for educators鈥攁s a critical skill in an increasingly interconnected world.
Working with UW Global
With more than a decade of experience as an instructional consultant at UW, Wei has worked with educators across disciplines and regions, including from Japan, China, Singapore, Australia and the U.S. Despite cultural and geographic differences, she has found that many teaching challenges鈥攕uch as fostering student engagement and managing effective group work鈥攁re universal.
In her new role with UW Global, Wei is expanding her impact by helping faculty integrate global learning into their courses. She is developing new resources and initiatives — including a global learning website where instructors can request support — asynchronous learning materials, and opportunities for virtual exchange through programs like Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL).
鈥淚鈥檓 excited to bring together my international background and professional experience to support faculty and staff,鈥� Wei said. 鈥淕lobal learning doesn鈥檛 have to be something you do alone.鈥�
Wei closed her talk with an invitation to collaborate. UW Global offers workshops, consultations, and events to help faculty incorporate global perspectives into their teaching. By working together, she believes the campus community can create more inclusive, globally aware learning experiences for all students.
