12-01, 09:45–10:30 (Europe/Berlin), Stage 2, Einstein-Saal, BBAW
It is often assumed that intercultural learning will be an automatic outcome of engaging learners in virtual exchange, yet this is not always the case. The pedagogic design of the exchange and the partnership are some factors that can influence the learning outcomes. In this presentation findings regarding intercultural learning from several large-scale virtual exchange initiatives will be presented and discussed, as well as the implications.
Virtual exchange is an educational approach which uses technology to bring together people from geographically and/or culturally distant locations in sustained online interactions, often intended to develop their intercultural awareness and understanding. Though the practice has existed for several decades it has gained popularity in recent years, in part due to the recent COVID-19 pandemic and recourse to online tools, also for offering international and intercultural learning. It is often assumed that intercultural learning will be an automatic outcome of bringing learners from diverse contexts to interact with one another, yet research has shown that this is not the case. It is important to consider how culture and intercultural communication are framed in VE, and how the pedagogic design of the exchange and the nature of the partnership can influence the learning outcomes. In this presentation the findings from several large-scale virtual exchange initiatives will be presented and discussed, as well as the implications for practitioners.
Francesca Helm is associate professor of English at the Department of Political Science, Law and International Studies at the University of Padova in Italy. Her research interests are in intercultural dialogue, virtual exchange and online education, language and education policies and critical internationalization studies. She is a board member of the academic organization UNICollaboration, and was responsible for monitoring and evaluation of the European Commission's Erasmus+ Virtual Exchange (EVE) project which ran from 2018 to 2020. From 2018 to 2021 she was chair of the Education Innovation Working Group of the Coimbra Group of Universities. Since 2019 she has been co-coordinator of the Italian section of the international network Scholars at Risk.