Abstract:

One of the innovative ways to create an immersive environment online is through telecollaboration or online virtual exchange. When students decide to study world languages, they are usually interested in becoming effective communicators. This means they need to acquire a set of linguistic skills along with the in-depth understanding of culture(s), where the target language is used. Geography plays a significant role in shaping both cultures and languages. Learning activities, which engage students in the exploration of interactive maps for the purposes of analysis and comparison, allow students to unravel this role, as well as discover the diversity of cultures, where the target language is used. International immersive language education via tele-collaboration can contribute to the creation of a more equitable, respectful and just society. Gamification and work in international teams can play a key role in successful tele-collaboration, or online intercultural exchange, which rather than displacing participants culturally, brings them together, through advancing their knowledge about themselves, and through the deepening of cultural sensitivity. Vygotsky (1978) observed that students can perform at higher intellectual levels in collaborative situations then when working individually. Furthering this insight, Dooley (2008) and Tcherepashenets (2015) suggested that diversity in a group of learners can contribute positively to learning.

In the first part of this presentation, taking my cue from the insight of such diverse thinkers as Mikhail Bakhtin, Zygmunt Bauman and Robert O’Dowd, I will suggest that tele-collaboration can meet one of the biggest challenges of our time: the exercise of the rules of mutual hospitality. In this educational context, the willingness to acknowledge the cultural strength and uniqueness of each participant goes in tandem with openness to the creation of the supranational community of learners. I will further propose that online intercultural exchange, facilitated by instructors who see themselves as life-long learners can become a manifestation of the liberating power of technology which enhances an acquisition of a collaboratively created knowledge. In the second part of this presentation, I will discuss the collaboration between the State University of New York, Empire State University (USA) and Tecnológico de Monterrey (Mexico) in the co-developing and co-teaching of Advanced Spanish/English: Language and Culture. Particular attention will be given to the analysis of students’ engagement with such topics as immigration, commercialization of culture and ethical dilemmas as productive points of departure for exploration of the challenges and rewards of life in the intercultural society.

Keywords:

Language learning, innovation, online virtual exchange, international education.