Promoting internationalization through Telecollaboration

Francesca Helm, University of Padova

Cercles 6-8 September 2012 London School of Economics, London

Che cos’è ‘telecollaboration’? Una forma di ‘mobilità virtuale’ o scambio interculturale online

che comporta l’interazione tra gruppi di studenti appartenenti a zone geografiche distanti attraverso l’uso di strumenti informatici comunemente disponibili, che consente lo sviluppo di competenze linguistiche, comunicative, interculturali e digitali.

Primary and Secondary Schools

Mobility is important for personal development and employability, it fosters respect for diversity and a capacity to deal with other cultures. It encourages linguistic pluralism, thus underpinning the multilingual tradition of the European Higher Education Area and it increases cooperation and competition between higher education institutions

In 2020, at least 20% of those graduating in the EuropeanHigher Education Area should have had a study or trainingperiod abroad.

• Communiqué of the Conference ofEuropean Ministers Responsible for Higher Education,Leuven and Louvain-la-Neuve, 28-29 April 2009

Mobility and the EHEA

And the remaining 80%? Virtual mobility:i.e. the use of the internet and other electronic forms ofinformation and communication, is often a catalyst for embarking on aperiod of physical mobility. Although not a substitute for physicalmobility, it does enable young people to prepare a stay abroad and cancreate conditions for future physical mobility by facilitating friendships,contacts and social networking etc….

• It can also provide an international dimension to those learners who, for different reasons, are not able or willing to go abroad. In that context, ICT can be used for “electronic twinning” …etc.

Commission of the European Communities:Green paper: promoting the learning mobility of young people.

Benefits of telecollaborationFor Students: Development of FL competence, intercultural awareness, electronic literacies

For Students: Development of FL competence, intercultural awareness, electronic literacies

For University Management: ‘Low cost’ internationalisation strategy / Opening up new university partnerships

For University Management: ‘Low cost’ internationalisation strategy / Opening up new university partnerships

For Mobility Officers: Preparation for physical mobility/ Alternative to physical mobility

For Mobility Officers: Preparation for physical mobility/ Alternative to physical mobility

For University Educators: Opening up of classroom / Authentic communication and project work / Developing

international network of collaborators

For University Educators: Opening up of classroom / Authentic communication and project work / Developing

international network of collaborators

INTENT• Integrating Telecollaborative Networks into Foreign Language

Higher Education

• Financed By The European Commission - Lifelong Learning Programme

• Co-ordinated by Robert O’Dowd at the Universidad de Leon, Spain• 8 European partners (PH Heidelberg, Grenoble III, Padova,

Czestochowa, Groningen, UA Barcelona, Open University UK)

• October 2011-March 2014

Study of Telecollaboration in European Universities Online surveys from December 2011 - February 2012 Language versions: English, German, French and Italian Three surveys with responses from 24 European countries:

Experienced teacher telecollaborators (102 complete responses) Inexperienced teacher telecollaborators (108 complete responses) Experienced student telecollaborators (131 complete responses)

Qualitative Case studies: 7 representative examples of telecollaboration around Europe

Aims: Identify types of telecollaborative practices undertaken by European

university educators Explore the barriers to telecollaboration and the strategies used to

overcome these barriers

Perché fare telecollaboration?•Development of teaching and pedagogic competence and techniques for future French language teachers. (T-Yes-FR-16)•Also: learning first-hand about the collaboration between technical communicators and translators which goes on in the real world of localization. (T-Yes-EN-56).•Development of learners' autonomy. (T-Yes-EN-01)•Development of multiple academic competences. (T-Yes-EN-51)•Encourage acceptance of cultural diversity rather than social inequality. Provide a space for real communication outside the classroom. (T-Yes-EN-39)•Increase digital literacy and experience online communication technologies. (T-Yes-EN-57)•développement des compétences didactiques, pédagogiques et techniques pour de futurs enseignants de langue française(T-Yes-FR-16)

Quante lingue vengono utilizzate?

Quale lingue vengono utilizzate?

Finnish, Greek, Turkish, Hungarian, Dutch, Polish, Portuguese, Catalan and Rumanian

Quali strumenti vengono utilizzati?

Dove si trovano i partner?

Fattori istituzionali

Valutazione generale

Studenti – commenti finali“je n'ai pas vraiment vécu la télécollaboration sous l'angle d'une rencontre inter-

culturelle, mais d'une rencontre tout court.”

• Eine gute Idee, aber nur wenn sie sinnvoll geplant und durchgeführt wird.• I encourage all students to participate in a cultural exchange• I think it was a great idea and experience. I think Skype would be a better way of oral

communicating.• I think, it was fine and also, that it would be a necessary part in the degree of people who are

learning a foreign language.• I will encourage everyone to participate in exchange programs• Ich denke, dass interkultureller Onlineaustausch besonders für Studierende, die bisher nur

wenig interkulturelle Erfahrungen gemacht haben, sinvoll ist.• Our University should organise more exchanges.• Si on organise la télécollaboration je'exigerais comme prof un laps de temps obligatoire pour

parler (p.ex. les élèves doivent avoir une conversation pendant une heure par semaine..)• We must do them mor than one term

Identifying Strategies for integrating TC into university education

• What are practitioners doing to overcome these barriers and to ensure successful, on-going exchanges which involve recognition of teachers and students’ work?

Name of Exchange Participating Institutions Student Profile

The SW-US Exchange Chalmers University of Technology, Göteborg, Sweden & Clemson University, South Carolina, USA

Engineering students in Sweden and English students in the USA

SpEakWise Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland & University of Hildesheim, Germany

Students of German and Business studies in Ireland and students of International Information Management and of International Communication in Germany

Telecollaboration at Padua

The University of Padua, Italy & various partner universities and telecollaborative networks

Students of foreign languages in Italy with students from various study backgrounds

V-PaL University of Manchester, UK & Universities of Cagliari and Macareta, Italy

Students of Modern Languages in the UK and in Italy

The Trans-Atlantic Network

Vasa Universitet, Finland; Università degli Studi di Trieste and Università degli Studi di Padova, Italy; Université Paris—Denis Diderot, France; Århus Universitet, Denmark; Hogeschool Gent, Belgium; North Dakota State University and University of Wisconsin, USA

Students of Translation Studies in the European institutions and students of technical writing in the American institutions

Le Francais en Premiere Ligne

University of Riga, Latvia & University of Grenoble, France

Students of French in Latvia with students of foreign language education in France

The Claivier Project Université Balise Pascal, Clermont-Ferrand, France & University of Warwick, UK

Students of Sports Sciences in France and students of various undergraduate degrees in the UK

Learning from the Case Studies Telecollaboration is not only for ‘pure’ language students – Engineering

students in Sweden, Business Studies students in Trinity, Dublin

Senior Management – view OIE as a positive international activity but are often unwilling to provide adequate staff and technical support

OIE can contribute to educators’ academic careers – new academic networks, staff mobility – e.g. Riga & Grenoble / Warwick & Clermont sign ‘Memory of Understanding’

No ‘one size fits all’ -Different levels of integration are possible: Claivier at Warwick takes place independently of academic courses SpEakWise at Trinity is integrated into a course but does not carry credit Manchester and Latvia – course marks are based completely on OIE

activity

Strategies for Integrating Telecollaboration Signing of written contracts between participating partner classes – provides

security to include exchanges in study guides etc.

Ensure that students see relevance and value of exchanges – e.g. through providing academic credit for OIE

Functioning partnerships gather momentum – try to maintain steady partners

Ensure awareness and support of department heads – coordinating staff can be replaced if necessary

Ensure internal department collaboration and sharing of good practices (e.g. Padova – tool sharing, involvement of graduate students, mobility staff, admin)

Prestige and awareness raising through press releases and prize winning (e.g. Trinity award)

‘Loose networks’ of partners are gaining in popularity TransAtlantic Network (Translation students around Europe & technical

writing students in USA) Soliya – Connects students from 100 HEI’s in 27 countries in Western-

Eastern dialogue Cultura – bilingual bicultural exchanges through comparative task types AUSJAL DUAL IMMERSION PROJECT - 21 Jesuit universities from eight

different countries in North and South America Byram’s Intercultural Citizenship project – 25 practitioners looking for

partners to carry out a project on intercultural citizenship

Advantages: Common themes of interest Not obliged to work with same partner constantly - flexibility Activities, solutions and ideas are shared and developed

Recommendations• Support the establishment of online exchanges between European countries in much the

same way as they have supported physical mobility

• Draw up models of Erasmus agreements specifically for virtual mobility programmes.

• Establish European grants for virtual mobility to help cover the organizational costs.

• Support the establishment of OIEs for students prior to their period of physical mobility. With the training and support of international office and language centre staff exchanges, these ‘pre-mobility exchanges’ could improve the quality of physical mobility by promoting integration of Erasmus students in host universities.

• Integrate OIE in teacher education programs as this will encourage future educators to integrate telecollaboration into their practice

• Provide incentives and support for educators embarking on their first experience of OIE.

• Provide a technical and administrative infrastructure which will support educators in their telecollaborative activity.

• Find more systems of awarding credits (ECTS) for students’ participation in OIEs. Other ways of awarding credit, such as explicit mention of the activity in the European Diploma Supplement, are also worthy of exploration.

Class search toolTool for finding classes to work withSearchable fields include:

Target languageCountryCEFR levelMode of exchangeNumber of studentsStudy programmePeriodAvailability

Map searches supported

Get involved

• Contact and suggestions welcome:• intentproject@gmail.com

• Read our Report on Telecollaboration in Europe: • www.intent-project.eu

• Upcoming platform for collaboration and networking: • www.uni-collaboration.eu