Abstract
Virtual exchange (VE) stands for “pedagogically-structured online collaborative learning between groups of students in different cultural contexts and/or geographical locations” (O’Dowd, 2018). It is a strong catalyst in advancing the internationalisation of HE curricula, known as Internationalisation at Home (IaH) (Beelen and Jones, 2015; O’Dowd & Beelen, 2021). VEs are known to prepare students for the globalised digital workplace as they focus on transversal skills like problem solving, teamwork and leadership, communication, critical and innovative thinking and media and information literacy (Crawford, 2021). However, VE and VE-based IaH are not inherently equitable and inclusive. Like other forms of online education, they are prone to Western hegemonies and influenced by inequalities in access to and experience with technology, institutional constraints, gender, race, age, English language dominance, and socio-political and geopolitical challenges (Helm, 2020). Critical VE (CVE) (Hauck, 2020; Klimanova & Hellmich, 2021) aims to ensure more inclusive student exchange experiences through: a) The use of low-bandwidth technologies b) A focus on students from low socio-economic backgrounds c) Student exchange topics aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) d) Integration of local student outreach work with businesses, NGOs, and charities to enhance graduate employability. Moreover, CVE is informed by critical digital literacy (CDL) that leverages digital technologies for social justice-oriented action and change, e.g., by reaching out to a wider, more diverse range of students in collaborative online learning projects (Darvin, 2020; Nicolaou, 2021). I present a framework for CVE and explore recent examples from across the curriculum.
Presenters
Mirjam HauckAssociate Head of School for Internationalisation and EDI, School of Languages and Applied Linguistics, The Open University, United Kingdom
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
Designing Social Transformations
KEYWORDS
Critical Virtual Exchange, Inclusive Internationalisation, Social Justice
