Telecollaborative Foreign Language Networks in European UniversitiesA Report on Current Attitudes and Practices

  1. Guth, Sarah 1
  2. Helm, Francesca 2
  3. O'Dowd, Robert 3
  1. 1 Università di Padova, Italy SUNY COIL Center, USA
  2. 2 Università di Padova, Italy
  3. 3 Universidad de León, Spain
Show affiliations +
Journal:
Bellaterra: journal of teaching and learning language and literature

ISSN: 2013-6196

Year of publication: 2014

Issue Title: November/December 2014

Volume: 7

Issue: 4

Pages: 1-14

Type: Article

DOI: 10.5565/REV/JTL3.609 DIALNET GOOGLE SCHOLAR

More publications in: Bellaterra: journal of teaching and learning language and literature

Abstract

This paper reports on a survey which sought to identify the state of the art in the practice of telecollaboration in Europe. It was the first large scale survey carried out on the practice of telecollaboration in Europe and was carried out as part of the European Commission funded project, INTENT - Integrating Telecollaborative Networks into Foreign Language Higher Education. Also known as Online Intercultural Exchange (OIE), telecollaboration engages groups of foreign language learners in virtual intercultural interaction and exchange with partner classes in geographically distant locations. Much research has been carried out on telecollaboration, though this comprises largely of small-scale studies on single telecollaboration projects. The aim of this paper is to discuss the findings from the final report on the survey, provide recommendations for decision-makers and teachers based on these findings and present the UniCollaboration website that was developed largely on the basis of the findings. The paper ends with a brief comparison of the INTENT survey results to findings from two other OIE projects: eTwinning and the COIL Institute for Globally Networked Learning in the Humanities.

Bibliographic References

  • Belz, J. A. (2003). From the special editor. Language Learning & Technology, 7(2), 2-5.
  • Belz, J. A., & Thorne, S. L. (2006). Internet-mediated intercultural foreign language education. Boston (MA): Thomson Heinle.
  • Dooly, M. (2008). Telecollaborative language learning. Bern: Peter Lang.
  • Dooly, M., & O'Dowd, R. (Eds.). (2012). Researching online foreign language interaction and exchange: Theories, methods and challenges. Bern: Peter Lang.
  • Education for Change (2013). Study of the impact of eTwinning on participating pupils, teachers and schools. Luxembourg: European Union.
  • Guth, S., & Helm, F. (Eds.). (2010). Telecollaboration 2.0. Language, literacies and intercultural learning in the 21st century. Bern: Peter Lang.
  • Guth, S., Helm F., & O'Dowd, R. (2012). University language classes collaborating online. A report on the integration of telecollaborative networks in European universities. Retrieved from http://intent-project.eu/sites/default/files/Telecollaboration_report_Final_Oct2012.pdf
  • Guth, S. (2013). The COIL Institute for Globally Networked Learning in the Humanities: Final Report. Retrieved from http://coil.suny.edu/sites/default/files/case_study_report.pdf
  • Kern, R., & Warschauer, M. (2000). Network-based language teaching concepts and practice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  • Lamy, M., & Goodfellow, R. (2010). Telecollaboration and learning 2.0. In S. Guth, & F. Helm (Eds.), Telecollaboration 2.0. Language, literacies and intercultural learning in the 21st century (pp. 107-138). Bern: Peter Lang.
  • Lewis, T., Chanier, T., & Youngs, B. (2011). Special issue commentary: Multilateral online exchanges for language and culture learning. Language Learning & Technology, 15(1), 3-9.
  • O'Dowd, R. (2007). Online intercultural exchange. Clevedon Buffalo Toronto: Multilingual Matters.
  • O’Dowd, R., & Ritter, M. (2006) Understanding and working with ‘failed communication’ in telecollaborative exchanges. CALICO Journal, 61(2): 623–642.
  • O'Dowd, R. (2011). Online foreign language interaction: Moving from the periphery to the core of foreign language education? Language Teaching, 44(03), 368-380.
  • Rubin, J., & Guth, S. (in press). Collaborative Online International Learning: An Emerging Format for Internationalizing Curricula. Globally Networked Teaching in the Humanities. New York: Routledge.
Data source: Dialnet