Telecollaboration has received growing interest in language education as a way of fostering intercultural learning. While the body of literature primarily focuses on the impact of telecollaborative processes on intercultural learning, the effect of supportive mechanisms on intercultural telecollaboration has received little academic attention.…

As technology has enabled people across the world to collaborate and create virtual communities, the ability to interact in computer-mediated, cross-cultural environments in a meaningful way has become a necessity. This is particularly true for younger adults who operate in virtual teams during their studies, for instance in virtual exchange…

Upon encountering unfamiliar words or observing local practices in study abroad contexts, second language learners may discuss aspects of the target language and culture with their peers -- 'non-native' friends from the same cultural background or 'natives' of the target culture. Such mediations are instrumental in elaborating understandings, but…

This book presents a state-of-the-art, robust, and adaptable process, the Theory of Being, that offers strategies for working across Difference, and for embarking on constructive dialogue around the issues that drive us apart, both individually and collectively. Whether around racial, gender, and/or social class inequity, core beliefs, uses of…

This manuscript contributes to the existing body of literature on intercultural communicative competence (ICC) in the context of computer-mediated communication by examining how fourth-semester learners of Spanish (n = 18) display and develop ICC over the course of a semester. Novel to this study are: (1) the use of service-provider virtual…

This case study sought to examine the experiences of teachers on an effective diverse teaching team to discover if a team-based approach could be used to help mitigate racial disconnections, teacher isolation, and feelings of inferiority reported by teachers of color across the United States. Using extant literature on the experiences of teachers…

Emerging from a worldwide study of 29 U.S.-trained student affairs professionals with higher education work experience abroad, this study explored the perspectives and skills developed through working abroad. The findings of this study provide useful advocacy for this group of professionals to demonstrate their unique perspectives and critical…

Shanghai International Studies University has hosted an intercultural Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) course for several years. Course facilitators, mentors, and learners from all over the world are invited to enroll in the class. However, conversations between mentors and learners revealed that most were superficial. Thus, a pilot study was…

The present study points to several potentially universal principles of human communication. Pairs of participants, sampled from culturally and linguistically distinct societies (Western and Japanese, N = 108: 16 Western-Western, 15 Japanese-Japanese and 23 Western-Japanese dyads), played a dyadic communication game in which they tried to…

This qualitative study examined Chinese undergraduate students' perceptions of their interpersonal communication experiences in American higher education institutions. The researcher interviewed eight Chinese undergraduate students in the United States. Participants discussed the differences of their interpersonal communication experiences with…

"Phatic" refers to the rhetorical function of creating effective communication channels, keeping them open, and establishing ongoing and fruitful relationships, all of which are vital in the age of digital rhetoric, social media, and global intercultural exchange. In this realm, the professional communicator functions less as an…

It has been repeatedly asserted in recent years that telecollaboration is such a powerful and effective tool for both second language acquisition (SLA) and fostering intercultural communication competence (ICC) that it should be regularly included in foreign language instruction (Çiftçi & Savas, 2018; Lewis & O'Dowd, 2016a; O'Dowd, 2016a;…

There is growing evidence that social interactions at work with local colleagues present a real challenge for Chinese immigrants to Australia (e.g. Tomazin, 2009; Zhou, Windsor, Coyer, & Theobald, 2010), often leaving them feeling defeated and despairing, and the Australians puzzled or affronted. Seeking to understand the nature, origin, and…

This paper investigates quality assurance as boundary-making practices that establish and re-establish boundaries of a transnational education (TNE) partnership between an Australian and a Malaysian higher education institution. Drawing on practice theory we offer a conception of boundaries as enacted, shifting and performed by the multiple actors…

This exploratory study examined the perceptions of minority graduate students toward online collaborative learning activities. The participants were 20 minority graduate students from diverse cultural backgrounds (10 African Americans, 5 Hispanics, and 5 international students from Africa) enrolled in online graduate instructional technology and…