Our principal objective is to explore if interculturality is relevant for the success of a bilateral student mobility program, Mexico-Japan Technical and Academic Exchange Program (MJTAEP). First, the authors explain their methodology and objectives of field work. Second, they situate their analysis within a framework of growing academic…

In the context of learning a second language, the passing on of cultural information as a means to further the development of intercultural competences is primarily viewed as being unidirectional--the "native-speaking culture" passing on information to the language learning student. However, in EFL (English as a foreign language)…

In this study, we examined the use of compliments, self-praise, and self-denigration, as exchanged among nonnative English users. This was part of participation in an online cross-cultural exchange project (Ibunka 2019), which involved learners from six countries (Algeria, Brazil, Indonesia, Japan, Taiwan, and the Netherlands). The aim of the…

Since 2000, I have been coordinating a web based virtual exchange project, Project Ibunka. Ibunka means different cultures in Japanese. It aims to provide opportunities of authentic interaction among EFL/ESL learners all over the world. The project has been giving English language learners from various countries opportunities to use English for…

This chapter reports the challenges that both the students and the teachers experienced in a telecollaborative project between a Japanese university and an American university. In this semester-long project, the students in groups of three to five from both universities worked collectively mainly asynchronously and in occasional synchronous…

This chapter examines practical issues regarding Virtual Exchanges (VEs) for educational purposes in the university context and covers language use, cultural differences, time management, teacher collaboration, technology-related issues, assessment, and context specific factors. It charts the establishment of three academic collaborations between…

This article examines personality and participation in an online intercultural exchange (OIE) between 57 university students in Japan (n = 28) and Taiwan (n = 29). The two-month OIE used Facebook (FB) as the medium of communication. During the online exchange, participants communicated linguistically using English as their common language and…

During 1978-79 the Japan-U.S. Friendship Commission SPON-BBB17857 provided grant support to the College and University Partnership Program (CUPP) for research and program development to promote the linking of 200 higher education institutions in Japan and the United States for undergraduate student exchange activities. In that year program…

This publication contains three papers on college student exchange between Japan and the United States. The first paper, entitled "The University of Massachusetts and Hokkaido University: A Case Study in Educational Cooperation," by Barbara B. Burn, describes the long-standing relationship between these two institutions in order to…

The College and University Partnership Program was designed to facilitate partnership arrangements between American private colleges and regional state universities and comparable Japanese universities. The two-year program has two main areas of activity--completion of surveys on higher education in the two nations and the development of pilot…

As Japan takes a place as one of the world's technologically and economically advanced nations, the number of foreign students seeking to study in Japan has increased rapidly, as has the number of foreigners expressing interest in studying Japanese culture and the Japanese language. The Japanese government's program of international student…

The Wright State University International Student Exchange Program is described. This school's approach to student exchange programs immerses students in the daily life of countries in Asia and South America at minimal cost to the participating institutions. Through exchange agreements with universities in Japan, Brazil, and China, students get 4…

Described briefly in this article are such higher education innovations in five Far Eastern countries as (1) educational research organizations, (2) college entrance examinations, (3) international exchange programs (including those with the United States), (4) college standards and accreditation, (5) language laboratory use and equipment, (6)…