Addressing Power Imbalance in Telecollaboration to Promote Attitudes of Intercultural Competence

Abstract

Internationalization-at-home (IaH) can benefit all types of students, and its value has become more evident in the long aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic. This paper reports on a virtual exchange initiative: Students of English as a foreign language in Brazil and English composition in the US engaged in an international telecollaboration project. Our objective was to understand whether students who participate in telecollaboration projects develop attitudes that lead to intercultural competence once issues related to the power imbalance between native speakers and non-native speakers of English are addressed. To determine whether the two groups of students developed attitudes of tolerance, respect and curiosity for other cultures as well as attitudes of trust towards each other, we asked them to complete a questionnaire at the end of the project. Results show that the telecollaboration stimulated students’ interest in other cultures, a crucial first step towards the acquisition of intercultural competence. The students collaborated effectively because the two groups trusted each other’s linguistic competence. Our study confirms that telecollaboration is one of the most pedagogically sound initiatives within the sphere of IaH. More instructors should prepare students to communicate and collaborate effectively in cross-cultural teams through this type of experiential learning.

Keywords

• internationalization at home
• intercultural competence
• telecollaboration.