ICIS Newsletter - January 2021 (Plain Text Version)
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In this issue: |
PROMOTING INTERCULTURAL LEARNING EXPERIENCES THROUGH VIRTUAL FIELD TRIPS Kelly Torres and Aubrey Statti, The Chicago School of Professional Psychology, Chicago, IL, USA.
Introduction The COVID-19 pandemic is affecting all facets of life including how educators facilitate second language learning experiences for their learners. Although many teachers previously utilized technology-enhanced learning activities to assist their learners’ acquisition of the English language (Patel, 2017), educators are now more reliant on its use as schools across the globe transitioned to remote learning modalities. Historically, language educators taught culture through a peripheral environment surrounded by artifacts and visuals that featured the target language and culture. However, due to technological advancements, immersive learning environments have expanded to include unique curriculum development opportunities focused on providing students more in-depth cultural knowledge and higher levels of intercultural skills. To provide language learners meaningful and interactive language activities that encompass intercultural learning, educators can incorporate a variety of technology-enhanced assignments within their online courses. Amid school closures and the cancelation of field trips, educators should integrate immersive online explorations that allow students to travel beyond their classrooms to acquire new languages and cultural understanding. There is a vast range of technological tools that encompass an intercultural dimension that educators can integrate into their curriculum to engage language learners. One effective approach to integrating this focus into curricula is the use of virtual field trips. Essentially, virtual field trips provide students the unique opportunity to engage in live experiences that enhance academic learning. Further, through immersive online experiences, students can visit locations that would not be possible through traditional in-person field trips (e.g., traveling to another country). Virtual Field Trips Virtual field trips can foster both language acquisition and intercultural learning. The inclusion of virtual field trips is more commonplace due to constraints that include time, travel, and budget (Hinton, 2016). During these cross-cultural exchanges, students explore new places within their communities and across the globe in order to interact with a diverse range of individuals. Particularly, innovative forms of technology provide the unique opportunity for educators to create virtual experiences that encompass tangible aspects of specific features of a community and culture. For instance, technologies such as artificial intelligence provide rich modeling of authentic cultural characteristics (e.g., humor, non-verbal cues, native-like speech) that may be more meaningful than traditional role-play activities. Educators can also require students to complete extension activities in which they create projects focused on their virtual excursions to further support their acquisition of the target language (e.g., writing reflections, reporting on the activities, discussing their perceptions). Through these tools, students interact in an immersive virtual experience with a tour guide that provides them exposure to the interpersonal aspects of another culture. Educators coordinate live virtual sessions with professionals in other countries who can share more information about their culture or topic studied in the class (e.g., museum, landmark). As a result, students frequently improve their understanding of how to effectively interact with individuals from diverse cultures and interpret their behaviors. Further, after participating in these events, language learners enhance their language skills through verbal interactions and non-verbal behaviors. Educators may select a virtual experience for their learners by reviewing the plethora of platforms found online. Companies such as Google (https://artsandculture.google.com/), Discovery Education (https://www.discoveryeducation.com/community/virtual-field-trips/), and FieldTrip Zoom (https://www.fieldtripzoom.com/) offer educators a diverse range of field trip options that can be utilized to bring learning opportunities from across the globe into the confines of the classroom setting. Virtual experiences can be provided through the whole class or via virtual reality googles (see Figure 1).
Language learners who engage in virtual field trips not only expand their levels of language proficiencies but are provided vital academic experiences that are inclusive of critical and logical thinking, digital literacy, and opportunities to become global citizens. By exploring the world through real-life immersive online assignments, students are engaged and motivated to further learn and interact with others across the world.
Classroom Examples There is also a variety of online platforms that can be used to create virtual field trips. For example, technological tools such as Google Slides, Zoom, Classflow, Google Maps, and ThingLink can be employed to provide students interactive, engaging experiences in their exploration of target languages and cultures. Through these classroom activities, language learners build their background knowledge which is essential to contributing to their academic success. Platforms such as Google Arts & Culture provide a diverse range of virtual learning experiences that allow students to discover cuisines, festivals, art, historical landmarks, and local heritages found across the globe. Students can visit the Museum of Fine Arts located in Boston, explore street art in Australia, and learn about the Dover Castle found in England. This platform includes interactive overviews and photos and access to 360-degree videos with panorama views. When creating their own virtual field trip activities, teachers can include students in the creation process for them to receive authentic learning. Creating virtual field trips can promote language learners’ development of target language skills. For example, regarding their acquisition of speaking and listening skills, students can be required to collaborate with their peers to identify and select resources to include in the lesson. They can also review materials and resources to promote their reading skills. Development of written skills can be accomplished through drafting slides for the presentation. Finally, providing students autonomy in the lesson can further augment their excitement toward learning and reduce any anxiety that they may experience in using the target language. Through the Microsoft Skype in the Classroom platform, educators request virtual sessions with experts on topics that include overviews of national parks, zoos, or individual states located in the United States. Educators can also connect with other teachers in order to provide their learners engaging language and intercultural experiences through their participation in Global English Clubs. Once educators request a session, they will coordinate a 30-minute virtual webinar with the expert speaker and receive access to additional resources including teaching materials (e.g., PowerPoint overviews) and follow-up activities (e.g., Flipgrid reflection discussions). Additionally, language educators are able to schedule Skype sessions with classrooms located in England, Australia and the United States to provide their English learning students the opportunity to explore diverse cultures and English dialects. These interactions provide value for students to understand distinct dialect and culture difference of target language speakers. Educational Considerations While learning a new language, students should be respectful, curious, and open to further develop their levels of intercultural competence. Moreover, they need the opportunity to experience authentic encounters that guide their enhancement of language skills and expand their knowledge of how to react and understand cultural clues and meaning. Students also should develop cultural awareness and cultural knowledge to better understand others’ worldviews. Nevertheless, language students are typically not afforded the opportunity to travel to destinations that they are studying. As such, virtual field trip experiences provide students a vital connection to the target language and culture that they are studying. Classroom activities such as virtual exchanges provide the unique opportunity for students to practice their target language skills, observe cultural behaviors, share traditions, and explore diverse regions. As a result of completing virtual field trip activities, educators are able to ensure students have met course learning outcomes of intercultural education. These learning outcomes comprise objectives such as students identifying cultural beliefs and values, comparing and contrasting cultural differences or influences, sharing how culture influences non-verbal communication styles, explaining the diversity of worldviews, and discussing their own cultural identity and how it is similar or different from others. Conclusion The inclusion of technology facilitates and improves students’ acquisition of a target language. As technology continues to advance and the complexities associated with providing students in-person learning experiences continues to increase, educators will most likely need to rely on a vast range of technological tools to promote language acquisition and intercultural learning. Through their interactions with various technologies, students are able to be active participants in their creation of knowledge that expands beyond the classroom setting. Further, through the inclusion of technology-enhanced activities, educators can broaden their networks to provide learners expansive global interactions that reflect immersive language and culture experiences. By enriching classroom curriculum with virtual field experiences, educators and students receive guided tours into other countries and interact with individuals across the globe. These experiences are vital in providing learners the opportunity to acquire skills that provide them the ability to interact with individuals from diverse cultural backgrounds. Essentially, students experience opportunities to examine course content from cross-cultural perspectives to gain enhanced global narratives without stepping outside of their classes. References Hinton, M. (2016). How one school district uses virtual field trips to save lots of time, money. Education Weekly. https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/how-one-school-district-uses-virtual-field-trips-to-save-lots-of-time-money/2016/03 Patel, D. (2017). Significance of technology-enhanced language learning (TELL) in language classes. Journal of Technology for ELT, 7(2). https://sites.google.com/site/journaloftechnologyforelt/archive/vol-4-no-2-1/2
Kelly Torres, Ph.D. is the Department Chair of the Educational Psychology & Technology program at The Chicago School of Professional Psychology. Her research interests are focused on heritage language learners, English language learners, teacher certification programs, and online learning.
Note: The photo by unknown author in Figure 1 is licensed under CCBY-SA. |
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