Initiating Intercultural Communicative Competence through Telecollaboration: A Case of Language-Exchange Classrooms of Arabic and English

Abstract

This paper investigates to what extent telecollaboration can be integrated as an effective medium for the enhancement of intercultural communicative competence (ICC) in the foreign-language classroom. The data was obtained over one semester from a series of asynchronous exchanges in language-exchange class settings using Google drives shared between United States-based students learning Arabic as a foreign language at three American universities, and students at a Saudi university in Saudi Arabia learning English as a foreign language. The one-on-one interactions covered a variety of topics related to cultural knowledge, perspectives, values, practices, behaviors, and products. The data from this collaborative online project also included two reflection surveys that students responded to before and after the study. Byram’s 2021 model (including its objectives) was applied, and the findings reveal that many ICC objectives are clearly reflected in students’ telecollaborative exchanges, indicating that this type of exchange can be used effectively as a tool to develop students’ intercultural competence. The findings also show a noticeable increase in students’ interests in cultural learning and understanding the culture of others.