Dr Nicola Carr Dr Richard Johnson RMIT School of Education Abstract
Teacher educators are faced with the dual challenge of preparing teachers for an increasingly globalized world and a digitally enriched world. Building pre-service teachers intercultural and digital competences are therefore priorities. This paper reports on pre-service teachers’ perceptions of their intercultural competence after participating in an online teaching and learning environment, eTutor, that partnered them with culturally diverse children from local and international primary and secondary schools.
Analysis of pre-service teacher reflections shows that the experience of tutoring culturally diverse children online does contribute to the development of intercultural competence and that online spaces can redefine how intercultural competence can be developed in pre-service teachers.
Introduction
Teacher educators today are faced with the challenge of preparing teachers for an increasingly globalised world, where teachers need to understand and accommodate the needs of more culturally diverse classrooms (Porto, 2010; Santoro, 2013), that is, to develop their intercultural competence.
The imperative to teach in more culturally responsive ways is embedded in teacher professional standards (Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership, 2012) and in curriculum priorities such as Asia and Australia’s role in Asia (Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority, 2013). At the same time, teacher educators are expected to prepare pre-service teachers to teach in digitally enriched learning environments. This paper explores the outcomes of a project designed to improve pre-service teachers’ intercultural competence through interactions with culturally diverse children in an online learning environment.
Intercultural competence
Intercultural competence is taken to mean the ability to interact effectively and appropriately in intercultural situations, based on specific attitudes, intercultural knowledge, skills and reflection (Deardorff, 2006), to achieve mutually successful outcomes (Stone, 2006). Intercultural competence occurs when people no longer assume that their culture’s way of looking at things is the best way or the only way, and when people therefore begin to evaluate other cultural perspectives (Yassine, 2006 as cited in Kourova & Modianos, 2013), that is, when they move from ethno-centric to ethno-relative perspectives.
Models and frameworks that attempt to explain how intercultural competence is developed and arrived at (Byram, 1997; Deardorff, 2006; Stone 2006;) focus on the multidimensional aspect of intercultural competence. Attitudes play a foundational role in the development of intercultural competence (Byram, 1997; Deardorff, 2006). To be interculturally competent, one needs to have the requisite attitudes of respect for other cultures and cultural diversity; openness to people from other cultures and to intercultural learning; as well as a sense of curiosity and the ability to tolerate uncertainty and ambiguity in intercultural exchanges, in other words, an ability to see oneself in relation to others and to withhold judgement about other cultures. Intercultural competence also requires cultural self-awareness, or knowledge about one’s own culture, as a crucial starting point for beginning to understand other cultures. A deep understanding and knowledge of other cultures is also considered key, including knowledge about the role of culture on behaviour and communication.
Further, being interculturally competent requires the development of skills for acquiring and processing knowledge about cultures including discovery and interaction through listening, observing and interpreting cultures, as well as skills of analysing, interpreting and relating to other cultures (Byram, 1997; Deardorff, 2006),
Intercultural competence emerges when there is a shift in a person’s internal frame of reference to bring about a more ethno-relative rather than ethno-centric view (an internal or individual outcome) and, importantly, when one is able to behave and communicate effectively and appropriately to achieve one’s goals through interaction with other cultures (external outcome) (Deardorff, 2006).
Stone (2006) expanded on this concept to argue that intercultural competence is achieved when both parties achieve their communication goals. The development of intercultural competence is seen by Deardorff (2006) as an ongoing and iterative process, rather than a linear one and that in developing intercultural competence a person moves in and out and between the personal and interpersonal domains. Deardoff believes that, whilst it is possible for someone to achieve the external outcome of behaving and communicating effectively in intercultural situations without having made internal shifts in frames of reference, the degree of appropriateness and effectiveness of the outcome may not be as high “without having fully achieved the internal outcome of a shift in the frame of reference”
(2006, p.257).
Role of online environments in building intercultural competence
Teacher education institutions provide theoretical knowledge about other cultures and about being more culturally responsive. However, abstract knowledge alone is not sufficient for the development of intercultural competence (Bennett, 2009; Perry & Southwell, 2011). The development of intercultural competence is a process that develops through interactions with cultural ‘others’
(Deardorff, 2006). Opportunities for authentic and persuasive personal encounters with people from different cultures enhance intercultural competence (Scarino & Liddiecoat, 2009). International field experiences, that is, opportunities to teach in culturally different location, have been a traditional way to provide more direct contact with culturally diverse ‘others’ (Walters, Garii, & Walters, 2009), however, such programs are generally expensive and available to a limited number of students.
Increasingly, online environments are seen as a way to generate ‘persuasive personal encounters’
between students of different cultures (Lawrence, 2013), with a growing number of projects that integrate online environments with aspects of intercultural learning, (Deed, Edwards, & Gomez, 2013; Garcia-Sanches & Rojas-Lizana, 2013; Lawrence, 2013; Magos, Tsilimeni, & Spanopoulou, 2013). Online environments that foster a sense of community through discussion, collaboration and sharing of ideas can foster cultural awareness, and offer of new view of participants’ own culture as well as the culture of other participants (Magos et al., 2013). Well known examples of online projects for schools that aim to foster global connections include I*EARN, ePals and within Victoria, Global2.
At the same time as being asked to develop their intercultural competence, pre-service teachers need to be prepared to teach in digitally enriched learning environments, in both online and face-to-face settings. The development of an online environment that brings together pre-service teachers and students from different cultures thus offers a space where teacher educators can attempt to, metaphorically, kill two birds with one stone – foster the development of intercultural competence amongst pre-service teachers through authentic encounters with children from different cultures, whilst, at the same time, providing opportunities for pre-service teachers to experience first-hand what it is like to teach in an online space. The key question, for the purpose of this paper, is to what extent did participation in the online environment foster increased intercultural competence amongst the pre-service teachers.
The research context – eTutor
The eTutor project trialed the use of an online environment to facilitate authentic, rich, personal encounters between Australian pre-service teachers and school students from Australian and Asian primary and secondary schools. Through the use of social media tools including blogs, chat, messages and wall posts (Fig.1), eTutor participants learned about each other and their cultures by exchanging information and working on curriculum projects, tutored by pre-service teachers.
Figure 2: eTutor Home page
Over 150 pre-service teachers and 303 school students from eight schools in four countries interacted with each other in the eTutor environment for approximately 14 weeks in the second half of 2013.
Pre-service teachers in their first year of an undergraduate primary teaching qualification undertook a core course, which was based on participation in eTutor. Whilst participation itself was not assessed, pre-service teachers were required to draw on their own and others’ participation in eTutor to complete a major assessment task. Key aims of the course included increasing the pre-service teachers’ understanding about the characteristics of effective educational environments, both face-to- face and online, as well as introducing students to concepts of cultural diversity and intercultural competence.
Schools that participated in eTutor in 2013 included government schools in small, remote rural villages in Nepal; government schools servicing largely middle class students in north-east India; a private boys school in eastern Malaysia; government primary schools in outer Melbourne suburbs catering to both middle class and socio-economically disadvantaged areas, and a private secondary school in a middle class suburb of Melbourne.
On eTutor, each participant had a profile page, containing a brief biography, and from where they could create blog posts and upload images and videos. Blog posts, images and videos were able to be viewed by everyone who belonged to eTutor. Participants could also exchange private messages and engage in live chat sessions with other eTutor participants.
The majority of communications however, took place within eTutor groups. Students and pre-service teachers were placed into small groups of approximately eight to ten people. Each group had its own space within eTutor, where students could post comments on the group wall, or to other group members’ personal wall. Group members could also post comments on each other’s blogs.
Method
The outcomes being reported in this paper are part of a broader mixed method study that is investigating a range of outcomes and aspects of the eTutor project in 2013. The focus of this paper is on the undergraduate students’ perceptions of their development of intercultural competence.
The process of developing intercultural competence is one that involves self-reflection and negotiation such that one’s attitudes are gradually transformed. Ideas of intercultural competence are therefore subjective, rather than objective, dealing with such concepts as attitude, and ideas of openness and respect. Many who study intercultural competence recognise that more introspective, qualitative approaches to investigate the development of intercultural competence are required (Jackson, 2006). This study therefore takes a qualitative approach, grounded in interpretive paradigms where understanding the subjective world of human experience (Cohen, Manion & Morrison, 2007) is the focus. Gathering pre-service teachers’ perceptions of their experiences provides insights into the efficacy of an online environment such as eTutor in fostering increased intercultural competence.
All 152 pre-service teachers who took the course and participated in eTutor were required, as part of their assessment tasks, to develop a portfolio of interactions from eTutor that illustrated their intercultural competence. Portfolios can represent the complexity of the intercultural experience capturing aspects of intercultural learning that and can encourage students to reflect on their experiences and learning (Perry & Southwell, 2011). In their portfolios, pre-service teachers reflected on the extent to which participation in the eTutor project fostered their intercultural competence.
Following the completion of the course, pre-service teachers’ portfolios were collected and analysed qualitatively using NVivo. Data were analysed using coding frameworks based on Deardorff’s (2006) process model of intercultural competence – attitudes, knowledge, skills, internal frame of reference, external outcomes. Reflections were stripped of any identifying data prior to analysis, to maintain pre-service teacher confidentiality.
Findings
Overall, participation in eTutor fostered a perception amongst the majority of pre-service teachers that their intercultural competence increased, particularly in changing attitudes and cultural knowledge, specifically cultural self-awareness. This section begins by presenting findings relating to the pre-service teachers’ intercultural competence, drawing on Deardorff’s (2006) Process Model of Intercultural Competence described above as a conceptual framework. Two other key findings relating to reciprocity and vicarious learning are also presented.
Improvement in intercultural competence Attitudes
In keeping with Deardorff’s model this analysis commenced with attitudes. Did participation in eTutor have an impact on the intercultural attitudes of the pre-service teachers, including openness, respect, as well as a sense of curiosity and discovery? Many of the reflections contained explicit references to being more open to other cultures and more open to changing outlooks, as exemplified in these excerpts:
It’s clear that if I want to be an intercultural teacher I need to be open to making changes.
I believe that as a result of eTutor this has been made clear to me.
This whole experience has made me a more open and accepting person and taught me to be more open about everything.
Attitudes of respecting and valuing other cultures are also a key feature of intercultural competence.
Pre-service teachers frequently made reference to the need for respect to be demonstrated, as in this example
Not only do we need to understand other cultures, we need to be respectful and accepting of them, willing to learn from them and able to engage with them.
This course challenged me to think about how to teach students of different cultures about different cultures, and to keep in mind that this is a person’s identity so it should be treated with more than sensitivity, but also respect.
Cultural knowledge
For the majority of pre-service teachers, one of the most significant outcomes of their participation in eTutor was a heightened awareness and understanding of their own culture and of the role culture plays in shaping an individual’s identity, for example:
Being involved within eTutor, I was able to assess, reflect and break down my understanding of my own culture and identity.
Before their eTutor experience, many of the students interpreted someone’s culture to be defined only by the location of their birth and the colour of their skin. The following two examples encapsulate the shift in thinking most pre-service teachers displayed about what culture is:
I have also learnt about the many layers of culture, and by that I mean that it is not just religion and festivals, which is the answer I would have given when this unit commenced.
Through eTutor I have a richer understanding of culture
Previously, I thought it [culture] was about what country you come from, what language you speak and what colour your skin is. I now think culture is different for every individual and is not dependent on ancestry or country of birth.
Prior to participation in eTutor, some pre-service teachers did not believe they had a culture, for example:
Before participating in this course I held the belief that I didn’t really have a culture, I was ‘just Australian’.
This suggests that for these pre-service teachers, one’s own culture is largely invisible, as illustrated by this student:
Participating in the eTutor environment has caused me to critically reflect on my own cultural identity. Why is it that I can so easily identify elements of the cultures of others, but not my own? How does my culture affect me on a daily basis?
Pre-service teachers became more knowledgeable about limited aspects of the cultures of the children who participated in eTutor. For example, some pre-service teachers had not been aware of Ramadan and the Eid festival. This was being celebrated by students in India, Malaysia and at one of the Australian primary schools involved in the eTutor project. Pre-service teachers also learned much about the various religious festivals held in India, Nepal and Malaysia and the importance such celebrations represented in these cultures and a little about the daily lives of some of their eTutor children. However, most of the pre-service teachers did not develop more than a superficial knowledge of the specific cultures of the children with whom they interacted in the eTutor environment.
Intercultural skills
As a result of analysing their interactions in eTutor, many of the pre-service teachers were able to articulate a more critical view of an Australian culture. For example, the different cultural attitudes towards education provided a lens for the pre-service teachers to analyse and interpret their own culture and that of their partner students. Pre-service teachers identified the high value placed on education in all three partner countries and were able to compare this with their perceptions of the values and educational practices in the Australian partner schools:
The Indian students were always respectful and courteous when writing to us. It reflects the way their culture and society is and how they see teachers. They also seem to value their education more so than the Australian students
This [high number of posts] shows the discipline that Malaysian culture puts on students to complete their work and to not disappoint their teachers and tutors.
For example, in many Asian cultures, education is often held in high regard with an emphasis placed on achieving high academic testing results, and the primary role of the teacher is to direct, rather than guide. In contrast, as evident in my professional placement
experience, Australian culture and teaching practices often revolve around discussion, collaboration, and hands-on learning.
Pre-service teachers extrapolated from their eTutor experience to make general interpretations of what they believed their own culture to be – one that was generally more casual than Asian cultures, for example I realized just how laid back we are as Australians, less focused on religious celebrations, more focused on sporting achievements, less aware of the privilege the majority of Australians experience, but more accepting of cultural diversity. Importantly, the pre-service teachers were able to identify similarities as well as differences between their own and other cultures, including the importance of family, of similar values, of hobbies and of music, as this example illustrates:
It was incredible to think that a boy from another walk of life would be interested in the same hobbies as I am. It’s been great to find these similarities as well as learning about our differences.
Internal frame of reference
It is clear from the data that the majority, although not all, the pre-service teachers made substantial shifts in their internal cultural frame of reference, informed by their experiences interacting with culturally diverse children within the eTutor environment. Many pre-service teachers reflected on what impact their participation in eTutor had on their views about the role of culture and cultural diversity in their own teaching. Most pre-service teachers’ reflections contained reflections that suggest a more ethno-relative stance, such as typified in the following responses:
From the eTutor experience I have learnt that it is important not to have a cultural bias where reflections are from my own cultural experience and assumptions.
Through eTutor I have learnt the importance of acknowledging different worldviews and applying this knowledge and attitude to my developing pedagogy. It is also important getting to know the students individually without applying bias or fixed ideas of culture.
A small number of pre-service teachers commented on the difficulty of enacting, rather than simply espousing, a more empathic and open intercultural stance:
Being open to accepting people for their own beliefs can sometimes be more difficult than we think.
External outcomes
The final stage in Deardorff’s process model of developing intercultural competence is when people take effective and appropriate behaviour and communication in an intercultural situation. Pre-service teachers provided examples of where they believed they had acted in culturally appropriate ways within eTutor. Examples typically included adopting a different tone with local students to that adopted with the international students; of acknowledging obvious cultural differences and asking questions about the students’ lives and interests; by being very careful with choice and quantity of words when giving feedback; by uploading culturally appropriate images; and by avoiding the use of colloquialisms and references to culturally specific information. The following response illustrates how many pre-service teachers became increasingly aware of the need to adapt their own practices to accommodate cultural differences so that all participants in eTutor achieved their desired outcomes:
There were different cultural initiations for our Broadmeadows and Indian students. We used humour to draw in our Broadmeadows kids and established a formal, superior relationship to our Indian students in order to get highest success from both.
A small number of pre-service teachers also gave examples of how their practices in a face-to-face setting also shifted as a result of their participation in eTutor, for example:
On my second placement after participating in eTutor, I was able to talk to her [student in classroom] about the country that she came from and link some cultural differences to those I came across when travelling in Europe. By using this experience she opened up to me and became more open to talking about her country and was understanding of the