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The article explores how intercultural relations can be fostered at the level of an undergraduate university degree during the pandemic. It offers one specific intervention within intercultural education to provide new ways of thinking about how intercultural relations can and do happen. By drawing on the self-reflexive narratives of the article's authors – a university lecturer and three students – we consider the ways in which intercultural education can enable people from diverse cultures to build a learning community. On the basis of a thematic analysis, we explore the role of reflection and action in the creation of intercultural knowledge that can lead towards developing meaningful relations and can assist in further supporting students in their well-being. We first map some key issues in intercultural education at the university level and provide a short literature review. Secondly, we briefly describe our intercultural initiative. We put our narratives into conversation in order to facilitate deeper understanding of how to build meaningful intercultural relationships, while learning, and collaborating together. Our goal is to reflect on perceptions of the quality of intercultural relationship experiences at the level of a university degree and to show how complex relational work fostered intercultural collaboration during the pandemic. On the basis of our inductive research, we offer an original approach to fostering intercultural education based on four stages: constructing and fostering an initial encounter; promoting group participation; emphasising reciprocity; and constructing activities to promote trust and care. Our experience demonstrated how forming intercultural relationships can meaningfully help students with their expectations, aspirations, and ultimately, careers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, I discuss a critical understanding of students' intercultural experience at a UK university. I critique the potential issues of: a) using essentialist categorisations to understand students' intercultural experience, and b) imposing epistemic injustice to students by undervaluing their epistemic agency in intercultural experience. Based upon the paintings of five students, I problematise the essentialist categorisations reproduced in the students' meaning-making about their intercultural experience, which could reinforce prejudice, neo-racism, otherisation, and segregation. The students were, however, able to negotiate with such an issue of essentialism through a non-static and back-and-forth process in their painting. They also demonstrated an active epistemic agency in navigating the complexities of their intercultural experience. Therefore, I suggest intercultural research to adopt a non-essentialist and epistemically-just lens to understand students' intercultural experience in the increasingly fluid world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fostering intercultural learning among preservice teachers has become increasingly important. This article describes the results of a three-year study of semester-long projects in which cohorts of undergraduate education majors (N = 41) engaged with first-semester international students and were asked to reflect on becoming involved participants in a linguistically and culturally diverse learning community. The findings reveal the transformative effect of intercultural encounters on future teachers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports on a small-scale project involving an online school exchange between two classes of 12-/13-year olds located in the North of England and the Ruhr area of Germany. The overarching aim of the project was to develop intercultural understanding in foreign language learning through communication in an online environment. Analysing data from website posts, lesson observations, student questionnaires and interviews, the paper investigates the extent to which the project realised this goal, and examines emerging practical and pedagogical issues. Comparing the processes and outcomes of this project in secondary education to similar projects in Higher Education (HE), the research found that the young people learnt more than older students about cultural similarities than differences. They were thus less likely to be party to cultural misunderstandings, developing friendly relationships and openness towards a people of a different culture. However, their failure to notice differences may have been due to a lack of in-depth discussion and absence of more demanding student tasks. The paper concludes that in order to develop more sophisticated intercultural learning, expertise derived from telecollaboration in HE needs to be adapted to the lower secondary school context, drawing particularly on auto-ethnography and ethnographic interviewing. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The work presented here is an empirical study of how advanced learners of English as a foreign language in Argentina access and understand the culture-specific dimensions of literary narrative texts. It has three purposes. First, to extend research into reading in a foreign language to take account of the culture-specific content of texts. Second, to extend the focus of research on intercultural communication to include the analysis of reading processes. Finally, to introduce an approach to the analysis of the cultural dimension of the reading process using a new model of levels of cultural understanding. It is argued that cultural understanding goes beyond the quantification of prior knowledge or background knowledge in the form of idea units as evidence of the comprehension process. In this sense, the proposed model succeeds in portraying a more detailed picture of cultural understanding in this setting. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Inherently concerned with the personal and cultural development of individuals, intercultural competence can be regarded as an inseparable aspect ofBildung. However, while scholars have acknowledged the affiliation between these two concepts, what remains to be investigated is the extent to which notions ofBildungare incorporated in theoretical models of intercultural competence. This is an important aspect to study because such models constitute the foundation for how intercultural competence is understood as an educational goal. The present article examines Byram’s model of intercultural communicative competence, which has been particularly influential within the field of foreign language didactics. The article investigates how this model corresponds toBildungtheories in its description of the ideal encounter between Self (own culture) and Other (foreign cultures), and discusses the learning processes which may be involved. Relying on the theoretical perspectives of Gadamer, Bakhtin, Ricoeur and Klafki, the article argues that, while central aspects ofBildungare evident in Byram’s model, they are downplayed through its emphasis on harmony and agreement. The article further stresses the importance of regarding conflict, ambiguity and difference not solely as challenging aspects of the intercultural encounter, but as potentially fruitful conditions for profound dialogue between Self and Other. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The following article outlines research conducted to examine cross-cultural sensitivity in a sample of 949 incoming university students in the USA. The study was conducted during the process of updating an existing measure of cross-cultural sensitivity known as the Inventory of Cross-Cultural Sensitivity (ICCS), and to examine the various levels of understanding among the students. Additionally, data were gathered to determine whether there was any relationship between the results and the demographic factors commonly cited in the literature. Results of the study indicate that the updated version of the ICCS, the ICCSv2, is a more robust and reliable measure of intercultural sensitivity for a specific group of freshmen students. Recommendations are made for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The issue of diversity, in its broadest sense, is discussed here in its relation to social cohesion, cross-cultural relations, ingroup–outgroup relations and educational interventions. The main thesis of the paper is that real social cohesion in an ingroup rests on the acknowledgment of and the dialog with the diversities of the members of the ingroup itself. And that diversity relating to the outgroup and to the various members of the outgroup is understood and accepted, given that diversity among the members of the ingroup is also understood and accepted. This way, cross-cultural relations within an ingroup and between the ingroup and outgroups are fostered, which partly contradicts some traditional assumptions in social psychology research, according to which social cohesion in the ingroup is accompanied by hostility toward the outgroup. A study we conducted in Italian schools on youths’ attitudes toward multiculturalism with the use of focus groups indicated that most participants have lost or have never experienced a feeling of general social cohesion. It also indicated that lack of social cohesion creates fear and that fear can provoke aggression. Some considerations are presented aiming to help teachers foster social cohesion and positive cross-cultural contact in their classes. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This study attempted to enhance cultural sensitivity for graduate students at an American and a South African university, using a six-week online List Serv, email buddy exchange, and two-week face-to-face experience. After the course was over, results of the intercultural developmental inventory, using t-tests for related samples, showed that there was a significant difference (alpha equals .04) in the universalism and cognitive frame shifting clusters as well as the overall developmental cultural level of sensitivity. Positive trends were noted in the areas of cultural self-identity enhancement, and a decrease in inflation in the area of perceived intercultural sensitivity was noted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the integration of cooperative learning (CL) activities into a graduate teacher education course, Collaborative Teaching in English as a Second Language (ESL). Because teachers and researchers have both identified discipline status and relationship issues as challenges to collaboration, this course focused on relational dynamics such as respect, trust, reciprocity, and approachability as central to the successful implementation of collaborative practice. CL activities were integrated into the program to encourage ESL teachers to explore their own values and expectations for learning as well as their own communication styles which might facilitate or hinder collegiality. The research question asks how CL contributes to teachers' understanding of themselves as communicators, collaborators, and agents of change. From a qualitative analysis of observer notes, journal entries, classroom discussions, group activities, and autobiographies, this paper highlights how dimensions of CL can be used not only as methodology in second-language teacher education but also as a model for developing collaborative relationships between ESL and content-area teachers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although very little research has been done on cooperative learning (CL) in New Zealand, international research is positive about the educational benefits of working in culturally diverse groups. This paper presents the findings of a research project examining New Zealand experiences with CL in multicultural groups. Data were collected via surveys and focus groups with domestic and international students and with New Zealand tertiary lecturers who use CL techniques in their programmes. The findings indicate a strong cultural conflict in the conceptualization of CL between international students with little prior experience of CL and New Zealand lecturers who are often not trained to help international students to bridge the gaps between their past educational experiences and typical education practices in New Zealand. This conflict reinforces the importance of understanding cultural differences and their impact on student patterns of classroom behaviour. The authors recommend that domestic and international students be prepared more effectively for CL and that lecturers be trained in designing curricula and assessment programmes that are pedagogically sound and culturally accommodating. The paper proposes a model to assist lecturers to achieve this aim. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes a long-term research seminar, developed in 2001 by Hertz-Lazarowitz at the University of Haifa (UH). The goal of the seminar was to involve students in a meaningful, experiential and cooperative-interactive learning environment, based on topics relevant to their development as individuals coming from diverse collectives to the university campus, and to prepare them for life in an increasingly multicultural society. The seminar was based on the principles of the Participative Action Research and Group Investigation methods. The researchers aimed to create a model of learning, teaching, and action to bring awareness and enable change within the university's community, so that it could become a place of justice, equality, and recognition of the many cultural groups on campus. Since 2001, the Cooperative Participatory Action Research (CPAR) seminar has been offered to students through UH's Department of Education. This paper describes the theoretical framework and the stages and structures interwoven in the CPAR during its first eight years. The authors call on universities around the world to be committed to CPAR seminars within multicultural and conflict-ridden campuses so that social justice will become an essential part of students' experiences and action. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main focus of this paper relates to the conceptualizations of human identity and intercultural relations needed for cooperative learning (CL) to occur. At one extreme, some have argued that the relation between different cultures should be conceptualized in terms of incommensurability. At the other extreme, a standardization and unification along with the trend of globalization is supported at the peril of leaving pluralism aside. This paper argues that neither of the two extreme views can provide a satisfactory theoretical basis for CL at the intercultural level. Such a theoretical basis can be sought in providing a compromise between Donald Davidson's principle of charity and Gadamer's view of understanding in terms of fusion of horizons. Consequently, understanding is neither merely an inner nor an outer endeavour; rather it involves both. Cooperative learning in this framework implies that the material for learning is neither in the hands of the learner nor in those of the so-called 'teacher'. In fact, this material develops an intercultural relation by means of both poles of the relation. CL involves reciprocal support as well as reciprocal critique. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses cooperative learning technique called Academic Controversy, as well as its effect to intercultural education. It mentions that the technique, also called Cooperative Controversy, involves a cooperative form of debate in which groups of four offers opposing views until it reach to consensus of an issue. It also discusses the effect of the technique to the teaching-and-learning process, the educational benefits from the techniques and variations of techniques. Instruction on how to perform the technique is also given.

Information about several papers discussed at a conference sponsored by the International Association for Intercultural Education (IAIE) and the International Association for the Study of Cooperation in Education (IASCE) on educational innovation is presented. Topics include educational strategies, cooperative learning theory and sociopolitical and cultural practices in education. The conference featured several persons including Yael Sharan, Francesca Gobbo and Pasi Sahlberg.

Having an 'emotional passport' means acquiring skills to regulate intense emotional challenges experienced in cultural transitions. This paper addresses ways to help young travelers become more resilient problem-solvers, better at tolerating ambiguity, and more competent with cultural difference. It points out how the intercultural field misses opportunities to prepare learners for the emotional highs and lows of cultural exchange, relying instead on language of catastrophe ('culture shock') and crisis preparation. Instead, strategies can be taught to help regulate the normal stressors that come with crossing cultures. Crisis planning alone does not meet the psychological needs of most sojourners. This paper encourages a shift in language and practice from 'culture shock' to 'culture shift' by outlining how our brains process and integrate new information, and describes life stage issues facing young adults, demonstrating how these challenges interface with the emotional competencies necessary for crossing cultures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Higher education has often acted as the nucleus of progressive thought, the instigator of societal transformation, and the center of cultural exchange and understanding. However, in conflict-ridden societies, higher-education systems have shown a proclivity towards the multiple personality syndrome: their ability to solidify, connect and unite diverse communities within a society is almost always juxtaposed with higher education's tendency to separate, regionalize and exclude. This paper analyzes a local setting of Bosnia and Herzegovina, where higher education has had a dichotomous role in the society. Most notably, the analysis scrutinizes the globalizing and 'EU-nionizing' forces and values as they collide with the local tensions, traditions and identities presently existing in the higher education of Bosnia and Herzegovina. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the author asks: What exactly does it mean to 'co/laborate' with indigenous struggles? What are the implications of accompanying indigenous struggles for activist research and anthropology? Can activist research be part of the 'intercultural construction of knowledges'? In a political context where rights and the survival of communities are at stake, what are the implications of the 'intercultural construction of knowledges'? The author uses the debates around the essentialization of indigeneity at the international level to argue that trabajar haciendo is a methodology that can be used in activist research as an intercultural exercise that calls upon us to rethink what we mean by the articulation of differences in political contexts. Las luchas indigenas, otros movimientos sociales, asi como varios desafios academicos en las ultimas decadas nos han forzado a conceptuar una antropologia 'post-reflexiva' que nos permita reconsiderar lo que es la interpretacion, representacion, activismo, colaboracion, las dinamicas de poder, y el interculturalismo en la investigacion en general y la investigacion educativa en particular. En la decada de los noventa, varios academicos se dieron cuenta que no era suficiente poner a la investigacion al servicio de la justicia social, sino que habia que reconocer las varias posiciones de poder que afectan nuestra relacion con los movimientos sociales con los que trabajamos. En este trabajo reflexiono sobre: ¿Que significa el co/laborar con la lucha indigena? ¿Cuales son las implicaciones activista del acompanar a las luchas indigenas para la investigacion activista y la antropologia? ¿Puede la investigacion activista participar en la 'construccion intercultural de saberes'? Para responder estas preguntas utilizo los debates alrededor del 'esencialismo estrategico' en contextos politicos, en particular, en la definicion de la indigeneidad en la arena internacional. Argumento que la investigacion activista o el 'trabajar haciendo' es un ejercicio intercultural, pero tambien un elemento fundamental para el interculturalismo porque nos invita a repensar lo que significa la articulacion de diferencias mas alla de los esencialismos en contextos politicos. Nos forza a co/laborar en la validacion y legitimizacion de las distinciones culturales y, al mismo tiempo, a reconocer que la cultura es un recurso y un instrumento politico. Finalmente, nos obliga a reconocer las diferencias de poder con los que co/laboramos y a negociar fronteras, significados y acciones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents information on an intercultural training seminar for business students. The seminar was created for U.S. students travelling to Spain and includes information on cultural stereotypes, nonverbal communication and social structures. Cultural information about Spain is presented and contrasted with the participants' preconceptions. Exercises comparing U.S. and Spanish cultures are also provided.

Italy has become a destination for immigration, and this has had an impact on the linguistic and cultural diversity of school populations. In response to this changing profile, Italy has developed a series of language-in-education policies for meeting the needs of immigrant children. This paper traces the development of these policies and examines the ways in which the linguistic and cultural education of immigrants has been conceptualized. It traces a movement from policies relating to language and integration to intercultural education with a focus on developing the intercultural abilities of the entire population. At the same time, Italy's language-in-education policies, while responding to the changed social profile resulting from immigration, have marginalized some aspects of immigrant children's educational needs. L'Italia è diventata una destinazione per l'immigrazione e questo ha avuto un impatto sulla diversità linguistico-culturale della popolazione scolastica. In risposta a questo cambiamento, l'Italia ha sviluppato una serie di politiche linguistico-educative per soddisfare le necessità dei bambini immigrati. Quest'articolo traccia lo sviluppo di queste politiche ed esamina il modo in cui l'inserimento linguistico-culturale dei bambini immigrati è stato concettualizzato nell'ambito scolastico. Inoltre, traccia la loro evoluzione partendo da politiche riguardanti gli aspetti linguistici e l'integrazione scolastica all'educazione interculturale, focalizzata nello sviluppo delle abilità interculturali della popolazione intera. Le politiche linguistiche italiane in materia di istruzione hanno cercato in questo modo di rispondere al nuovo profilo sociale risultato dall'immigrazione, ma hanno, allo stesso tempo, emarginato degli aspetti riguardanti i bisogni educativi dei bambini immigrati. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a significant population of Muslim citizens in Greece, sometimes referred to as the Muslim minority, who live in the geographical region of Thrace. For many years, little attention was devoted to the educational needs of this group, and there was consequently a high percentage of school failure and early school leaving. The poorly functioning collaboration between the teachers of the majority and the teachers of the minority, weak communication between minority schools and mainstream schools and the lack of teacher-training in intercultural education were key reasons for this. Recently, significant educational initiatives have taken place in the field of Muslim minority education within the framework of a broad educational project, entitled 'The Muslim Minority Education Project'. The aims of the project are to improve the educational provision for students from this Muslim minority and to promote the principles and philosophy of intercultural education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The marginalization of the Romany community in Spain, as elsewhere in the world, has its roots in a centuries‐old history of ethnic segregation. In response, the Romany community has come to feel intimidated and rejected. This has led to the establishment of communities on the outskirts of cities, generally with very poor living standards. In this paper I shall describe the social integration process of Romanies in one particular state school, presenting ethnographic information gathered in the course of fieldwork carried out within a project funded by the European Union on disruptive behaviour in contemporary schooling. A key focus in the project was the creation of a safe learning environment in schools, a matter of concern for all involved in education. Using participant observation and in‐depth interviews I was able to gather abundant ethnographic information on the school relating to the perceptions of students, families and teachers. Where informative, I also relate our findings to the existing anthropological literature on cultural differences and schooling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Taking UNESCO’s proposal ‘learning how to live together’ as a starting point, we examined to what extent visual education can be used as a tool to promote the aims of intercultural education. We analyzed the power of using artistic images from different cultures to change students’ perception of cultural differences, thereby facilitating the development of attitudes of respect towards different ethnic/cultural groups. We also investigated to what extent this strategy could contribute to the integration of minority peers into a majority group. Students were assigned to either an experimental or a control group. The experimental treatment consisted of exposing students to several art object images associated with different cultures. Our measurement instrument was based on an adapted version of the ‘Draw-A-Person-Test’, which we have called the ‘Draw-Two-Persons-Test’. We also used a questionnaire to examine attitudes among subjects [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT In a liberal, democratic culturally plural society, it is to be expected that people will differ in their views of the good life and that they will proceed differently in cognitive, moral and political matters. This paper argues that, although the problems of inter-ethnic conflict, cultural or ethnic differences pose a challenge, they do not pose an insurmountable challenge to the possibilities of dialogue across cultures. Granting this, teachers and educators should be asking themselves: what positive conditions, norms and principles make dialogue across cultures possible and what can they do to promote those conditions, norms and principles. The paper assumes a context of diversity of cultural values and offers some guidelines for the conduct of dialogue across cultures. The assumption here is, that by being conscious of the successes and failures, aims and objectives, norms, principles and procedures of dialogue, teachers and other relevant individuals would be clearer about how to proceed in dialogue or discussion across cultures and what to expect from such dialogue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article we discuss the precarious situation of the indigenous Tsou population of Taiwan. The rapid development of Taiwanese society is threatening the very fabric of Tsou culture. Tsou language is spoken by fewer and fewer people and young people are finding themselves marginalized both educationally and culturally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]