This document provides an overview of the presenter's doctoral thesis on e-learning scenarios for intercultural foreign language communication. It describes the background and aims of the research, which is analyzing three case studies of online intercultural exchanges between students. One case study involved a bilateral exchange between US and German high school students. The presenter focuses on the methodology used to analyze the computer-mediated intercultural discourse, including approaches from conversation analysis and methods to code linguistic and cultural elements. Feedback is sought from attendees on example data sets and how to categorize aspects like meaning, interaction, structure and social behavior. The goal is to identify both the learning potential and challenges in analyzing this type of online intercultural exchange.

1. E-Learning Scenarios for Intercultural Foreign Language Communication Researching “Online Intercultural Foreign Language Communication” or CMID University of Tübingen Applied English Linguistics Colloquium Claudia Warth claudia.warth@uni-tuebingen.de www.ael.uni-tuebingen.de 16.07.2009

2. Outline Introduction Aims of presentation Thesis - some background information The thesis, so far & upcoming Its questions & aims Approaches & contents The 3 case studies included An overview “High School Project” case study: self-study exchange preparation “Yale” case study: bilateral intercultural exchange “icEurope” case study: multilateral ELF web collaboration The “Yale” case study – methodology and data analysis The study: aims & approaches Methodology & data analysis: CMIDA-approach Exemplary sets of data Your turn, feedback & input  2

3. Aims of today’s presentation Overview of thesis progress Insight into some of the case studies included Focus on: methodological aspects & how to handle data general methodological approaches to analyzing CMC & CMID part of triangulation process ( investigator triangulation) looking at some data together & your input and feedback 3

4. The Thesis – Some Background information 4

5. Thesis: “E-Learning Scenarios for Intercultural Foreign Language Learning” – in a nutshell Where it’s coming from: High (empirically evident) potential of e-learning for foreign language learning Assumption: e-learning to facilitate intercultural communication & learning But: little research into this potential or actual outcomes of intercultural online exchanges / web collaboration (mainly tertiary level) Methodological approaches unclear Little insight so far into course & activity set-up Little insight into teacher’s role 5

6. Thesis: “E-learning Scenarios for Intercultural Foreign Language Learning” – in a nutshell Where it’s going to: General research questions: What is the learning and teaching potential of e-learning for acquiring intercultural foreign language competences (2ndary level)? [ Learning / Potential] How can this potential be ‘extracted’, i.e. become accessible, analyzed, and evaluated? [ Methodology] How do courses & activities (i.e. e-learning scenarios) have to be designed to facilitate this type of learning? [ Discussion & Design action plan] What is the role of the teacher within a given scenario / approach? [ Teaching action plan]  To be illustrated and discussed on the basis of 3 different e-learning approaches (scenarios) to intercultural FLL 6

7. Thesis: “E-learning Scenarios for Intercultural Foreign Language Learning” - Outline Research questions and research methodology Intercultural competence, communication and foreign language learning Web-based communication and learning across cultures Catching two birds with one stone - Preparing for a high school year abroad [HSP] Transatlantic language and culture learning - a bilateral high school collaboration [Yale] European integration - Multilateral web collaboration via ELF [icEurope] Conclusion and suggestions for future research 7

8. Thesis: “E-learning Scenarios for Intercultural Foreign Language Learning” - Outline Research questions and research methodology Intercultural competence, communication and foreign language learning Web-based communication and learning across cultures Catching two birds with one stone - Preparing for a high school year abroad [HSP] Transatlantic language and culture learning - a bilateral high school collaboration [Yale] European integration - Multilateral web collaboration via ELF [icEurope] Conclusion and suggestions for future research 8

9. Research design plan & current stages 9 “HSP” & “Yale” “icEurope”

11. theories of CALL & intercultural learning

12. qualitative approach

13. action research & change orientation

14. grounded theory

15. (ethnomethodology/ CA (talk-in-interaction  cultures-in-interaction))

16. CMC – CMD /CMID(‘computer-mediated intercultural discourse’)10

17. The E-Learning Scenarios: The 3 Case Studies Involved 11

18. 12 Ch. 4, 5, 6: The Case Studies – 3 E-Learning Scenarios

20. Concept of (bilateral) web collaboration / online exchange

21. Byram/ INCA for intercultural communicative competenceCASE STUDY FACTS US-German web collaboration Oct. ´07 – Feb. ´08 ~ 40 students US: German class (3rd year) PA, USA DE: English class, 11th grade, Gymnasium German teacher with Moodle experience, US teacher without 5 Moodle courses http://www.spracheundkultur.com/elearning

22. “Intercultural Meeting Place” – Course & activity design Activity Design: Phases & progression within course: General Introduction From own to other cultures & comparison – sensitizing Towards intercultural awareness – understanding & reflection Intercultural thinking & application – relativization & transfer “Debriefing” course progression tool intercultural learning aims language learning aims 14

23. The main course: “Intercultural Meeting Place” (ICM) 15

24. Yale study – activities & tasks 16

25. Yale study – activities & tasks cont’d 17

26. Evaluation of ‘Yale’ case study I) Data collection 18 a) Performance data mainly asynchronous data from forums and wikis; very little chat data; reflective data from journals. CMC-data, i.e. data gained through participants’ contributions in Moodle (students and teachers): Forums Messages (Moodle messenger / Mail) Wikis Chats Moodle glossary (students) ‘ePorfolio’ (students) Reflective Moodle journals (students and teachers) b) Secondary data Self-assessment (students, before start of project) Questionnaires (pre-, while-, post) (students and teachers) Forum “What we’ve learned so far” (students) Interviews (post) (some US students via Skype, teachers) Personal communication (with teachers in person or via email) Moodle history and statistics data

27. Evaluation of ‘Yale’ case study II) Data sighting & analysis 19 “Can a course like the ‘Yale’ course foster cross-cultural understanding & language awareness needed for intercultural communication?” Yes – no ?!? How? What needs to be changed or how can it be supported?: How is ‘culture’ / ‘intercultural understanding’ communicated by the students, in relation to the task? [ Learning / Potential] In which ways do students do so? [ Methodology] How does the assumed potential compare to the actual language and culture outcomes for a given task? [ Discussion] Which implications and conclusions can be drawn for setting up and teaching in an intercultural FL e-learning scenario? [ Design & Teaching action plans]

29. generalizability for CMID?CMD-perspective, i.e. the particular shapes and forms discourse and conversation take in an online environment CMID-perspective CMD in intercultural setting Language used for intercultural communication purposes there “Culture communicated” (cultures-in-interaction)

31. CMID approach to Yale case study 22 (CMD based on Susan Herring & expanded)

34. Strategies and moves

36. Content analysis & categorizing topics / contents

37. Aspects of ‘multimodality’

39. Comparison to journal entries & 2ndary data

42. Interaction

43. Meaning

44. Interaction

45. Meaning

46. Interaction

47. Meaning

48. Interaction

49. Solidarity

51. Interaction

52. Meaning

53. (Interaction)

54. Meaning

55. Interaction

56. Structure

57. Meaning

58. Interaction

59. Structure

60. Social behavior

61. Meaning

62. Interaction

63. Structure

64. Social behavior

65. Meaning

66. Interaction

67. Social behavior

68. (Interaction)

70. Interaction

71. Meaning

72. Interaction

73. Structure

74. Soc. beh.

75. Meaning

76. Interaction

77. Structure

79. Meaning

80. Meaning

81. (Structure)

83. Your feedback, your thoughts, your comments!Thank you very much  30

84. Bibliography (select) 31 Herring, S. (1999). InteractionalCoherence in CMC. In: JCMC 4 (4) June: jcmc.indiana.edu/vol4/issue4/herring.html (05/30/09) Herring, S. (2003). Computer-Mediated Discourse. In: Schiffrin, D. et al. The Handbook of Discourse Analysis. 612f. Long, M. H. (1983). Native speaker/non-native speaker conversation and the negotiation of comprehensible input.