Abstract
Virtual mobility was a fairly unexplored possibility to connect with overseas partners prior to the Covid-19 pandemic. The years 2020 and 2021 compelled the stakeholders in higher education to explore new vistas in virtual collaboration. This paper presents results of a virtual collaboration that connected Europe, Asia and Africa on cultural exchange, bringing 41 multidisciplinary students and 11 staff members together. The concept was developed as a part of the virtual Alumni Academy of University of Siegen, Germany Digitalisation 20+ on Blended Education by participants from universities in China, Egypt, North Macedonia and Sri Lanka. At the concluding stage of the first phase of the Academy, the participants were assigned to develop projects in different groups on concepts of digital teaching and learning. The students involved in the project selected different cultural themes at the launch and met virtually to prepare one presentation per group to be presented to a live audience six weeks later. Feedback from the students and the staff was gathered at different stages of the project to analyse their perspectives. The experience gathered during the project brought to light that such virtual collaboration is significant in promoting intercultural communication, understanding across borders and enhancing digital prowess.
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Acknowledgements
The authors wish to acknowledge the support of the University of Siegen Germany, Alumni Office of the University of Siegen and the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) for organising the Alumni Academy Digitalisation 20+ and Sustainability 2021/2022 Blended Education through which the project on digital collaboration for cultural exchange, the subject of this study, was realised. The contribution by Prof. Dr. Jin Zhao of the Department of German, Tongji University, China for facilitating the student participation and conducting the surveys during the project is much appreciated.
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Premawardhena, N.C., Saleh, A., Kurtishi, A. (2023). Building a Digital Bridge Across Cultures and Continents: Exploring New Vistas in Virtual Collaboration. In: Auer, M.E., Pachatz, W., Rüütmann, T. (eds) Learning in the Age of Digital and Green Transition. ICL 2022. Lecture Notes in Networks and Systems, vol 634. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-26190-9_79
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