Telecollaboration in Foreign Language Curricula: A Case Study on Intercultural Understanding in Video Communication Exchanges

Literature Review

Our society today is largely characterized by the global economic, political and cultural integration driven by technology and international commerce. Increasingly people view themselves as ‘global’ and ‘cosmopolitan’ citizens (Osler & Starkey, 2005). Borders are becoming less important while mobility across borders is increasing (Byram, 2012). As a result of these developments, traditional viewpoints in terms of national categories are experiencing a radical change and a more transnational perspective is often adopted, which underlines the importance of managing cross-cultural encounters with the ‘other’ (Wilson, 1993; Ten Thije & Maier, 2012).