An asynchronous web-mediated teacher student discussion on literary texts Full text available :

1. Ulla LundgrenSchool of Education and CommunicationJönköping University SWEDENulla.lundgren@hlk.hj.seTRANS-ATLANTIC TALK An asynchronous web-mediated teacher student discussion on literary texts Full text available: http://www.exedrajournal.com/docs/s-internationalization2/11.pdf

2. “It gave me ideas how to think” (student) Ulla LundgrenSchool of Education and CommunicationJönköping University SWEDEN

3. Global interdependence demands for understanding otherness • Teachers must become aware of their roles as mediators between cultures Ulla LundgrenSchool of Education and CommunicationJönköping University SWEDEN

4. Visions vs. practice. • Our project has tried to illustrate the educational idea of intercultural understanding by experiental learning • 12 teacher students from the US and Sweden participating in compulsory courses, one in each country Ulla LundgrenSchool of Education and CommunicationJönköping University SWEDEN

5. Objectives • To promote students´ intercultural awareness • To illustrate a pedagogical example for the students possible to use in their future teaching career (exemplary education) . Ulla LundgrenSchool of Education and CommunicationJönköping University SWEDEN

6. QUESTIONS • Could a web-based asynchronic interactive conversation across the Atlantic promote intercultural understanding among teacher students? (OUTCOME) • Is this medium a potential way to enhance possibilities for an intercultural learning process?(METHODOLOGY) Ulla LundgrenSchool of Education and CommunicationJönköping University SWEDEN

7. Theoretical background • Culture • Interculturality • Dialogism • Computer supportedcollaborativelearning (CSCL) Ulla LundgrenSchool of Education and CommunicationJönköping University SWEDEN

8. Texts • Web discussion based on two literary texts, extracts from two novels, an American and a Swedish one • Stories built on the authors´ own experiences and tell about growing up as a minority child within a majority society. Ulla LundgrenSchool of Education and CommunicationJönköping University SWEDEN

9. THE ASSIGNMENT IN 3 STEPS • Pick about 3 sentences or short passages from each text that you think are important. Give the reasons why you chose them. Publish in PingPong. • Make 3-5 postings as comments to what other students have written • Reflect upon your partner´s/partners´ reading of the text in comparison with your own, how the discussion with your partner(s) clarified/confused your own experience of the (2-3 pages) Ulla LundgrenSchool of Education and CommunicationJönköping University SWEDEN

10. The discussion was immediately personal and very open. I became uneasy about posting my interpretations of the selected works onto the message board. I was concerned that my thoughts on the subject matter would be perceived as "wrong", and since I barely knew my Penn State colleagues and the students at Jonkoping University were complete strangers, I did not want them to consider me uneducated or misguided. Despite my feelings of insecurity, I was also eager to try a new experience, and I was curious to read the viewpoints of the other participants(to be continued). I Ulla LundgrenSchool of Education and CommunicationJönköping University SWEDEN

11. (Continued) I am pleased to say that all of my initial negative concerns were completely unfounded and erased. In fact, participating in this event helped me to become more familiar with my classmates; it made me feel more connected with them because we shared a common experience. Regarding the interactions with the students from Jonkoping University, I felt immediately comfortable exchanging ideas with them. Each person I communicated with was respectful and was able to add to previously posted comments. Overall, I went away from this activity with feelings of confidence and satisfaction (student). Ulla LundgrenSchool of Education and CommunicationJönköping University SWEDEN

12. InterculturalUnderstandingis an interactive process and is a result of an encounter. According to all students this has been a positive encounter as theysay that theyhavedeveloped new perspectives Ulla LundgrenSchool of Education and CommunicationJönköping University SWEDEN

13. In conclusion, this experience was engaging due to the mere fact that we were communicating with students from Sweden. After these discussions, I am led to believe at our cultures are very similar. I feel that we both used critical thinking skills and were able to voice our opinions and thoughts and react to them. It was also very helpful to see how someone else interpreted the text because it gave me new perspectives to consider. Many times what someone else had to say, led me to question what I had read even more (student). Ulla LundgrenSchool of Education and CommunicationJönköping University SWEDEN

14. It was also very helpful to see how someone else interpreted the text because it gave me new perspectives to consider. Many times what someone else had to say, led me to question what I had read even more (Student) Ulla LundgrenSchool of Education and CommunicationJönköping University SWEDEN

15. Several advantages can be noted about the intercultural activity. First, as the name implies, it provided an opportunity for students in two different countries to share ideas with one another; technology is truly amazing! Secondly, all of the participants contributed thoughtful, meaningful comments to the discussion of the literary selections; in this sense, the activity provided another opportunity for people to engage in intellectual conversation, often times, people do not have the chance to do such a simple task. Finally, the intercultural activity provided a means to share ideas conveniently from our own homes during the times that worked best for us (Student) Ulla LundgrenSchool of Education and CommunicationJönköping University SWEDEN

16. Conversing with other students on selected passages helped me to gain incredible personal insight. I was able to read about personal connections people made with certain passages and apply my own personal experiences to the literature. I view this as a personal gain because it is interesting and beneficial to exchange thoughts about basic text and apply the words to personal experiences (student). Ulla LundgrenSchool of Education and CommunicationJönköping University SWEDEN

17. Perhaps one of the most important things that I learned was that it is necessary to examine between the lines of text and literature especially when teaching students from other cultures. Communication and culture are naturally embedded in literature, texts and other forms of communication (student). Ulla LundgrenSchool of Education and CommunicationJönköping University SWEDEN

18. There is a variety of possible interpretations based on individual backgrounds and knowledge of culture. Second language teachers must therefore value the individual interpretations of their students while at the same time interacting with them, in order to expose them to other possible readings of a text based on a variety of cultural backgrounds (student). Ulla LundgrenSchool of Education and CommunicationJönköping University SWEDEN

19. DISCUSSION • A way to promoteunderstanding for self and others • No teacherinterference to createsymmetry of power • Open endedassignment. No right answers. • The choice of texts • The issues of • Translation • English medium discussion • Time • Availability Try the same with students from twocompletelydifferent cultures Ulla LundgrenSchool of Education and CommunicationJönköping University SWEDEN

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