ALN 2000 Conference Washington, DC November 4, 2000

1. ALN 2000 ConferenceWashington, DCNovember 4, 2000 INTERNATIONAL CROSS-CULTURAL ONLINE LEARNING COLLABORATION BETWEEN LEBANESE AND AMERICANSTUDENTS Bidhan Chandra, Ph.D. SUNY Empire State College Saratoga Springs, NY 12866 bchandra@esc.edu (510 587-2100 x 210 11/04/2000 Chandra/ALN2000 1

2. OBJECTIVES • To create an opportunity for American and Lebanese students to virtually work with each other in international teams and foster the idea of an on-line learning community; • To create an opportunity for sharing experiential learning in a cross-cultural setting; • To create a prototype of an on-line learning experiment transcending geographical and cultural boundaries so that lessons learned from it may be used by other distance learning faculty. 11/04/2000 Chandra/ALN2000 2

3. PROJECT HISTORY • The ICCM course has been taught in residency-based format, utilizing distance learning methods in-between residencies. • The two cohorts of students were separately enrolled in Cyprus and USA for the ICCM course taught by the same instructor. • Three residencies per semester were held for American students in Saratoga Springs area and two residencies in Nicosia, Cyprus for Lebanese students. 11/04/2000 Chandra/ALN2000 3

4. Project History ====> • During Fall 1999, 15 students in each country group were persuaded to form cross-cultural teams and work together on a class project. • The two cohorts would never have to meet face-to-face, but would work together virtually throughe-mail and other Internet tools. • All students were unanimous in their decision to collaborate on this asynchronous learning project. 11/04/2000 Chandra/ALN2000 4

5. Lebanese Students Residence: Lebanon Average age: 22 Languages: Arabic, French, English Living with parents Undergraduate students No significant work experience Some engaged in part-time jobs American Students Residence: USA Average age: 35 Languages: English, Spanish Having own family Undergraduate students Significant work experience Most engaged in full-time jobs Group Profile 11/04/2000 Chandra/ALN2000 5

6. Planning Challenges • Cultural differences • Personal profile differences • Differences in access to WWW • Differences in technological sophistication • Time zone differences 11/04/2000 Chandra/ALN2000 6

7. Process Flow • Project identification • Intercultural team building • Clarification on goals • Clarification on group process • Asynchronous communication 11/04/2000 Chandra/ALN2000 7

8. Exchange of video clips and pictures • Exchange of ideas and content • Putting together the project report • Presentation of the project report • Student evaluations and comments 11/04/2000 Chandra/ALN2000 8

9. Project Description To conduct a cross-cultural comparison of Lebanese and American managers based on a theoretical typology of relationships in the two societies. For the above purpose, a matrix of types of relationships and the associated cultural orientation between Lebanon and the United States was to be examined by each of the seven teams. 11/04/2000 Chandra/ALN2000 9

10. For each category of relationship, they were expected to provide a brief explanation and examples of the cultural orientation with reference to Lebanon and the United States. 11/04/2000 Chandra/ALN2000 10

11. Research Questions • How do I define good and right? Do I prefer rules over relationships? Particularistic vs. Universalistic • How do I shape my relationships with others outside of my immediate family? Individualistic vs. Collectivist • How objective is my relationship with others? Emotional vs Neutral 11/04/2000 Chandra/ALN2000 11

12. What is the range of my relationships? Diffused vs. Specific • What is the basis of my judging others? Achievement vs. Ascription Source: Adapted from Fons (1998) for classroom use. 11/04/2000 Chandra/ALN2000 12

13. Task Description • Seven international teams, consisting of 2-3 members from each country, were formed. • Each team was assigned a group leader who communicated with his/her team members and the faculty, and coordinated all team efforts. 11/04/2000 Chandra/ALN2000 13

14. Task Description ===> • After exchanging e-mail addresses and initial introductions, the students continued to work using various Internet utilities. • At the end of the project, each team presented its findings to its own cohort group. Presentations from one cohort group were shared with the other cohort group through video tapes during residencies held in Albany, NY and Nicosia, Cyprus. 11/04/2000 Chandra/ALN2000 14

15. Means of Asynchronous Communication • E-mail: used most frequently • Conference call: used by just one group • Photo and video exchange 11/04/2000 Chandra/ALN2000 15

16. Process Outcome • Problems in team building • Dysfunctional teams • Communication bottlenecks • Monitoring work in progress • Timeliness of project completion • Quality of team performance 11/04/2000 Chandra/ALN2000 16

17. Conclusion • Student comments and feedback after completion of the exercise were encouraging. • Results from a self-evaluation report by the participants clearly show that the benefits from this experiment outweigh the costs. 11/04/2000 Chandra/ALN2000 17

18. More lead time is necessary for better results. • This experiment demonstrated that a well-designed asynchronous on-line class room across intercultural boundaries can indeed work and can provide a rich learning environment by promoting active collaboration among students from different cultural backgrounds. 11/04/2000 Chandra/ALN2000 18