Cross-cultural Communication: Saudi, Ukrainian, and Russian Students Online

Three English-as-a foreign language (EFL) college instructors in Ukraine, Russia and Saudi Arabia and their undergraduate students shared a cross-cultural online writing project. The aim of the project was to develop students' writing skills in EFL, to develop their awareness of local and global cultural issues and events, and to develop their ability to communicate and interact with students from other cultures. Thirteen discussion threads, twenty external links, nine documents, three assignments, a photo gallery and Powerpoint presentations were posted in the Nicenet course-site. Quantitative and qualitative analyses of the students' messages and reactions are reported.

Prof. Reima Al-jarf
King Saud University
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
http://faculty.ksu.edu.sa/aljarf

Tags: EFL

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Comment by Erin McCloskey on April 19, 2009 at 10:41am: This sounds like a very interesting study. I am curious about how you detected development in intercultural communication skills and sensitivities in the online discussions, given the fact that the participants were communicating in their second language. I, too, am studying intercultural online learning with EFL teachers, and am puzzling over this very dilemma right now :) It's a tough one, so I would welcome the perspective of someone who has dealt with these issues. I look forward to reading your paper.

Comment by Reima Al-Jarf on April 19, 2009 at 1:15pm: Please read the full article at the link below and see if it answers your query:

http://faculty.ksu.edu.sa/aljarf/Publications/Papers/AEJ%202006%20-%20Saudi%20Ukrainian%20and%20Russian%20Students%20Online.mht