Presentation Preparing students of all proficiency levels for VE and COIL more

Virtual Exchange (VE), such as Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) projects, can offer equitable, inclusive, and transformative learning opportunities. In recent years, technology for VE has become more accessible both in terms of price and user interface, while professional development opportunities for implementing VE are widely available. Despite this, many students lack confidence to engage with offered VE initiatives: they may choose not to participate in synchronous VE due to language anxiety, lack of digital skills, or concern surrounding intercultural communication. In this talk, we share the findings from our survey of 15 experienced international educators on the skills necessary for VE, and post synchronous VE course feedback from 18 of our own students on issues they faced. Responding to these findings, we created task-based materials which target essential VE skills, including listening comprehension for Global Englishes; conversation strategies for nuanced interactions both face-to-face and online; digital literacy skills; and explicit cultural considerations and reflections. In this session we share these insights and offer advice on how we prepare our students for successful engagement in VE programs. Participants will receive a complete lesson targeting some of the skills that we identified.