ELearning and Intercultural dimensions of learning theories and teaching models

Abstract

T will be argued in this article that developing intercultural awareness in students can be facilitated by e-learning environments. When choosing to address learning goals within an e-learning environment, authors and educators need to become aware of hidden dimensions in their pedagogical activity. Cultural embeddedness applies to learning theories as much as teaching models. Reflecting on these dimensions and taking them into account in designing specific environments should result in facilitated intercultural learning and teaching. In multicultural and multilingual societies, the implicit pedagogical assumptions of e-learning environments need to be made explicit. Two different cultural dimensions of educational practices are more specifically concerned: the pedagogical culture and the values, beliefs, attitudes, theories and models involved; and the digital culture and the emerging transformations related to knowledge and pedagogical modelling. The development of intercultural abilities, already present in language education, can lead the way to an enhanced experience of learning and teaching. Students and teachers can be empowered as much as they develop a new culture of education, based on intercultural competences, critical thinking, awareness and self-regulated practices.