This presentation explains the impact of a short-term international volunteer project between Japanese and Taiwanese students on their intercultural learning. Results revealed that Japanese students increased their willingness to communicate in English and their interest in learning about Taiwanese culture. How to implement an effective project will be also discussed.
Researchers (Deardorff, 2011, Kinginger, 2011) agree that intercultural learning does not automatically happen through study abroad experiences. Meaningful intercultural interaction is crucial to the development of intercultural competence and Allport (1954) suggested conditions for optimal learning interactions. This research investigates whether intercultural interaction in students’ own home country promotes their intercultural learning. Based on the helpful foundation suggested by the contact hypothesis, a nine-day international volunteer work camp project was implemented in 2018 and 2019 in a rural area in Japan. In these work camps, Japanese students lived together with Taiwanese students and interacted together in English as a lingua franca while working as volunteers to cultivate abandoned farmland. Furthermore, they shared their culture through poster presentations and made videos about local issues. In order to assess the impact of this project on the development of students’ intercultural competence, both quantitative and qualitative data were collected. Surveys regarding their willingness to communicate (McCroskey & Richmond, 1987) and their intercultural attitudes were administered to Japanese students before and after the projects. The post-survey also asked which activities were helpful to facilitate their intercultural interactions. Qualitative data includes recorded reflection meetings and a post-group interview about students’ personal developments. Quantitative results indicated that students’ willingness to communicate in English and interest in learning about Taiwanese culture and language increased. The qualitative follow-up findings revealed that Japanese students felt more interested in Taiwanese culture than before participating in the work camps and they gained confidence in interacting in English as a lingua franca. These positive results could be generated since students interacted as equals under friendly conditions while personalizing their relationships as they worked toward a common goal. This presentation will discuss how to implement intercultural projects to maximize students’ intercultural learning.
