November 21, 2024

Facilitating information literacy and intercultural competence development through the VR Tour production learning activity

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Abstract

Studies that explored intercultural competence in tele collaborative projects mostly integrated their intercultural learning activities in language learning context, and other learning contexts were neglected by researchers. In the present study, we aimed to address this gap by integrating intercultural learning and information literacy learning. We established a common learning space in which students from China and Indonesia learned together to build their information literacy and intercultural competence. A learning activity was designed in which the participants took Informatics course to learn about VR Tour production. They created virtual tours about local cultural attractions, presented them to their foreign peers, and then discussed how tours of each other can be improved. We investigated whether our learning activity can facilitate information literacy about VR Tour production and intercultural competence development. Participants’ perceptions of VR Tour production technology were also explored. Mixed methods research approach was used to collect quantitative and qualitative data. Our results showed that the participants developed their information literacy about VR Tour production and their intercultural competence was promoted. In addition, the participants positively perceived VR Tour production technology. Based on the results, it is suggested that a common learning space can be established in which students from different countries can learn together to build up information literacy and intercultural competence. The findings of the present study can guide educators and researchers in their design of learning activities to help students develop intercultural competence and information literacy skills and use them for communication and exchange of culture-related information.

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