Publications

Chapter

Language(s): English

Abstract:
The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) and virtual reality (VR) into education is growing, expediting the optimization of personalized adaptive language learning (PALL). This chapter discusses the foundations of personalized adaptive learning, explaining its importance for language learners. The potential of AI in language learning and an overview of VR–assisted language learning are presented with a particular focus on the potential of AI embedded into VR, which enables PALL experiences. The role of AI-enhanced high-immersion VR is explained with examples of providing language learners with individualized and contextualized learning environments through immersive real-world based scenarios and simulations. The chapter pinpoints current challenges and future avenues for exploration.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
The review maps how “hybrid intelligence” systems—human–AI ecosystems that collaborate and co‑evolve—are being conceptualised and used in education. Synthesising 42 publications (2015–2025) via a PRISMA-ScR scoping review, it identifies three core components (collectivity, superior outcomes, continuous learning) and two design priorities (adaptivity, ethics). Evidence shows that hybrid systems can enhance cognition, metacognition, self‑regulated learning and socio‑emotional development across use cases such as AI‑assisted writing, embodied learning, and collaborative platforms. Yet ethical and equity issues (bias, privacy, digital divide) remain weakly addressed. The paper calls for participatory, transparent, educator‑led design and proposes a co‑evolutionary framework for integrating hybrid intelligence responsibly in education.

Chapter

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Chapter in "Lingua Ex Machina: AI, Multilingualism and Interculturality" which explores the evolving role of AI in shaping language, communication and intercultural encounters. The term ‘Lingua Ex Machina’ (literally ‘language from the machine’) encapsulates the paradox of AI acting as both a tool for bridging linguistic and intercultural divides, and a potential amplifier of inequalities. This edited volume brings together critical perspectives on the impact of AI on language diversity, translation, education and the production and dissemination of knowledge. From questioning whether AI is more than a sophisticated ‘parrot’ to examining its effects on minor languages and intercultural education communication and research, the contributors highlight both the promises and drawbacks of machine-mediated communication. They also urge readers to reflect on the future of language, advocating for a reflexive approach to technology that prioritises agency, diversity, and critical engagement. This interdisciplinary book is an essential read for students, scholars, and practitioners interested in multilingualism, intercultural communication education, and the implications of AI.

Book

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Provocative, interdisciplinary, and daringly critical, AI for Critical Interculturality doesn’t spoon-feed ready-made answers but rather inspires readers to think, question and interrogate interculturality alongside AI. In a world where AI is often feared as a threat to human intelligence and creativity, the book flips the script by positioning AI as a valuable partner in the study of interculturality as both a scientific and educational notion. How could AI help us dismantle biases, interrogate knowledge production/dissemination and foster deeper self-reflexivity in the broad field of Intercultural Communication Education and Research? What happens when we treat AI not as a passive tool but as an active interlocutor – one that mirrors our ideological blind spots and pushes us toward sharper criticality and reflexivity? Through rich theoretical and conceptual insights, real-world cases and interactive activities, this book equips readers to unmask ideologies in AI-generated knowledge about interculturality; leverage AI as a mirror to expose and confront personal and systemic biases; consider some language stratagems to disrupt linguistic norms in human-AI dialogue. More importantly, the author asks us to forge an ethical and non-utilitarian partnership with AI. This boundary-shattering work invites students, educators and researchers of interculturality to envision and co-create the future of intercultural studies.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This mixed qualitative study uses "algorithmic governmentality" to examine how learning analytics shape student subjectivities among 103 master's students in Austria. Findings show ambivalent responses—enthusiasm, resignation, anxiety—where analytics encourage self-regulation, reduce reflexivity, align behavior with data-driven norms, and risk reproducing educational inequalities. Yet students’ critical engagement also offers possibilities for disruption and reflexive inquiry.

Book

Language(s): English

Abstract:
An Introduction to AI and Intercultural Communication Education is the first, historic volume to explore the intersection of AI and intercultural communication education, interrogating both the transformative possibilities and ethical dilemmas posed by emerging technologies. Through diverse scholarly perspectives, the book examines how AI tools, ranging from language models such as ChatGPT and DeepSeek to generative image systems, could reshape the way we teach, research and conceptualise interculturality. While AI offers innovative opportunities for virtual exchanges, automated translation and accessible learning, it also risks reinforcing stereotypes, Western-centric epistemologies and reductive narratives if used uncritically. The contributors address pressing questions: Can AI facilitate decolonial and reflexive approaches to intercultural communication education, or does it inevitably reproduce dominant paradigms? How can educators harness the potential of AI while safeguarding against its pitfalls, such as algorithmic bias and the erasure of indigenous knowledge systems? Combining theoretical critique with case studies, the volume highlights the need for ethical frameworks that prioritise epistemic justice, pluralistic perspectives and human agency in AI-assisted intercultural communication and education. This book is an indispensable resource for students, researchers and educators interested in the complexities of technology-mediated learning, as well as the broader fields of higher education, intercultural studies and internationalisation and globalisation.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
The mass migration of human populations to urban areas has resulted in unprecedented challenges for city services. To address and find solutions for these emerging issues, decision-makers must embrace the smart city and Society 5.0 paradigms, which comprehensively tackle various dimensions of the problem and ensure adaptability to evolving citizen needs. Central to the success of these paradigms is technology, particularly artificial intelligence (AI). AI’s transformative capabilities enable the expansion of services, automation of tasks, efficient operationalization and processing vast amounts of data to address urban challenges, aligning with several sustainable development goals (SDGs) such as sustainable cities and communities (SDG 11). Municipalities require strategic plans that empower them to adapt to the AI, Society 5.0 and smart city paradigms, involving multiple stakeholders, including businesses. This study presents a multi-criteria analysis system designed to support decision-making in this complex context, considering the subjective nature and inherent complexity of the decision problem. The system development involved input from key decision-makers with relevant expertise, utilizing methodologies such as cognitive mapping and the decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory technique applied in a neutrosophic environment to analyze cause-and-effect relationships between factors affecting adaptation initiatives. Based on a constructivist, process-oriented approach, the developed analysis system can assist decision-makers in navigating uncertainty during evaluations of technology integration. This holistic and comprehensive system promotes informed decision-making within the AI, Society 5.0 and smart city contexts, contributing to the achievement of relevant SDGs.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
The article examines how AI intersects with inequality in a neoliberal global context marked by austerity, rationing and scarcity. In the first section, it focuses on predictive analytics in child welfare, social protection and policing, arguing that AI‑assisted approaches to “social problems” risk reproducing and intensifying past discriminatory practices. In the second, it contends that AI development and deployment are likely to reinforce neo‑colonial dynamics or “digital colonialism” in the Global South. The article calls for more social work research on how to resist and mitigate these structurally embedded harms.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
he study investigates whether digital‑native news outlets frame political crises differently from legacy‑affiliated media. Comparing coverage of Kenya’s 2024 anti‑Finance Bill protests by Citizen Digital (legacy‑affiliated) and Kenyans.co.ke (digital‑native), it qualitatively analyses 100 articles from each outlet. It identifies three main frames—law‑and‑order, victimization, and political critique—with the law‑and‑order frame most common in both cases. The largely similar framing patterns suggest that digital‑native platforms do not necessarily broaden discursive diversity and that shared structural constraints in the media environment help reproduce framing norms traditionally associated with legacy journalism

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
The postdigital era signals a profound ontological rupture in knowledge governance, reshaping the foundations of epistemic authority, intellectual agency, and pedagogical ethics. AI is not a neutral tool but an active agent in automating exclusions across epistemic domains—the systems through which knowledge is produced, legitimized, and accessed. In discussing AI-driven epistemic transformations, the very nature of what we mean by epistemic is called into question. By bringing decolonial and postdigital perspectives into dialogue, this study interrogates how AI-driven infrastructures perpetuate and reconfigure colonial and neoliberal logics. Drawing on Floridi’s philosophy of information, Hayles’ posthumanist critique of cognition, and Stiegler’s theory of technics, it examines how algorithmic governance, predictive analytics, and generative AI (GenAI) transform the conditions of education. Rather than merely embedding objectivity, these systems reinforce technocratic norms while marginalizing non-Western and Indigenous knowledges. As machine-learning technologies increasingly shape educational environments, they call for urgent reconsideration of justice and relational knowledge-making. In response, the paper proposes pedagogical frameworks that resist commodification and standardization, advancing pluralism, historical consciousness, and democratic participation. Education must not passively accommodate AI’s epistemic architecture but instead reclaim its transformative, deliberative role—challenging algorithmic enclosures and cultivating an inclusive, reflexive postdigital knowledge society.

Chapter

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Chapter in "Lingua Ex Machina: AI, Multilingualism and Interculturality" which explores the evolving role of AI in shaping language, communication and intercultural encounters. The term ‘Lingua Ex Machina’ (literally ‘language from the machine’) encapsulates the paradox of AI acting as both a tool for bridging linguistic and intercultural divides, and a potential amplifier of inequalities. This edited volume brings together critical perspectives on the impact of AI on language diversity, translation, education and the production and dissemination of knowledge. From questioning whether AI is more than a sophisticated ‘parrot’ to examining its effects on minor languages and intercultural education communication and research, the contributors highlight both the promises and drawbacks of machine-mediated communication. They also urge readers to reflect on the future of language, advocating for a reflexive approach to technology that prioritises agency, diversity, and critical engagement. This interdisciplinary book is an essential read for students, scholars, and practitioners interested in multilingualism, intercultural communication education, and the implications of AI.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
The paper revisits the notion of “digital play” as a key pedagogical construct for understanding children’s engagement with technologies, arguing that most work still relies on pre-digital theories of play. Drawing on critical constructivism and the concept of “technical code,” the authors report on a two‑year collaboration with early-years teachers and university researchers who used philosophy of technology as an alternative lens to expand how digital play is understood. The project led teachers to develop three new “cultural formations” around the digital dimension of play: cyber‑safety, networked technologies, and creativity, showing how digital learning can be conceptualised beyond traditional play theory.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
The paper synthesises 24 systematic reviews (2014–2025) on digital technologies in social work across domains such as child welfare, mental health, migration and elderly care. It shows that most reviews frame technology in terms of benefits versus challenges, foregrounding practitioners’ views while largely neglecting clients’ experiences. Digital tools are found to improve access, communication and efficiency, yet issues of poor system design, ethics, digital inequality and practitioner fatigue persist. The review also notes a lack of robust theoretical engagement with technology and calls for research that moves beyond simple binary framings, includes service‑user perspectives and applies richer sociotechnical concepts.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Digital technology has transformed social work education and practice by enabling online training, cross-border support, and more flexible, personalised learning experiences. However, this shift also raises concerns around data breaches, privacy, confidentiality, and ethics. Drawing on existing literature, the paper identifies knowledge gaps among social workers in the digital environment and proposes sustainable approaches: targeted training in information literacy and digital skills, sustained institutional support to make digital learning attractive and accessible, and regular use of digital platforms to build competence. These measures aim to ensure that social workers adopt technology safely, effectively, and sustainably.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Digitally enabled technologies and pedagogies, including the use of AI technologies, have become integral to higher education. Despite this, online teaching continues to give rise to particularly strong and variable affective responses, responses which orient the academics who feel them towards possible futures, whether desired or feared. In this paper, we consider what affective imaginaries might be informing the future of online teaching within higher education. We describe four affective stances which we interpret from our interviews with influential senior academics in Australia and the United Kingdom, and reflect on how affective imaginaries of online learning may be speaking academic practice into being. We conclude that giving legitimacy to the affective may support the collective potential of academics to mobilise their visions and hopes for higher education going forward.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This paper examines how affective imaginaries—emotional orientations toward possible futures—influence visions of online teaching in higher education. From interviews with senior academics in Australia and the UK, four affective stances are identified that shape how academics imagine and enact online learning (including AI-enabled practices). The authors argue legitimizing these affects can help academics collectively mobilize hopes and visions for the future of higher education.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Advances in artificial intelligence (AI) offer the prospect of manipulating beliefs and behaviors on a population-wide level (1). Large language models (LLMs) and autonomous agents (2) let influence campaigns reach unprecedented scale and precision. Generative tools can expand propaganda output without sacrificing credibility (3) and inexpensively create falsehoods that are rated as more human-like than those written by humans (3, 4). Techniques meant to refine AI reasoning, such as chain-of-thought prompting, can be used to generate more convincing falsehoods. Enabled by these capabilities, a disruptive threat is emerging: swarms of collaborative, malicious AI agents. Fusing LLM reasoning with multiagent architectures (2), these systems are capable of coordinating autonomously, infiltrating communities, and fabricating consensus efficiently. By adaptively mimicking human social dynamics, they threaten democracy. Because the resulting harms stem from design, commercial incentives, and governance, we prioritize interventions at multiple leverage points, focusing on pragmatic mechanisms over voluntary compliance.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
The study explores how school leaders justify and implement school-specific digitalisation strategies in teaching and learning. Based on semi‑structured interviews with nine leaders from digitally advanced Swiss secondary schools, the analysis shows that digital initiatives are mainly legitimised through claims of pedagogical added value, but also in terms of efficiency and networking. The COVID‑19 pandemic is described as a major accelerator of these efforts. Schools with more ambitious digital policies tend to adopt a project‑oriented rationale, combining pedagogical arguments with industrial, market, and project-based justifications.

Book

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This book adopts an interactional pragmatics and multimodal approach to the study of im/politeness, offering unique insights for better understanding intercultural interactions in today’s globalised world. The volume explores face/identity and its relation to im/politeness, not only through language but through gestures as well. In addition, this study brings greater awareness to analyses of interactions with participants from different cultural backgrounds, specifically drawing upon data from authentic video-recorded interactions between Finnish and French speakers in both personal and professional contexts. Detailed analyses of interactional situations across different phases of life, from family meals to social interactions between students and friends to coaching at work, elucidate both the ways in which face/identity are co-constructed during interactions through an intercultural lens and offers new directions for its further study. This book will be of interest to students and scholars in pragmatics and intercultural communication.

Article / Journal

Language(s): Español / Spanish

Abstract:
Este artículo analiza las percepciones de los profesionales de campaña sobre el impacto de los medios digitales en las elecciones en América Latina a partir de 54 entrevistas semiestructuradas realizadas entre 2020 y 2023. Los resultados se organizan en tres temas centrales: democratización, desinformación y segmentación. La democratización se asocia con la expansión de la voz y la participación ciudadanas, así como con un mayor equilibrio entre campañas. La desinformación ha pasado de ser un recurso estratégico a un factor disruptivo en el entorno electoral y el trabajo de campaña, y la segmentación se ha identificado como una tendencia estructural hacia la hiperpersonalización basada en algoritmos y Big data. El estudio aporta una perspectiva latinoamericana y la voz de un actor poco explorado en el debate sobre campañas digitales y democracia.

Other publication

Abstract:
Despite their benefits, the integration of playful learning experiences in formal mathematics education is limited and faces important challenges. Preservice teachers are often more positive towards playful learning, but struggle with barriers like a lack of relevant resources. We explored how student teachers balanced learning goals and infrastructural constraints when collaboratively redesigning games for secondary mathematics classrooms in the context of an elective course on games and learning. We iteratively coded interview transcripts, lesson plans and posters and found that while some participants prioritized infrastructural constraints, others focused on pedagogical objectives, showcasing diverse approaches to designing playful learning experiences. Our findings highlight the importance of teacher education programs in fostering adaptive and resourceful design thinking and equipping educators to tailor innovative pedagogies to varied classroom contexts.

Book

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Lingua Ex Machina: AI, Multilingualism and Interculturality explores the evolving role of AI in shaping language, communication and intercultural encounters. The term ‘Lingua Ex Machina’ (literally ‘language from the machine’) encapsulates the paradox of AI acting as both a tool for bridging linguistic and intercultural divides, and a potential amplifier of inequalities. This edited volume brings together critical perspectives on the impact of AI on language diversity, translation, education and the production and dissemination of knowledge. From questioning whether AI is more than a sophisticated ‘parrot’ to examining its effects on minor languages and intercultural education communication and research, the contributors highlight both the promises and drawbacks of machine-mediated communication. They also urge readers to reflect on the future of language, advocating for a reflexive approach to technology that prioritises agency, diversity, and critical engagement. This interdisciplinary book is an essential read for students, scholars, and practitioners interested in multilingualism, intercultural communication education, and the implications of AI

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
There is an increasing scholarly and humanitarian interest in research involving older refugees, marking a notable departure from the historical marginalisation of this demographic within both academic literature, practice, and policy discourses. Despite this emerging focus, there remains a significant gap in the documentation and critical evaluation of methodological approaches tailored to the unique needs and experiences of older refugee populations. While our overarching study explored the social network and support experiences of 11 older African refugees in Calgary, Canada, through a participatory study, this paper presents methodological reflections and insights from the study. The research employed a combination of visual diagramming tools, including timelines and ecomaps, and oral storytelling to explore co-researchers’ migration journeys and evolving social support systems. We advance that these methods facilitated richer, more nuanced articulations of personal narratives, enabling co-researchers to visually and verbally map the complexities of their displacement experiences and their relational networks. We also critically examine the limitations of these approaches, particularly the challenges associated with interpretation and the potential dilution of narrative depth. This paper aims to inform future research design involving older refugees and similarly marginalised groups.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This bibliometric study (2001–2023) maps how empirical, cultural, and reflexive orientations in the sociology of education have shifted across the US, UK, and Taiwan. Findings: the US remains empirically dominant; the UK centers reflexive critique; Taiwan develops “translational knowledge” linking global theory to local agendas. The paper highlights how disciplinary power and meaning are reproduced and proposes new theoretical directions.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
The paper explores how very senior academics in Australia and the UK imagine the role of the digital in higher education teaching. Drawing on interviews conducted in 2023, the authors identify three recurring “social imaginaries” of digital pedagogies: (1) the pull of the past, a nostalgic view that sees digital tools as causing a loss or weakening of previous forms of connection; (2) the launching pad, a more hopeful imaginary in which the digital enhances connection, practices, and learning environments; and (3) the untethered future, which moves beyond nostalgia to imagine new, not-yet-familiar forms of connected education. These imaginaries help explain current debates and tensions around digital teaching in universities.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This paper considers the histories and geographies of educational disinvestment in England through the lens of Ruth Wilson Gilmore’s ‘organised abandonment’. The concept of organised abandonment refers to the intentional disinvestment in particular communities by state and capitalist interests. Such disinvestment makes groups vulnerable to precarity and harm, entrenching racialised and classed dispossession. Drawing on findings from school- and community- based research in Bristol, England, we show how organised abandonment, when applied to education, functions in two interrelated ways: by ‘abandoning places’ – the material, social and economic infrastructures of children’s lives, and; by ‘abandoning futures’ – the circumscription of educational aspirations and the foreclosing of alternatives for young people. The paper argues that the concept of organised abandonment not only offers a useful lens to recognise longstanding, active, and deeply felt structural injustices in education, but it also underlines the political necessity of reparative action for the field of education.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
The article positions Physical Artificial Intelligence as a distinct paradigm in which intelligence is embodied and enacted through continuous, closed-loop interaction with the physical world, rather than confined to digital or symbolic domains. It synthesizes advances in robotics, differentiable simulation, neuromorphic computing, multimodal world models, and autonomous control into a unified framework. The authors introduce three major contributions: a PDE-assisted generative–physical framework that embeds physical laws into world models; a six-level capability-based taxonomy for classifying Physical AI systems; and a quantitative evaluation framework with metrics spanning efficiency, safety, energy use, sim‑to‑real fidelity, uncertainty, and sustainability. The paper also reviews key enabling technologies and outlines future directions, including federated autonomy, affect-aware interaction, and large-scale robotic coordination and governance.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
he paper proposes a “museum–game engagement framework” to analyse how video games can engage visitors and attract digital‑native audiences to museums, focusing on representation, interaction, and motivation. It compares the Audioguide Louvre–Nintendo 3DS, which offers a virtual exploration of the Louvre, and Animal Crossing: New Horizons, which lets players create their own virtual museums. Using qualitative game content analysis and player questionnaires, the study finds that both games effectively represent museum content, support meaningful digital interaction with museum themes, and encourage real‑world museum interest, though via different mechanisms. The results show video games can successfully bridge digital and physical museum spaces and offer practical insights for future museum–game collaborations.

Book

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Practicing Digital Ethnography offers a comprehensive introduction to the essential methods, concepts, and practices of conducting ethnographic research in digital environments. Written by sixty global contributors across twelve chapters with accompanying case studies and concept explorations, this book provides both theoretical foundations and practical guidance for digital ethnographic work. It covers research approaches for diverse digital contexts including social media, virtual spaces, video games, and hybrid physical-technological settings, while addressing the deployment of tools like artificial intelligence, big data, mapping technologies, and multimodal methodologies. The book examines ethical challenges specific to digital research environments while maintaining a commitment to reflexive, co-present research that acknowledges how our interactions with digital technologies transcend boundaries of citizenship, race, gender identity, age, and ability. Practicing Digital Ethnography is ideal for students and researchers in anthropology, media studies, science and technology studies, and communications who seek to understand contemporary hyper-mediated environments, as well as professionals outside academia who need practical, accessible guidance for conducting rigorous digital research.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
The study investigates barriers to delivering LGBTQ+ inclusive curricula in primary and secondary schools—limited school confidence, community opposition, and unclear national policies. Using the “risk society” lens, authors argue that sexual and gender diversity are socially constructed as threats to heteronormative values through political and media discourse. They recommend clear national and school-level policies and LGBTQ+ training for teachers and leaders to build knowledge and confidence and support inclusive practice.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
The study analyzes how Radio Bantu—especially Radio Venda—was used to reinforce apartheid ideology under the guise of serving and “developing” Black audiences. It shows how policies of separate development and the dominance of Afrikaans as a language of power restricted freedom of expression and turned Black radio announcers into instruments of white propaganda. Through interviews, archival research, and music analysis, the article reveals that although the stations appeared to promote South Africa’s diverse cultures and offered “developmental” programmes, they in fact functioned as tools of division, control, and ideological manipulation aligned with apartheid policies

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This paper examines how commercial interests shape access to AI assistive tools for students with dyslexia, using the social model of disability and four speculative scenarios: exploitative commercial practices, inadequate institutional policies on digital poverty, developer prioritization of profit over fairness, and weak government oversight. It warns these dynamics can deepen inequities and calls for inclusive AI governance—addressing human, technological, and commercial power—to ensure equitable access, drawing on Australia’s Voluntary AI Safety Standards and contributing to global debates on accessible learning.

Chapter

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Chapter in "Lingua Ex Machina: AI, Multilingualism and Interculturality" which explores the evolving role of AI in shaping language, communication and intercultural encounters. The term ‘Lingua Ex Machina’ (literally ‘language from the machine’) encapsulates the paradox of AI acting as both a tool for bridging linguistic and intercultural divides, and a potential amplifier of inequalities. This edited volume brings together critical perspectives on the impact of AI on language diversity, translation, education and the production and dissemination of knowledge. From questioning whether AI is more than a sophisticated ‘parrot’ to examining its effects on minor languages and intercultural education communication and research, the contributors highlight both the promises and drawbacks of machine-mediated communication. They also urge readers to reflect on the future of language, advocating for a reflexive approach to technology that prioritises agency, diversity, and critical engagement. This interdisciplinary book is an essential read for students, scholars, and practitioners interested in multilingualism, intercultural communication education, and the implications of AI.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This paper examines how youth voices inform civic dialogue about thriving in adult-designed vertical (high-rise) schools in Australia. Drawing on 204 secondary students who produced 96 one-minute digital stories, and close analysis of four videos plus audio-recorded screening discussions, the study shows digital stories surface students’ affective, embodied experiences and tensions, prompting productive dialogue with adults. Findings highlight the value of digital storytelling as a civic mediator and identify unscripted, edge spaces as important for students’ wellbeing and learning in vertical schools, with implications for school and city design.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
In the field of Software Engineering (SE), educational institutions are confronted with the demanding responsibility of aligning their curricula to provide students with the competencies — soft and technical — demanded by the evolving job market. Moreover, workplaces are becoming increasingly international, highlighting the competencies required in collaborating with people from diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds. Competency models offer essential input for curriculum design. Moreover, educators may need to construct their own competency models when international guidelines fall short. To prepare students for future workplaces, curriculum designers necessitate knowledge to address demands of the international working environment. To gain a deeper understanding of the needs in the international SE context, we conducted a systematic literature review (SLR) to identify and analyze existing SE competency models and their construction, as well as investigate communication, collaboration, intercultural, and language competencies embedded in these models. This SLR identified 29 competency models across diverse application domains and purposes, constructed using a range of mono- and multi-method approaches, and offering multiple use scenarios for diverse stakeholders. We identified and collected an extensive collection of communication, collaboration, intercultural, and language competencies from the competency models in addition to the elements of the competency model construction process. Regarding identified competencies, communication and collaboration embody as core components in SE competency models whereas intercultural and language competencies are depreciated. Moreover, competency models and their construction lack international aspects. These findings highlight gaps in current competency models and offer insights into curriculum design to better prepare students for international SE environments.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
The paper draws on Walter Benjamin’s idea of mechanical reproduction to argue that artificial intelligence, as a technology for mechanically reproducing cognition patterns, strips intelligence of its cultural and intellectual authenticity and is inherently politicized. It conceptualizes AI as a cultural discourse produced largely in the West (especially the EU) that constructs reality and exercises power. Using Bourdieu’s notion of symbolic violence, the author contends that AI imposes arbitrary, Eurocentric meanings, conceals unjust power relations underlying its development, and thereby reinforces geopolitical and cultural domination. The paper’s aim is to identify and analyze these patterns of symbolic violence in AI.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This longitudinal study followed primary and secondary students in Hong Kong over two years to examine how digital literacy develops and how it relates to digital activities and background factors. Overall, both digital literacy and leisure digital activities increased. Among primary students, those with lower starting skills improved the most, and early engagement in study-related digital activities was linked to slower literacy growth; home resources had a small positive effect. Among secondary students, those with higher initial skills gained more, and both leisure and study-related digital activities developed positively alongside digital literacy. The results highlight distinct developmental trajectories across age groups and the value of tracking digital literacy over time.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
The article explores how themes of touch, contact and consent are reconfigured when disabled dance artists interact physically with robots. Disabled dancers possess specific embodied expertise, including in how their bodies interface with assistive technologies; introducing robots as non-human partners raises new questions about safety, agency and trust. Reporting on an interdisciplinary project, the article examines how bodily contact with robots can become creative and expressive rather than harmful, and asks whether AI can support more inclusive research practices or instead sharpen existing inequalities when lived experience and diversity are ignored.

Article / Journal

Abstract:
How can higher education institutions contribute more effectively to achieving UN Sustainable Development Goal 4: inclusive and quality education for all? This paper explores the question through the case study of Elimisha Kakuma, an association supporting young refugees in Kakuma Camp, Kenya, in accessing higher education abroad. In collaboration with American, Canadian and UK universities, Elimisha assists students throughout the admissions process, offering tailored support to navigate cultural barriers, application procedures, and financial challenges. Beyond admission, Elimisha prepares students for their transition to life abroad, equipping them with academic skills, emotional resilience, and practical tools for adaptation. The association also provides a dedicated study space within the camp, fostering a learning community supported by resources such as computers, books, and academic mentoring. Through online learning opportunities, students engage early with their future universities, developing a sense of belonging before departure. This paper argues that Elimisha represents a best-practice model of NGO-university collaboration, showing how partnerships beyond academia can create meaningful opportunities for displaced learners. By analysing the strengths and challenges of this initiative, drawing on a field visit to the camp (January 2025) and twelve semi-structured interviews with students, association staff, and university partners, the paper identifies effective strategies and scalable solutions for improving refugee access to higher education worldwide.

Book

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Stepping into the vibrant and uncharted margins of Intercultural Communication, Education and Research (ICER), this edited volume challenges the field’s established narratives by actively listening to the thinkers, educators and practitioners whose transformative work has previously been overlooked. Moving beyond clichés, this volume introduces the ‘unsung maverick’ not as a heroic figure but as a precarious rope-dancer performing vital and innovative work without a safety net. Through powerful, first-hand accounts, ranging from autoethnographies to poetic experiments, the contributors pull apart dominant paradigms and reveal how systemic biases and linguistic hierarchies have silenced crucial perspectives. Representing a platform for methodological rebellion and epistemic justice, this book showcases how interculturality is lived and reimagined from the ground up. For anyone ready to move past the usual references and discover the fertile and creative potential at the edges of ICER, this edited volume urges us to listen, learn and help shape the conversation about interculturality today.

Book

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This timely edited volume challenges the potentially simplistic blame narratives surrounding artificial intelligence (AI), urging instead a shared ethical responsibility among users, researchers, policymakers, and others. Rejecting the notion of AI as an autonomous 'evil', the book interrogates how human choices embedded in power structures, colonial legacies, and ideological frameworks can shape AI's impact on intercultural relations. Through decolonial critiques, dialogic experiments, and perspectives from the Global South, the contributors expose algorithmic biases, epistemic injustices, and governance gaps, while advocating for collective agency. From African Ubuntu ethics to Moroccan linguistic and cultural equity, and the political economy of creative industries, the book portrays AI as a mirror of human complexities and contradictions rather than a scapegoat. A vital resource for students and scholars of intercultural communication education and research, this book calls for reflexive engagement with AI, emphasising co-accountability over unfounded dread.

Chapter

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This chapter examines how sociotechnical affordances of activist education and digital interaction enabled a pedagogical practice aimed at disentangling learners from colonial legacies of gender, sexuality, and race. Specifically, I focus on a 2021 Faveladoc class, a documentary-making workshop held via Google Meet for young favela residents in Rio de Janeiro, organised by the grassroots NGO Raízes em Movimento. Led by Joice Lima, a Black social scientist and activist, the class explored what it means to inhabit a gendered, racialised body shaped by desire within a peripheral space. The interactions among the instructor, the young participants, and the digital and discursive affordances at play gave rise to a situated collective that actively resists (in)securitisation—that is, the process of framing certain populations as existential threats. As territories predominantly inhabited by Black working-class communities, favelas have been key targets of Brazil’s (in)securitisation, subjected to intensified policing and the persistent ‘crossfire’ between the state and organised crime. Against this backdrop, this chapter analyses how this dialogical digital setting fostered unlearning of patriarchy, racism, and LGBTQI-phobia — ultimately repositioning language as hope.

Other publication

Language(s): English

Book

Language(s): English

Abstract:
Digital intercultural experiences are shaped by broader sociocultural dynamics, including migration, corporate discourse, and social activism. This volume offers a comprehensive exploration of ‘digital interculturality’, drawing on insights from intercultural communication studies, sociolinguistics, and adjacent fields. The contributors examine how digital technologies—such as social media platforms, translation apps, and artificial intelligence—mediate intercultural encounters, identities, and meaning-making processes. Together, these perspectives advance our understanding of the entanglement of intercultural communication with digital technologies, laying the groundwork for ‘digital interculturality’ as an emerging interdisciplinary field.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This research explores how intercultural dialogue through a Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) project enhances students’ understanding and integration of Indigenous perspectives. The initiative connected Norwegian Early Childhood Teacher Education (ECTE) students with Canadian Teacher Education students to explore Sámi and Métis cultures. Using a qualitative design, focus group interviews with ECTE students employed a hermeneutic approach to interpret experiences and cultural reflections. These insights, analyzed systematically, demonstrated the COIL project’s effectiveness in facilitating intercultural dialogue, fostering intercultural competence, and encouraging self-reflection among participants. Participants developed invaluable skills for integrating Indigenous perspectives into future educational roles, supported by facilitation that enhanced cross-cultural dialogue and language skills. This study underscores the need for frameworks supporting sustained cultural engagement, acknowledging sample size limitations. Findings advocate for the broader integration of intercultural collaborations in strategies, emphasizing education that enhances cultural competence. Future research should expand with larger samples and varied cultures, using longitudinal studies to assess the impacts on professional development and optimize collaboration educational contexts.

Chapter

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This chapter considers games and play in the context of intercultural education. The chapter explores three viewpoints that have been of interest to scholars and educators for decades. These include the issue of perspective-taking and role-play, the question of learning to embrace anxiety and uncertainty, and the power of agency. By contrasting concrete examples with theoretical views, the chapter builds an argument for the potential as well as risks related to games as a potential tool in the intercultural educator's toolbox.

Article / Journal

Language(s): English

Abstract:
The digital age has profoundly transformed Holocaust remembrance through the influence of digital archives, connectivity, and emerging technologies. This research investigates the transformation of personal memories into connective memory shaped by online social platforms, Internet search tools, and artificial intelligence. It employs an analysis of digital memory platforms and conducts interviews centered on a specific case study examining the memory patterns of a Holocaust survivor. The increasing reliance on algorithmic mediation raises concerns about the potential distortion and manipulation of historical narratives. This study highlights the need for human agency in memory construction and the challenges of technologically mediated memory. It suggests that collaborative efforts involving scholars, survivors, and community members should continue to play a central role in developing technological tools for remembrance. The implications extend beyond Holocaust memory, informing discussions on the digitization, preservation, and ethical dissemination of technologically mediated historical knowledge in the twenty-first century.

Book

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This book addresses the importance of sustainability and environmental worldviews and the role of intercultural competencies in achieving SDGs acceptance and their effective implementation. Particularly since the pandemic, there is a growth in online education, and this offers opportunities for educators and students that can be exploited with a focus on sustainability. The book provides examples of virtual exchange including Global South and Global North with tools ranging from Project-Based and Community-Based Service Learning, Debates, Environmental Games and Simulations, Virtual Reality/Augmented Reality, and Accessibility and DEI issues. Additionally, issues of social justice and digital colonialism are a thread through several of the chapters. By providing a broad range of global learning experiences from scholars across several continents from various disciplines that include various post-secondary education based on tools and best practices, the book is a great resource to academics, researchers, and students on approaches to education that prepare the learner for praxis and effective implementation of sustainable solutions for their professional and social future perspectives.

Book

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This edited volume explores the specific ability of the school setting to promote intercultural education as an approach to address contemporary, societal issues of justice and social inclusion. Highlighting the importance of schools as one of the first areas where diversity is encountered and experienced, this book offers case study chapters on the most recent pedagogical approaches, research questions, and frameworks for intercultural education and teaching. To address these approaches, the book uses comparative studies, systematic reviews, case study analyses, and theoretical and conceptual discussions. Written by an international team of experts in the field, chapters address new challenges in curriculum development for intercultural education and illustrate innovative ways to provide instruction through the use of technology and the arts. Fusing conceptual and methodological approaches, the book examines interculturality and associated instruction within schools, further exploring the frameworks and methodologies that govern contextually based, culturally responsive education. Offering in-depth treatment of cutting-edge pedagogies used to teach interculturality in culturally diverse settings, this book will be of interest to educators, researchers, and students studying intercultural education and studies, multicultural education, and the sociology of education more broadly.

Book

Language(s): English

Abstract:
This edited volume provides a comprehensive examination of the intersection between internationalization of higher education and digital transformation, with a focus on insights from Morocco. Through a series of chapters authored by experts in the field, the book covers a wide range of topics, including critical thinking in intercultural education, the transformative impact of internationalization on educators and students, technological integration, challenges, opportunities, policy perspectives, and future directions.