Digital Intercultural Communication - Einzelansicht

Digital Intercultural Communication

Instructor: Dr. Milene Mendes de Oliveira

In the digital age, characterized by superdiversity and the rapid spread of information through online communication streams (e.g., news portals, messaging services, and social media), the study of language, identity, and culture has become more relevant than ever. Moreover, as is now widely known, with the internet, consumers have gained a multiplicity of  active participatory possibilities in public debates by producing their own content, which has marked a switch from their framing as mere users of content controlled by the media industry to ”produsers.” This paradigm shift opens space for raising voices in terms of political participation, international collaboration, decentralized online pedagogies, and online customer-company communication, to name a few.

In this course, we will investigate the blending of language, interculturality, and digitality in connection to the concept of ‘digital interculturality,’ preliminarily defined as: ”the complex merging of the digital and the intercultural” as well as  ”the hyper interculturality of the digital world with its potential for a myriad of new and diverse connections” (Lenehan, 2022: 6). Throughout the course, we will try to approach the following questions: Who engages in practices of digital interculturality, in what ways, and with what implications?

The course will combine theory and empirical analysis of digital communication data. The theoretical reflections will address aspects of intercultural communication and digital communication, while the empirical analyses will be done on the basis of data selected by students. The data are explored in data sessions within the course hours.

While the actual classes will take place only in September, enrolled students are expected to do considerable work before the sessions.

Schedule and deadlines

Online kick-off session

On May 4 at 6 pm, we get introduced to each other, and the instructor presents the course details. After attending the kick-off session, students who decide not to participate in the course are asked to inform the instructor about their withdrawal by May 8.

Forming groups

Participants are expected to form groups of 3 for collaborative work during the course (the instructor should be informed by May 14). The remaining students will be assigned to groups by the instructor.

Preliminary readings + visual summaries

Participants will be asked to read around five articles & chapters and create a visual summary for each.

To be completed and submitted by groups by June 30.

Choice of data for the data session

Students will be asked to choose data to present at the data session (data sessions will be carried out during the course in September).

Examples are a Tiktok video; a comment thread on Facebook; an Instagram post, etc.

Groups will schedule short meetings with the instructor from August 28 to September 1 to present & discuss the data they chose.

Face-to-face sessions (Presence, room 1.19.0.31, Neues Palais)

From 10 am to 1 pm

They will comprise theoretical (discussion of readings) and practical work (data sessions).

September 11 - Monday

September 12 - Tuesday

September 13 - Wednesday

September 14 - Thursday

September 15 - Friday

September 18 - Monday

September 19 - Tuesday

September 20 - Wednesday

September 21 - Thursday

Course assessment

After the data sessions on the data brought by each group, students will create posters with the results of their case study. The posters will be ready by September 21. Grades will be given based on final results (i.e., posters) as well as engagement in the course.

The authors of the best projects will be invited to present at the ReDICo Online Conference in 2024 (check www.redico.eu)

Project