“Alla nostra salute! Here’s to our health!”: Students Build Intercultural Communication and Italian Language Skills in Global Collaboration

In the Spring of 2024, I implemented an exciting collaborative Global Online Learning Exchange (GOLE) project with my faculty partner, Professor Paul Prostitis of the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore (UCSC) in Milan, Italy.

The purpose of this collaboration between St. John’s and UCSC students was to strengthen students’ intercultural competency skills and provide them with the opportunity to utilize their newly acquired language skills in practical, real-life applications. Faculty collaborated to create a five-week project in which our students researched and compared health-care systems in their respective countries and used their findings to propose sustainable, more equitable alternatives aimed at improving overall public health outcomes in the target language based on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

In the initial phase, we implemented an icebreaker activity designed to facilitate students’ exploration of their own sociolinguistic and cultural self-awareness, and to help students to get to know other members of the group better.

During the central phase, faculty assisted students in forming international teams in which students chose both synchronous and asynchronous communication software to organize their team, plan and hold team meetings, delegate responsibilities, and remain in contact throughout the collaboration. In their teams, students worked together to select criteria with which to compare health-care systems in each of the respective countries and examined statistical data with which they evaluated the efficacy of each system in terms of public health outcomes and spending by country on health-care costs. Based on their research and data analysis, each team created presentations with the team’s findings and recommended changes based on the Sustainable Development Goals. Both St. John’s and UCSC students spoke and wrote in the target language.

This project called on students to develop a variety of skillsets and competencies necessary for their success in the 21st century. As one student described their experience, “I learned a lot about organization and team management, from helping organize Zoom calls to speaking more about my ideas over WhatsApp. I was really trying my best to collaborate in a professional and respectful manner, and I think that effort contributed to a good project.”

In the post-GOLE phase, students reflected on their GOLE project experiences; students’ comments on their experiences were overwhelmingly positive. As one student noted: “By doing this course, I realized the impact of comparing one’s own country with another. Listening to firsthand experiences, shared by students who collaborated with us, has greatly improved my understanding and critical perspective on my own situation.”

Faculty experiences were also enriched by this collaborative experience, which included opportunities to collaborate with international colleagues, utilize digital tools in novel ways, and incorporate innovative pedagogical strategies to improve student success. My faculty partner and I look forward to many successful collaborations in the future!