Developing bridging bilingual/bicultural (the 3B Framework) courses to prepare international students for the American online classroom in an adult learning environment
Abstract: Through the development of “3B” (Bridging Bilingual/Bicultural) courses that use Web 2.0 tools, such as wikis, blogs, videoconferencing, lecture capture, asynchronous discussions, and virtual worlds, the Center for Distance Learning (CDL) at SUNY Empire State College seeks to enhance its curriculum to better accommodate international students studying remotely from their countries. Since 2007, CDL has been offering “International eLearning Skills for Russian Speaking Students” for individual students, as well as through partnerships with universities in the former Soviet Union. The course designed and taught by bilingual professors helps students overcome language, cultural, technological, and organizational barriers to global learning. The course introduces students to the use of learning technologies and helps them adjust their learning style to the learning culture of an American online college. The development of the course is informed by ongoing cross-cultural research.