Critical Virtual Exchange to address teachers’ needs in times of conflict

Abstract

Critical world events, such as wars and pandemics, have always impacted the field of education. Across the globe, educational contexts have been confronted with challenges emerging from these events, thereby necessitating teachers to respond to the specific needs that arise in disrupted educational settings. Due to its intercultural nature, Virtual Exchange (VE) is a promising practice for contexts where new intercultural spaces are created in educational settings affected by disruption or conflict. In addition, its computer-mediated configuration allows participants from diverse geographic contexts to collaborate on shared goals synchronously or asynchronously. This practice report presents the outcomes of a “Critical Virtual Exchange” project, which brought together teachers from across Europe who were working with or preparing to work with Ukrainian students displaced by the war. By shedding light on the potential of VE to respond to the challenges faced by teachers during periods of educational disruption, this study contributes to leveraging VE as a practice to address critical pedagogical goals in crisis-affected contexts and establish virtual support communities.