1.Introduction

Virtual exchange (VE) stands for “pedagogically-structured online collaborative learning between groups of students in different cultural contexts and/or geographical locations” (O’Dowd, 2018O’Dowd, R. (2018) From telecollaboration to virtual exchange: State-of-the-art and the role of UNICollaboration in moving forward. Journal of Virtual Exchange, 1, 1–23. Research​-publishing​.net. O’Dowd, R. (2018) From telecollaboration to virtual exchange: State-of-the-art and the role of UNICollaboration in moving forward. Journal of Virtual Exchange, 1, 1–23. Research​-publishing​.net. , p. 2; for a more expansive framing of VE, see Section 2). It combines the deep impact of intercultural dialogue with the broad reach of digital technology (EVOLVE, 2020EVOLVE Project Team (2020) The impact of virtual exchange on student learning in higher education: EVOLVE Project Report. https://​research​.rug​.nl​/en​/publications​/the​-impact​-of​-virtual​-exchange​-on​-student​-learning​-in​-higher​-educEVOLVE Project Team (2020) The impact of virtual exchange on student learning in higher education: EVOLVE Project Report. https://​research​.rug​.nl​/en​/publications​/the​-impact​-of​-virtual​-exchange​-on​-student​-learning​-in​-higher​-educ) and is an umbrella term for educational interventions also referred to in the literature as Telecollaboration, E-Tandem/Teletandem, Online Intercultural Exchange, Globally Networked Learning, Global Virtual Teams, and Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) (O’Dowd, 2018O’Dowd, R. (2018) From telecollaboration to virtual exchange: State-of-the-art and the role of UNICollaboration in moving forward. Journal of Virtual Exchange, 1, 1–23. Research​-publishing​.net. O’Dowd, R. (2018) From telecollaboration to virtual exchange: State-of-the-art and the role of UNICollaboration in moving forward. Journal of Virtual Exchange, 1, 1–23. Research​-publishing​.net. ).

VE is a research-informed practice and a strong catalyst in advancing the internationalisation of Higher Education (HE) curricula, known as Internationalisation at Home (IaH) (Beelen & Jones, 2015Beelen, J., & Jones, E. (2015) Redefining internationalization at home. In A. Curaj, L. Matei, R. Pricopie, J. Salmi & P. Scott (Eds.), The European higher education area. Between critical reflections and future policies (pp. 59–72). Springer International Publishing. Beelen, J., & Jones, E. (2015) Redefining internationalization at home. In A. Curaj, L. Matei, R. Pricopie, J. Salmi & P. Scott (Eds.), The European higher education area. Between critical reflections and future policies (pp. 59–72). Springer International Publishing. ; O’Dowd & Beelen, 2021O’Dowd, R., & Beelen, J. (2021) Virtual exchange and Internationalisation at Home: Navigating the terminology. EAIE Blog & Podcast. https://​www​.eaie​.org​/resource​/virtual​-exchange​-iah​-terminology​.htmlO’Dowd, R., & Beelen, J. (2021) Virtual exchange and Internationalisation at Home: Navigating the terminology. EAIE Blog & Podcast. https://​www​.eaie​.org​/resource​/virtual​-exchange​-iah​-terminology​.html) which, in turn, has been defined as “the purposeful integration of international and intercultural dimensions into the formal and informal curriculum for all students within domestic learning environments” (Beelen & Jones, 2015Beelen, J., & Jones, E. (2015) Redefining internationalization at home. In A. Curaj, L. Matei, R. Pricopie, J. Salmi & P. Scott (Eds.), The European higher education area. Between critical reflections and future policies (pp. 59–72). Springer International Publishing. Beelen, J., & Jones, E. (2015) Redefining internationalization at home. In A. Curaj, L. Matei, R. Pricopie, J. Salmi & P. Scott (Eds.), The European higher education area. Between critical reflections and future policies (pp. 59–72). Springer International Publishing. , p. 69). Unsurprisingly, many have come to consider VE as a significant IaH strategy (Hauck, 2020Hauck, M. (2020) 15 September 2020. Towards global fairness in the digital space through VE 3rd International Virtual Exchange Conference (IVEC), Newcastle University, retrieved on 11 January 2025, from https://​iveconference​.org​/2020​-conference/Hauck, M. (2020) 15 September 2020. Towards global fairness in the digital space through VE 3rd International Virtual Exchange Conference (IVEC), Newcastle University, retrieved on 11 January 2025, from https://​iveconference​.org​/2020​-conference/).

Another reason for the growing popularity of VE as an educational intervention in HE in particular, is the fact that the exchanges are known to prepare students for the globalised digital workplace as they focus on developing transversal skills like problem solving, teamwork and leadership, languages and communication, critical and innovative thinking, and media and information literacy (Crawford, 2021Crawford, I. (2021) Employer perspectives on virtual international working: essential skills for the globalised, digital workplace. In S. Swartz, B. Barbosa, I. Crawford & S. Luck (Eds.). Developments in virtual learning environments and global workplace (pp. 178–204). IGI Global. Crawford, I. (2021) Employer perspectives on virtual international working: essential skills for the globalised, digital workplace. In S. Swartz, B. Barbosa, I. Crawford & S. Luck (Eds.). Developments in virtual learning environments and global workplace (pp. 178–204). IGI Global. ).

However, VE and VE-based IaH are not by default equitable and inclusive (Hauck, 2023Hauck, M. (2023) From Virtual Exchange to Critical Virtual Exchange and Critical Internationalization at Home. The Global Impact Exchange, 2023(Spring), 9–12. https://​imis​.daglobal​.org​/public​/DIVaPublic​/GIE​-Archives​/GIE​-2023​/GIE​-Sp2023​/GIE​-Sp23​-Article​-1​.aspxHauck, M. (2023) From Virtual Exchange to Critical Virtual Exchange and Critical Internationalization at Home. The Global Impact Exchange, 2023(Spring), 9–12. https://​imis​.daglobal​.org​/public​/DIVaPublic​/GIE​-Archives​/GIE​-2023​/GIE​-Sp2023​/GIE​-Sp23​-Article​-1​.aspx; O’Dowd, 2023O’Dowd, R. (2023) Issues of equity and inclusion in Virtual Exchange. Plenary Speech. Language Teaching, 1–13. O’Dowd, R. (2023) Issues of equity and inclusion in Virtual Exchange. Plenary Speech. Language Teaching, 1–13. ; Wimpenny et al., 2022Wimpenny, K., Finardi, K. R., Orsini-Jones, M., & Jacobs, L. (2022) Knowing, being, relating and expressing through Third Space Global South–North COIL: Digital inclusion and equity in international higher education. Journal of Studies in International Education, 26 (2), 279–296. Wimpenny, K., Finardi, K. R., Orsini-Jones, M., & Jacobs, L. (2022) Knowing, being, relating and expressing through Third Space Global South–North COIL: Digital inclusion and equity in international higher education. Journal of Studies in International Education, 26(2), 279–296. ). Like other forms of online or blended/hybrid education, they are affected by Western hegemonies and influenced by inequalities in access to and experience with technology, institutional constraints (e.g., lack of support and incentives for educators), gender, race, age, English language dominance, and socio-political and geopolitical challenges first highlighted by Helm (2020)Helm, F. (2020) EMI, internationalisation, and the digital. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 23 (3), 314–325. Helm, F. (2020) EMI, internationalisation, and the digital. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 23(3), 314–325. . These inequalities have only started to be explored in more detail in VE and IaH research and are therefore not yet systematically represented in VE and IaH literature and practice.

This contribution sets out to address this gap. It belongs to the emerging field of critical VE (CVE) (Hauck, 2020Hauck, M. (2020) 15 September 2020. Towards global fairness in the digital space through VE 3rd International Virtual Exchange Conference (IVEC), Newcastle University, retrieved on 11 January 2025, from https://​iveconference​.org​/2020​-conference/Hauck, M. (2020) 15 September 2020. Towards global fairness in the digital space through VE 3rd International Virtual Exchange Conference (IVEC), Newcastle University, retrieved on 11 January 2025, from https://​iveconference​.org​/2020​-conference/, 2023Hauck, M. (2023) From Virtual Exchange to Critical Virtual Exchange and Critical Internationalization at Home. The Global Impact Exchange, 2023(Spring), 9–12. https://​imis​.daglobal​.org​/public​/DIVaPublic​/GIE​-Archives​/GIE​-2023​/GIE​-Sp2023​/GIE​-Sp23​-Article​-1​.aspxHauck, M. (2023) From Virtual Exchange to Critical Virtual Exchange and Critical Internationalization at Home. The Global Impact Exchange, 2023(Spring), 9–12. https://​imis​.daglobal​.org​/public​/DIVaPublic​/GIE​-Archives​/GIE​-2023​/GIE​-Sp2023​/GIE​-Sp23​-Article​-1​.aspx; Klimanova & Hellmich, 2021Klimanova, L., & Hellmich, E. A. (2021) Crossing transcultural liminalities with critical virtual exchange: A study of shifting border discourses. Critical Inquiry in Language Studies, 18 (3), 273–304. Klimanova, L., & Hellmich, E. A. (2021) Crossing transcultural liminalities with critical virtual exchange: A study of shifting border discourses. Critical Inquiry in Language Studies, 18(3), 273–304. ; Nicolaou, 2021Nicolaou, A. (2021) Technological mediation in a global competence virtual exchange project: A critical digital literacies perspective. In S. Papadima Sophocleous, C. Kakoulli & C. N. Giannikas (Eds.), Tertiary education language learning: A collection of research (pp. 111–131). Research​-publishing​.net. Nicolaou, A. (2021) Technological mediation in a global competence virtual exchange project: A critical digital literacies perspective. In S. Papadima Sophocleous, C. Kakoulli & C. N. Giannikas (Eds.), Tertiary education language learning: A collection of research (pp. 111–131). Research​-publishing​.net. ) that aims to ensure more equitable, inclusive, and socio-politically relevant student exchange experiences and endeavours to tackle epistemic injustices and coloniality in and through VE. CVE, as understood by Hauck (2023Hauck, M. (2023) From Virtual Exchange to Critical Virtual Exchange and Critical Internationalization at Home. The Global Impact Exchange, 2023(Spring), 9–12. https://​imis​.daglobal​.org​/public​/DIVaPublic​/GIE​-Archives​/GIE​-2023​/GIE​-Sp2023​/GIE​-Sp23​-Article​-1​.aspxHauck, M. (2023) From Virtual Exchange to Critical Virtual Exchange and Critical Internationalization at Home. The Global Impact Exchange, 2023(Spring), 9–12. https://​imis​.daglobal​.org​/public​/DIVaPublic​/GIE​-Archives​/GIE​-2023​/GIE​-Sp2023​/GIE​-Sp23​-Article​-1​.aspx, 2025Hauck, M. (2025) Critical Virtual Exchange: At the interface of Critical CALL, Critical Digital Literacy, and Critical Global Citizenship Education. In E. Britton, A. Kraemer, T. Austin, H. Liu & X. Zuo (Eds.), Advancing Critical CALL across Institutions and Borders (pp. 29–54). Sheffield: Equinox. Hauck, M. (2025) Critical Virtual Exchange: At the interface of Critical CALL, Critical Digital Literacy, and Critical Global Citizenship Education. In E. Britton, A. Kraemer, T. Austin, H. Liu & X. Zuo (Eds.), Advancing Critical CALL across Institutions and Borders (pp. 29–54). Sheffield: Equinox. ), is concerned with equitable access to technology, inclusive student participation, public engagement, translanguaging practices, and the systematic alignment of student project work with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (United Nations, 2015United Nations (2015) Transforming our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. https://​sdgs​.un​.org​/publications​/transforming​-our​-world​-2030​-agenda​-sustainable​-development​-17981United Nations (2015) Transforming our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. https://​sdgs​.un​.org​/publications​/transforming​-our​-world​-2030​-agenda​-sustainable​-development​-17981) which also strongly focus on reducing inequality (see Section 3). While it is primarily a conceptual contribution to the field of VE, we introduce examples from the Global South to illustrate the suggested approach.

As mentioned in the rationale for this special issue of the AILA review, one of the footprints of coloniality is the way in which western-northern thinking is often accompanied by universalist assumptions that privilege eurocentric perspectives of knowledge, philosophy, and theory while invisibilising epistemologies produced on the “wrong side” of the “abyssal line” (e.g., Andreotti & Menezes de Souza, 2008Andreotti, V., & Menezes de Souza, L. M. T. (2008) Learning to read the world through other eyes. Global Education. https://​developmenteducation​.ie​/media​/documents​/Learning​_to​_Read​_the​_World​_Through​_Other​.pdfAndreotti, V., & Menezes de Souza, L. M. T. (2008) Learning to read the world through other eyes. Global Education. https://​developmenteducation​.ie​/media​/documents​/Learning​_to​_Read​_the​_World​_Through​_Other​.pdf; Bock & Stroud, 2021Bock, Z., & Stroud, S. (Eds.) (2021) Language and decoloniality in higher education: Reclaiming voices from the South. Bloomsbury Academic. Bock, Z., & Stroud, S. (Eds.) (2021) Language and decoloniality in higher education: Reclaiming voices from the South. Bloomsbury Academic. ; Finardi et al., 2022Finardi, K., França, C., & Guimarães, F. (2022) Ecology of knowledges and languages in Latin American academic production. Ensaio, 30 (116), 764–787. Finardi, K., França, C., & Guimarães, F. (2022) Ecology of knowledges and languages in Latin American academic production. Ensaio, 30(116), 764–787. , 2023) as reflected in modern Western thinking (de Sousa Santos, 2007de Sousa Santos, B. (2007) Beyond abyssal thinking: From global lines to ecologies of knowledges. Review (Fernand Braudel Center), 30 (1), 45–89. https://​www​.jstor​.org​/stable​/40241677de Sousa Santos, B. (2007) Beyond abyssal thinking: From global lines to ecologies of knowledges. Review (Fernand Braudel Center), 30(1), 45–89. https://​www​.jstor​.org​/stable​/40241677):

The colonies provided a model of radical exclusion that prevails in modern Western thinking and practice today as it did during the colonial cycle. Today as then, both the creation and the negation of the other side of the line is constitutive of hegemonic principles and practices.(p. 10)

As a result, knowledges from the Global South tend to get overlooked, if not ignored, and leave the people from the Global South with a colonised view of themselves, i.e., convinced that they can only learn from the Global North, they tend to overlook epistemologies from the Global South. The exchanges presented in Sections 4.1 to 4.3 are — as we propose — exceptions in this context. They are instantiations of the Global South learning from and with the Global South and are thus — as we hold — successful attempts at transcending the aforementioned abyssal line.

The authors of this article represent both sides of the abyssal line (de Sousa Santos, 2007de Sousa Santos, B. (2007) Beyond abyssal thinking: From global lines to ecologies of knowledges. Review (Fernand Braudel Center), 30 (1), 45–89. https://​www​.jstor​.org​/stable​/40241677de Sousa Santos, B. (2007) Beyond abyssal thinking: From global lines to ecologies of knowledges. Review (Fernand Braudel Center), 30(1), 45–89. https://​www​.jstor​.org​/stable​/40241677) and follow Diniz de Figueiredo and Martinez’s (2021)Diniz De Figueiredo, E. H., & Martinez, J. (2021) The locus of enunciation as a way to confront epistemological racism and decolonize scholarly knowledge. Applied Linguistics, 42 (2), 355–359. Diniz De Figueiredo, E. H., & Martinez, J. (2021) The locus of enunciation as a way to confront epistemological racism and decolonize scholarly knowledge. Applied Linguistics, 42(2), 355–359. invitation to share our loci of enunciation as a way to decolonise western-centred epistemologies. Hauck and Satar are both white, female academics located in Europe who have lived and worked in Turkey, Germany, the UK, and the US. We have been practising and researching VE both within and outside of language education in HE, mostly in the Global North, and have only recently begun to critically interrogate the assumptions and ideologies in the discourses surrounding VE and IaH. Salomão and Primo are both white (considering miscegenation in colonised countries), one female and one male academic located in South America, who have lived and worked in the Southeast and South of Brazil. We have been practising and researching VE both within and outside language education in HE in the Global South and have tried to stimulate connections with the Global South as well as to establish more horizontal connections with the Global North. This has led us on the path to CVE — that is, VE through the social justice and inclusion lens (see Section 3).

After an introduction to VE in general and CVE in particular (Sections 2 and 3), we will present and discuss exchange examples from Angola, Brazil, and Mexico that “gesture towards” CVE and will map them against the tenets of CVE (Section 4) as introduced in Section 3. The expression “gesturing towards” comes from a group of scholars who focus on critical aspects of decolonising global citizenship education (Donnelly, 2022Donnelly, M. (2022) Non-university higher education: geographies of place, possibility and inequality: By Holly Henderson, London, Bloomsbury Academic Press, 2020, 224 pp., ISBN 978-1-350-14532-0 Hardback. British Journal of Sociology of Education, 43 (8), 1297–1299. Donnelly, M. (2022) Non-university higher education: geographies of place, possibility and inequality: By Holly Henderson, London, Bloomsbury Academic Press, 2020, 224 pp., ISBN 978-1-350-14532-0 Hardback. British Journal of Sociology of Education, 43(8), 1297–1299. ; Kerr & Andreotti, 2018Kerr, J., & Andreotti, V. (2018) Recognizing more-than-human relations in social justice research: Gesturing towards decolonial possibilities. Issues in Teacher Education, 27 (2), 53–67.Kerr, J., & Andreotti, V. (2018) Recognizing more-than-human relations in social justice research: Gesturing towards decolonial possibilities. Issues in Teacher Education, 27(2), 53–67.; Stein et al., 2020Stein, S., Andreotti, V., Suša, R., Amsler, S., Hunt, D., Ahenakew, C., & Okano, H. (2020) Gesturing towards decolonial futures: Reflections on our learnings thus far. Nordic Journal of Comparative and International Education, 4 (1), 43–65. Stein, S., Andreotti, V., Suša, R., Amsler, S., Hunt, D., Ahenakew, C., & Okano, H. (2020) Gesturing towards decolonial futures: Reflections on our learnings thus far. Nordic Journal of Comparative and International Education, 4(1), 43–65. ). They want to signal that “we can only ‘gesture’ towards the direction of decolonization, and [that] we will undoubtedly make mistakes in the process” and discover new opportunities for learning (Stein et al., 2020Stein, S., Andreotti, V., Suša, R., Amsler, S., Hunt, D., Ahenakew, C., & Okano, H. (2020) Gesturing towards decolonial futures: Reflections on our learnings thus far. Nordic Journal of Comparative and International Education, 4 (1), 43–65. Stein, S., Andreotti, V., Suša, R., Amsler, S., Hunt, D., Ahenakew, C., & Okano, H. (2020) Gesturing towards decolonial futures: Reflections on our learnings thus far. Nordic Journal of Comparative and International Education, 4(1), 43–65. , p. 45). We explicitly align with this approach and also want to exercise some epistemological humility with regard to the decolonising potential of CVE. Hence, we acknowledge from the outset that we still have some way to go before we achieve CVE as a (critical) IaH strategy. Section 5 draws this chapter to a conclusion with pointers to potential next steps in CVE practice and research.

2.Virtual exchange (VE)

The origins of VE lie in the fields of applied linguistics and language education, where it was initially referred to as telecollaboration (Belz, 2003Belz, J. A. (2003) Linguistic perspectives on the development of intercultural competence in telecollaboration. Language Learning & Technology, 7 (2), 68–117. http://​hdl​.handle​.net​/10125​/25201. Belz, J. A. (2003) Linguistic perspectives on the development of intercultural competence in telecollaboration. Language Learning & Technology, 7(2), 68–117. http://​hdl​.handle​.net​/10125​/25201. ). Thus, it originated as a form of computer assisted language learning (CALL) and has been hailed as an experiential learning opportunity that offers participants (semi) authentic interactions with peers, mediated by technology (Helm & Hauck, 2022Helm, F., & Hauck, M. (2022) Language, identity and positioning in virtual exchange. In L. Klimanova (Ed), Identity, Multilingualism and CALL: Responding to New Global Realities (pp. 24–48). Advances in CALL Research and Practice. Sheffield: Equinox. Helm, F., & Hauck, M. (2022) Language, identity and positioning in virtual exchange. In L. Klimanova (Ed), Identity, Multilingualism and CALL: Responding to New Global Realities (pp. 24–48). Advances in CALL Research and Practice. Sheffield: Equinox. ). Yet, VE has been shown to provide valuable new learning opportunities for students across all disciplines, and both VE practice and research have benefitted from cross- and multidisciplinary approaches (O’Dowd, 2018O’Dowd, R. (2018) From telecollaboration to virtual exchange: State-of-the-art and the role of UNICollaboration in moving forward. Journal of Virtual Exchange, 1, 1–23. Research​-publishing​.net. O’Dowd, R. (2018) From telecollaboration to virtual exchange: State-of-the-art and the role of UNICollaboration in moving forward. Journal of Virtual Exchange, 1, 1–23. Research​-publishing​.net. ). The exchange examples in Section 4 illustrate this.

Today VE is understood as “a practice, supported by research, which consists of sustained, technology-enabled, people-to-people education programs or activities in which constructive communication and interaction takes place between individuals or groups who are geographically separated and/or from different cultural backgrounds, with the support of educators or facilitators” (EVOLVE Project Team, 2020EVOLVE Project Team (2020) The impact of virtual exchange on student learning in higher education: EVOLVE Project Report. https://​research​.rug​.nl​/en​/publications​/the​-impact​-of​-virtual​-exchange​-on​-student​-learning​-in​-higher​-educEVOLVE Project Team (2020) The impact of virtual exchange on student learning in higher education: EVOLVE Project Report. https://​research​.rug​.nl​/en​/publications​/the​-impact​-of​-virtual​-exchange​-on​-student​-learning​-in​-higher​-educ, p. 20).

VE also draws on over 30 years of experience in educational exchange and study abroad and can prepare for, deepen, or extend physical exchanges or as shown especially during the COVID-19 Pandemic (2020–2022), it can also emulate them. Having an alternative to physical exchanges is particularly relevant as outward student mobility is limited and exclusive. Only a minority of students do, in fact, spend some time abroad during their studies. Thus, it could be argued that VE is also a means to achieve a more equitable and inclusive education, removing much of the cost of studying internationally, which disproportionately impacts socially disadvantaged students who may experience financial constraints and/or students with care responsibilities.

VE happens in a variety of digital spaces, including social networking sites and institutional learning management systems (LMSs). Similarly, there is a great variety of VE formats involving participants in different configurations (dyads, triads, small groups, facilitator-led, etc.) (Helm & Hauck, 2022Helm, F., & Hauck, M. (2022) Language, identity and positioning in virtual exchange. In L. Klimanova (Ed), Identity, Multilingualism and CALL: Responding to New Global Realities (pp. 24–48). Advances in CALL Research and Practice. Sheffield: Equinox. Helm, F., & Hauck, M. (2022) Language, identity and positioning in virtual exchange. In L. Klimanova (Ed), Identity, Multilingualism and CALL: Responding to New Global Realities (pp. 24–48). Advances in CALL Research and Practice. Sheffield: Equinox. ). Most well-known are collaboratively designed and implemented exchanges, i.e., telecollaborative models and Tandem-based exchanges. Recently another format of VEs has emerged, designed and implemented by non-governmental organisations (NGOs), whereby participants are organised into transnational groups and supported by specifically trained facilitators and/or educators, also referred to as online facilitated dialogue (OFD) (Helm & Hauck, 2022Helm, F., & Hauck, M. (2022) Language, identity and positioning in virtual exchange. In L. Klimanova (Ed), Identity, Multilingualism and CALL: Responding to New Global Realities (pp. 24–48). Advances in CALL Research and Practice. Sheffield: Equinox. Helm, F., & Hauck, M. (2022) Language, identity and positioning in virtual exchange. In L. Klimanova (Ed), Identity, Multilingualism and CALL: Responding to New Global Realities (pp. 24–48). Advances in CALL Research and Practice. Sheffield: Equinox. ). Our focus here is on the telecollaborative type of VEs, i.e., exchanges that have been jointly developed and carried out by two or more university educators from the same or different disciplinary fields and who want to integrate an international and intercultural dimension into their pre-existing courses as part of an institutional IaH strategy. These VEs last on average 6–8 weeks and further the development of transversal skills (see Introduction).

Yet, VE and VE-based IaH are not necessarily inherently equitable and inclusive educational interventions. Not all learners, for example, have equal access to a reliable internet connection or sufficient hardware to participate in VE (Alami et al., 2022Alami, N., Albuquerque, J., Ashton, L., Elwood, J., Ewoodzie, K., Hauck, M., Karam, J., Klimanova, L., Nasr, R., & Satar, M. (2022) Marginalization and underrepresentation in virtual exchange: Reasons and remedies. Journal of International Students, 12 (S3), 57–76. Alami, N., Albuquerque, J., Ashton, L., Elwood, J., Ewoodzie, K., Hauck, M., Karam, J., Klimanova, L., Nasr, R., & Satar, M. (2022) Marginalization and underrepresentation in virtual exchange: Reasons and remedies. Journal of International Students, 12(S3), 57–76. ). This digital divide can reproduce or perpetuate existing exclusion or even create new (digital) inequalities (Satar & Hauck, 2022Satar, M. & Hauck, M. (2022) Exploring digital equity in online learning communities. In A. M. Sousa Aguiar de Medeiros & D. Kelly (Eds.), Language debates: Digital media (pp. 270–290). John Murray Learning. Satar, M. & Hauck, M. (2022) Exploring digital equity in online learning communities. In A. M. Sousa Aguiar de Medeiros & D. Kelly (Eds.), Language debates: Digital media (pp. 270–290). John Murray Learning. ). This is not a recent insight, though. Already over a decade ago, Selwyn and Facer (2013)Selwyn, N., & Facer, K. (2013) Introduction: The need for a politics of education and technology. In N. Selwyn & K. Facer (Eds.), The politics of education and technology (pp. 1–17). Palgrave Macmillan. Selwyn, N., & Facer, K. (2013) Introduction: The need for a politics of education and technology. In N. Selwyn & K. Facer (Eds.), The politics of education and technology (pp. 1–17). Palgrave Macmillan. established that the use of digital technology in educational settings is “often not a wholly inclusive, dialogic, or equitable process in which all actors have equal power in participating” (p. 14) and where all actors can determine what or how educational technology is used. Criticising a “means-end” and “deterministic” (Selwyn & Facer, 2013Selwyn, N., & Facer, K. (2013) Introduction: The need for a politics of education and technology. In N. Selwyn & K. Facer (Eds.), The politics of education and technology (pp. 1–17). Palgrave Macmillan. Selwyn, N., & Facer, K. (2013) Introduction: The need for a politics of education and technology. In N. Selwyn & K. Facer (Eds.), The politics of education and technology (pp. 1–17). Palgrave Macmillan. , p. ix) dominated integration of technology into education in large parts of the world and questioning apparently value-neutral claims made in the name of digital technologies, the authors highlight the need to identify the inequalities of access, power, and skills that impact the use of these technologies and that perpetuate social and epistemic injustices. Epistemic injustice, according to Fricker (2007)Fricker, M. (2007) Epistemic Injustice: Power and the Ethics of Knowing. Oxford Academic. Fricker, M. (2007) Epistemic Injustice: Power and the Ethics of Knowing. Oxford Academic. , is a specific form of injustice “done to someone specifically in their capacity as a knower” (p. 1). It is an injustice that affects people’s ability to know things as well as their perception by others in terms of knowledge. It is essentially an issue of social power and thus both an ethical (i.e., relating to right and wrong) and an epistemic (i.e., relating to knowledge) challenge, a challenge that also exists in VE and VE-based IaH.

While VE has proven to be a way of widening educators’ and learners’ horizons, expanding knowledges and bridging epistemological gaps, it can also contribute to reinforcing existing power imbalances and inequity and — as a result — contribute to reinforcing coloniality in HE (Helm, 2020Helm, F. (2020) EMI, internationalisation, and the digital. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 23 (3), 314–325. Helm, F. (2020) EMI, internationalisation, and the digital. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 23(3), 314–325. ). Hence, the need has arisen to critically interrogate current VE practices, more specifically the kind of IaH these VE practices are actually supporting, and to propose an alternative way forward in VE-based IaH: critical VE — that is, VE informed by inclusion, diversity, equity, and access (IDEA) principles (Kastler & Lewis, 2021Kastler, K., & Lewis, H. (2021) Approaching VE through an equity lens. Global Impact Exchange. diversityabroad​.org. https://​globallearning​.agnesscott​.org​/wp​-content​/uploads​/2021​/08​/Final​_Global​-Impact​-Exchange​-Summer​-2021​-Edition​.pdfKastler, K., & Lewis, H. (2021) Approaching VE through an equity lens. Global Impact Exchange. diversityabroad​.org. https://​globallearning​.agnesscott​.org​/wp​-content​/uploads​/2021​/08​/Final​_Global​-Impact​-Exchange​-Summer​-2021​-Edition​.pdf) and that opens up possibilities for critical IaH.

3.Critical virtual exchange (CVE)

A first attempt at conceptualising VE across the curriculum through the IDEA lens was made by Kastler and Lewis (2021)Kastler, K., & Lewis, H. (2021) Approaching VE through an equity lens. Global Impact Exchange. diversityabroad​.org. https://​globallearning​.agnesscott​.org​/wp​-content​/uploads​/2021​/08​/Final​_Global​-Impact​-Exchange​-Summer​-2021​-Edition​.pdfKastler, K., & Lewis, H. (2021) Approaching VE through an equity lens. Global Impact Exchange. diversityabroad​.org. https://​globallearning​.agnesscott​.org​/wp​-content​/uploads​/2021​/08​/Final​_Global​-Impact​-Exchange​-Summer​-2021​-Edition​.pdf from the Stevens Initiative (https://​www​.stevensinitiative​.org/). Equitable partnerships in VE programs, they propose, must include participants from minority serving institutions and institutions in non-English speaking countries. At the same time, institutional leadership needs to prioritise the creation of resources, training, and support for exchange implementers, that is, the educators. They, in turn, need to prioritise activities that explore social issues and justice topics as a part of the student VE project work. Then, exchanges need to be designed to serve all participating communities, i.e., not only the community of the lead partner, by finding common issues to deal with and/or by adapting exchange projects to local realities.

Kastler and Lewis (2021)Kastler, K., & Lewis, H. (2021) Approaching VE through an equity lens. Global Impact Exchange. diversityabroad​.org. https://​globallearning​.agnesscott​.org​/wp​-content​/uploads​/2021​/08​/Final​_Global​-Impact​-Exchange​-Summer​-2021​-Edition​.pdfKastler, K., & Lewis, H. (2021) Approaching VE through an equity lens. Global Impact Exchange. diversityabroad​.org. https://​globallearning​.agnesscott​.org​/wp​-content​/uploads​/2021​/08​/Final​_Global​-Impact​-Exchange​-Summer​-2021​-Edition​.pdf also add that the most urgent issues are inequalities in terms of access to software and hardware and/or internet connectivity. Thus, while technology has the capacity to empower and liberate, it also has the capacity to exclude and marginalise (Darvin, 2016Darvin, R. (2016) Language and identity in the digital age. In S. Preece (Ed.), Routledge Handbook of Language and Identity (pp. 523–540). Routledge. https://​ebookcentral​.proquest​.com​/lib​/open​/detail​.action​?docID​=4406288Darvin, R. (2016) Language and identity in the digital age. In S. Preece (Ed.), Routledge Handbook of Language and Identity (pp. 523–540). Routledge. https://​ebookcentral​.proquest​.com​/lib​/open​/detail​.action​?docID​=4406288) and to reinforce the “abyssal thinking” that draws a metaphorical geographical line separating Northern and Southern epistemologies (de Sousa Santos, 2007de Sousa Santos, B. (2007) Beyond abyssal thinking: From global lines to ecologies of knowledges. Review (Fernand Braudel Center), 30 (1), 45–89. https://​www​.jstor​.org​/stable​/40241677de Sousa Santos, B. (2007) Beyond abyssal thinking: From global lines to ecologies of knowledges. Review (Fernand Braudel Center), 30(1), 45–89. https://​www​.jstor​.org​/stable​/40241677, p. 45). Therefore, careful consideration needs to be given to technology choices in VE.

Inspired by Kastler and Lewis (2021)Kastler, K., & Lewis, H. (2021) Approaching VE through an equity lens. Global Impact Exchange. diversityabroad​.org. https://​globallearning​.agnesscott​.org​/wp​-content​/uploads​/2021​/08​/Final​_Global​-Impact​-Exchange​-Summer​-2021​-Edition​.pdfKastler, K., & Lewis, H. (2021) Approaching VE through an equity lens. Global Impact Exchange. diversityabroad​.org. https://​globallearning​.agnesscott​.org​/wp​-content​/uploads​/2021​/08​/Final​_Global​-Impact​-Exchange​-Summer​-2021​-Edition​.pdf and notions associated with critical CALL (Helm, 2015Helm, F. (2015) The practices and challenges of telecollaboration in higher education in Europe. Language Learning & Technology, 19 (2), 197–217. http://​llt​.msu​.edu​/issues​/june2015​/helm​.pdf. Helm, F. (2015) The practices and challenges of telecollaboration in higher education in Europe. Language Learning & Technology, 19(2), 197–217. http://​llt​.msu​.edu​/issues​/june2015​/helm​.pdf. ; Hauck, 2025Hauck, M. (2025) Critical Virtual Exchange: At the interface of Critical CALL, Critical Digital Literacy, and Critical Global Citizenship Education. In E. Britton, A. Kraemer, T. Austin, H. Liu & X. Zuo (Eds.), Advancing Critical CALL across Institutions and Borders (pp. 29–54). Sheffield: Equinox. Hauck, M. (2025) Critical Virtual Exchange: At the interface of Critical CALL, Critical Digital Literacy, and Critical Global Citizenship Education. In E. Britton, A. Kraemer, T. Austin, H. Liu & X. Zuo (Eds.), Advancing Critical CALL across Institutions and Borders (pp. 29–54). Sheffield: Equinox. ), Hauck (2020Hauck, M. (2020) 15 September 2020. Towards global fairness in the digital space through VE 3rd International Virtual Exchange Conference (IVEC), Newcastle University, retrieved on 11 January 2025, from https://​iveconference​.org​/2020​-conference/Hauck, M. (2020) 15 September 2020. Towards global fairness in the digital space through VE 3rd International Virtual Exchange Conference (IVEC), Newcastle University, retrieved on 11 January 2025, from https://​iveconference​.org​/2020​-conference/, 2023Hauck, M. (2023) From Virtual Exchange to Critical Virtual Exchange and Critical Internationalization at Home. The Global Impact Exchange, 2023(Spring), 9–12. https://​imis​.daglobal​.org​/public​/DIVaPublic​/GIE​-Archives​/GIE​-2023​/GIE​-Sp2023​/GIE​-Sp23​-Article​-1​.aspxHauck, M. (2023) From Virtual Exchange to Critical Virtual Exchange and Critical Internationalization at Home. The Global Impact Exchange, 2023(Spring), 9–12. https://​imis​.daglobal​.org​/public​/DIVaPublic​/GIE​-Archives​/GIE​-2023​/GIE​-Sp2023​/GIE​-Sp23​-Article​-1​.aspx) introduces critical VE (CVE), which conceptualizes VE as a vehicle for action, public engagement, and sociopolitical change. CVE is about social justice and inclusion at institutional and individual levels. Its target is student exchange experiences that are characterised by the following elements (see Figure 1):

1. Use of low-bandwidth technologies

2. Systematic inclusion of students often underrepresented in IaH (e.g., those from low socioeconomic backgrounds)

3. Exchange topics informed by local and global, that is “glocal” (Guilherme & Menezes de Souza, 2019Guilherme, M., & Menezes de Souza, L. M. T. (2019) (Eds.). Glocal languages and critical intercultural awareness: the south answers back. Routledge. Guilherme, M., & Menezes de Souza, L. M. T. (2019) (Eds.). Glocal languages and critical intercultural awareness: the south answers back. Routledge. ) challenges and aligned with the UN SDGs (United Nations, 2015United Nations (2015) Transforming our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. https://​sdgs​.un​.org​/publications​/transforming​-our​-world​-2030​-agenda​-sustainable​-development​-17981United Nations (2015) Transforming our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. https://​sdgs​.un​.org​/publications​/transforming​-our​-world​-2030​-agenda​-sustainable​-development​-17981)

4. Integration of local student outreach work with businesses, nongovernmental organisations (NGOs), and charities to promote transversal skills development, enhance graduate employability, and further support achievement of SDGs

5. Promotion of translanguaging (García & Wei, 2014García, O., & Wei, L. (2014) Translanguaging. Language, Bilingualism and Education. Palgrave Macmillan. https://​doi​-org​.libezproxy​.open​.ac​.uk​/10​.1057​/9781137385765García, O., & Wei, L. (2014) Translanguaging. Language, Bilingualism and Education. Palgrave Macmillan. https://​doi​-org​.libezproxy​.open​.ac​.uk​/10​.1057​/9781137385765) approaches, especially, but not exclusively, in exchanges where the learning and teaching of languages and cultures is at the centre of the exchange dialogue between participants.

What these criteria have in common is a shared concern with reducing inequalities and enhancing inclusivity in and through VE in general and in VE-based IaH in particular. VE designs that explicitly encourage translanguaging — that is, multilingualism and multimodal communication (Hauck, 2025Hauck, M. (2025) Critical Virtual Exchange: At the interface of Critical CALL, Critical Digital Literacy, and Critical Global Citizenship Education. In E. Britton, A. Kraemer, T. Austin, H. Liu & X. Zuo (Eds.), Advancing Critical CALL across Institutions and Borders (pp. 29–54). Sheffield: Equinox. Hauck, M. (2025) Critical Virtual Exchange: At the interface of Critical CALL, Critical Digital Literacy, and Critical Global Citizenship Education. In E. Britton, A. Kraemer, T. Austin, H. Liu & X. Zuo (Eds.), Advancing Critical CALL across Institutions and Borders (pp. 29–54). Sheffield: Equinox. ) are only beginning to gain scholarly attention in VE (Reljanovic Glimäng, 2024Reljanovic Glimäng, M. (2024) Reading the world through virtual exchange: critical interculturality and glocal awareness in English teacher education [Doctoral dissertation, Malmö University Press]. Reljanovic Glimäng, M. (2024) Reading the world through virtual exchange: critical interculturality and glocal awareness in English teacher education [Doctoral dissertation, Malmö University Press]. , Satar et al., 2023Satar, M., Hauck, M. & Bilki, Z. (2023) Multimodal representation in virtual exchange: A social semiotic approach to critical digital literacy. Language Learning & Technology, 27 (2), 72–96. Satar, M., Hauck, M. & Bilki, Z. (2023) Multimodal representation in virtual exchange: A social semiotic approach to critical digital literacy. Language Learning & Technology, 27(2), 72–96. ). Yet, as Reljanovic Glimäng (2024)Reljanovic Glimäng, M. (2024) Reading the world through virtual exchange: critical interculturality and glocal awareness in English teacher education [Doctoral dissertation, Malmö University Press]. Reljanovic Glimäng, M. (2024) Reading the world through virtual exchange: critical interculturality and glocal awareness in English teacher education [Doctoral dissertation, Malmö University Press]. points out, “[t]he transnational, digital space not only lends itself to, but also promotes translanguaging” (p. 114). Translanguaging means seeing the different languages known by the individual as a continuum related to their life history and identity and considering the creative uses people make of language as part of their linguistic knowledge and repertoire (Canagarajah, 2013Canagarajah, S. (2013) Translingual practice: Global Englishes and cosmopolitan relations. Routledge. Canagarajah, S. (2013) Translingual practice: Global Englishes and cosmopolitan relations. Routledge. ; García & Wei, 2014García, O., & Wei, L. (2014) Translanguaging. Language, Bilingualism and Education. Palgrave Macmillan. https://​doi​-org​.libezproxy​.open​.ac​.uk​/10​.1057​/9781137385765García, O., & Wei, L. (2014) Translanguaging. Language, Bilingualism and Education. Palgrave Macmillan. https://​doi​-org​.libezproxy​.open​.ac​.uk​/10​.1057​/9781137385765). Salomão (2022)Salomão, A. C. B. (2022) Foreign Language Communication in Virtual Exchanges: Reflections and Implications for Applied Linguistics. International Journal of Computer-Assisted Language Learning and Teaching, 12 (3), 1–14. https://​dl​.acm​.org​/doi​/abs​/10​.4018​/IJCALLT​.307061. Salomão, A. C. B. (2022) Foreign Language Communication in Virtual Exchanges: Reflections and Implications for Applied Linguistics. International Journal of Computer-Assisted Language Learning and Teaching, 12(3), 1–14. https://​dl​.acm​.org​/doi​/abs​/10​.4018​/IJCALLT​.307061. propounds that concepts such as translanguaging and also intercomprehension (IC) (Martins, 2010Martins, S. A. (2010) L’intercompréhension des langues romanes au service de l’amélioration de l’enseignement des langues au Brésil. Synergies Brésil, suppl. Special Issue 1, 107–114. https://​www​.proquest​.com​/docview​/2561984192​?parentSessionId​=KNze63z7EdeMbW2y7cGCWmVW1BcgSzUxxBbOOy2%2BYyE%3D​&pq​-origsite​=primo​&accountid​=14697​&sourcetype​=Scholarly​%20​JournalsMartins, S. A. (2010) L’intercompréhension des langues romanes au service de l’amélioration de l’enseignement des langues au Brésil. Synergies Brésil, suppl. Special Issue 1, 107–114. https://​www​.proquest​.com​/docview​/2561984192​?parentSessionId​=KNze63z7EdeMbW2y7cGCWmVW1BcgSzUxxBbOOy2%2BYyE%3D​&pq​-origsite​=primo​&accountid​=14697​&sourcetype​=Scholarly​%20​Journals, 2014Martins, S. A. (2014) A intercompreensão de línguas românicas: proposta propulsora de uma educação plurilíngue. MOARA–Revista Eletrônica do Programa de Pós-Graduação em Letras, (42), 117–126.Martins, S. A. (2014) A intercompreensão de línguas românicas: proposta propulsora de uma educação plurilíngue. MOARA–Revista Eletrônica do Programa de Pós-Graduação em Letras, (42), 117–126.; Araújo e Sá & Pinho, 2015Araújo e Sá, M. H., & Pinho, A. S. P. (Orgs.) (2015) Intercompreensão em contexto educativo: resultados da investigação. UA Editora — Universidade de Aveiro. https://​www​.miriadi​.net​/sites​/default​/files​/livro​-book​_miriadi​_-​_v​.01​-08​__final​.pdfAraújo e Sá, M. H., & Pinho, A. S. P. (Orgs.) (2015) Intercompreensão em contexto educativo: resultados da investigação. UA Editora — Universidade de Aveiro. https://​www​.miriadi​.net​/sites​/default​/files​/livro​-book​_miriadi​_-​_v​.01​-08​__final​.pdf) “might open up new spaces for understanding the ways in which the fluidity of interaction in non-formal education can be incorporated into formal educational contexts” (p. 10) such as VE. IC is an interaction practice where both speakers use their first languages and acquire oral and/or written skills due to the proximity of the languages involved, e.g., Romance languages. Drawing on Capucho (2004)Capucho, F. (2004) Línguas e identidades culturais: da implicação de políticos e (socio) linguistas. A linguística que nos faz falhar (pp. 83–87).Capucho, F. (2004) Línguas e identidades culturais: da implicação de políticos e (socio) linguistas. A linguística que nos faz falhar (pp. 83–87)., Salomão (2022)Salomão, A. C. B. (2022) Foreign Language Communication in Virtual Exchanges: Reflections and Implications for Applied Linguistics. International Journal of Computer-Assisted Language Learning and Teaching, 12 (3), 1–14. https://​dl​.acm​.org​/doi​/abs​/10​.4018​/IJCALLT​.307061. Salomão, A. C. B. (2022) Foreign Language Communication in Virtual Exchanges: Reflections and Implications for Applied Linguistics. International Journal of Computer-Assisted Language Learning and Teaching, 12(3), 1–14. https://​dl​.acm​.org​/doi​/abs​/10​.4018​/IJCALLT​.307061. explains that the practice is about “developing the capacity to co-construct meaning in the encounter between different languages and to make pragmatic use of this capacity in a concrete communicative situation” (p. 10).

Multimodal communicative competence is the ability to express ideas across a wide range of modes and semiotic resources including words, spoken or written, images (still and moving), sound, 3D models and any combinations of these (Kress, 2003Kress, G. (2003) Literacy in the new media age. Routledge. Kress, G. (2003) Literacy in the new media age. Routledge. ). Fostering translanguaging in and through CVE means building positive attitudes towards multilingualism and multimodal communication and encouraging participants to use multiple linguistic and semiotic resources as a combined single repertoire (Clavijo Olarte et al., 2023Clavijo Olarte, A., Medina, R. A., Calderon-Aponte, D., Rodríguez, A., Prieto, K., & Náder, M. C. (2023) Raising awareness of the city as a text: Multimodal, multicultural, and multilingual resources for education. In A. Salmon & A. Clavijo Olarte (Eds.), Handbook of research on socio-cultural and linguistic perspectives on language and literacy development (pp. 239–264). IGI Global. Clavijo Olarte, A., Medina, R. A., Calderon-Aponte, D., Rodríguez, A., Prieto, K., & Náder, M. C. (2023) Raising awareness of the city as a text: Multimodal, multicultural, and multilingual resources for education. In A. Salmon & A. Clavijo Olarte (Eds.), Handbook of research on socio-cultural and linguistic perspectives on language and literacy development (pp. 239–264). IGI Global. ) to communicate with their exchange partners. Examples illustrating translanguaging, IC, and multimodal communicative competence can be found in Section 4.

Next, each of the elements of the CVE framework (Figure 1) and the associations it evokes will undergo a brief critical interrogation. Concepts such as “Internationalisation” and “Internationalisation at Home” carry complexities and challenges that warrant further consideration. While they offer valuable framings for enhancing global and intercultural competencies, they must be implemented with care to avoid reinforcing colonial power dynamics and to ensure inclusivity and equity. Internationalisation can — at times — serve as a conduit for Western norms and values, overshadowing local and indigenous cultures. It can have a market-driven focus where it is viewed as a means to enhance institutional prestige and competitiveness facilitating the commercialisation of programmes to an international market to generate revenue, rather than prioritising quality of educational experiences and fostering genuine intercultural understanding. IaH has its origins in the Global North (de Wit & Altbach, 2021de Wit, H., & Altbach, P. (2021) 70 Years of Internationalization in Tertiary Education: Changes, Challenges and Perspectives. In H. van’t Land, A. Corcoran & D. C. Iancu (Eds.) The Promise of Higher Education (pp. 119–126). Springer. de Wit, H., & Altbach, P. (2021) 70 Years of Internationalization in Tertiary Education: Changes, Challenges and Perspectives. In H. van’t Land, A. Corcoran & D. C. Iancu (Eds.) The Promise of Higher Education (pp. 119–126). Springer. ) and — as a result — IaH strategies often reflect Western educational practices and priorities, potentially sidelining local needs and perspectives, which can influence how institutions in the Global South adopt and adapt these approaches.

“Low bandwidth technologies” need to be understood as a placeholder for provisions in terms of access to technology including challenges experienced by disabled students but also issues with access in a wider sense: access to devices, Internet connection, or pre-requisites regarding students’ and educators’ digital skills, their critical digital literacy in particular. The latter examines how the operation of power within digital contexts shapes knowledge, identities, social relations, and formations in ways that privilege some and marginalise others (Darvin, 2017Darvin, R. (2017) Language, Ideology, and Critical Digital Literacy. In S. Thorne & S. May (Eds.), Language, Education and Technology. Encyclopaedia of Language and Education (3rd ed.). Springer. Darvin, R. (2017) Language, Ideology, and Critical Digital Literacy. In S. Thorne & S. May (Eds.), Language, Education and Technology. Encyclopaedia of Language and Education (3rd ed.). Springer. ). It also equips learners with the tools to examine the linguistic and non-linguistic features of digital media, to identify their embedded biases and assumptions (Darvin, 2017Darvin, R. (2017) Language, Ideology, and Critical Digital Literacy. In S. Thorne & S. May (Eds.), Language, Education and Technology. Encyclopaedia of Language and Education (3rd ed.). Springer. Darvin, R. (2017) Language, Ideology, and Critical Digital Literacy. In S. Thorne & S. May (Eds.), Language, Education and Technology. Encyclopaedia of Language and Education (3rd ed.). Springer. ) and it leverages digital technologies for social justice-oriented action and change (Jiang & Gu, 2022Jiang, L., & Gu, M. M. (2022) Toward a Professional Development Model for Critical Digital Literacies in TESOL, TESOL Quarterly, 56 (3), 1029–1040. https://​doi​-org​.libezproxy​.open​.ac​.uk​/10​.1002​/tesq​.3138. Jiang, L., & Gu, M. M. (2022) Toward a Professional Development Model for Critical Digital Literacies in TESOL, TESOL Quarterly, 56(3), 1029–1040. https://​doi​-org​.libezproxy​.open​.ac​.uk​/10​.1002​/tesq​.3138. ; Mirra & Garcia, 2020Mirra, N., & Garcia, A. (2020) “I hesitate but I DO Have Hope”: Youth speculative civic literacies for troubled times. Harvard Educational Review, 90 (2), 295–321. https://​doi​-org​.libezproxy​.open​.ac​.uk​/10​.17763​/1943​-5045​-90​.2​.295. Mirra, N., & Garcia, A. (2020) “I hesitate but I DO Have Hope”: Youth speculative civic literacies for troubled times. Harvard Educational Review, 90(2), 295–321. https://​doi​-org​.libezproxy​.open​.ac​.uk​/10​.17763​/1943​-5045​-90​.2​.295. ) which aligns well with the overarching aim of CVE.

Promoting “translanguaging approaches” means encouraging VE participants to draw on their full “semiotic budget” (Hauck & Satar, 2018Hauck, M., & Satar, M. (2018) Learning and Teaching Languages in Technology Mediated Contexts — The Relevance of Social Presence, Co-Presence, Participatory Literacy, and Multimodal Competence. In R. Kern, & C. Develotte (Eds.), Screens and Scenes: multimodal communication in online intercultural encounters (pp. 133–157). Routledge. Hauck, M., & Satar, M. (2018) Learning and Teaching Languages in Technology Mediated Contexts — The Relevance of Social Presence, Co-Presence, Participatory Literacy, and Multimodal Competence. In R. Kern, & C. Develotte (Eds.), Screens and Scenes: multimodal communication in online intercultural encounters (pp. 133–157). Routledge. , p. 155), that is, all modes available to them online (visual, audio, gestural, spatial) to make meaning, communicate, and interact with each other, including spoken and written language, and — in this way — help them develop and realise their multimodal communication potential. Translanguaging may also encompass interdisciplinary communication where students move across and beyond their disciplinary jargon, interactional patterns, and/or normative behaviour to fully understand and engage with their VE partners.

The 17 global objectives of “the UN SDGs” were designed to address a wide range of social, economic, and environmental challenges and to achieve the UN 2030 agenda for sustainable development (United Nations, 2015United Nations (2015) Transforming our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. https://​sdgs​.un​.org​/publications​/transforming​-our​-world​-2030​-agenda​-sustainable​-development​-17981United Nations (2015) Transforming our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. https://​sdgs​.un​.org​/publications​/transforming​-our​-world​-2030​-agenda​-sustainable​-development​-17981). However, they have been criticised for promoting a universalist agenda that is underpinned by Global North and neoliberal interests (Arora-Jonsson, 2023Arora-Jonsson, S. (2023) The sustainable development goals: A universalist promise for the future. Futures, Article 103087. Arora-Jonsson, S. (2023) The sustainable development goals: A universalist promise for the future. Futures, Article 103087. ) and for ultimately perpetuating the Global North–Global South divide (Blicharska et al., 2021Blicharska, M., Teutschbein, C., & Smithers, R. J. (2021) SDG partnerships may perpetuate the global North–South divide. Scientific Reports, 11(1), 2209. Blicharska, M., Teutschbein, C., & Smithers, R. J. (2021) SDG partnerships may perpetuate the global North–South divide. Scientific Reports, 11(1), 2209. ). There are challenges associated with their implementation in diverse contexts. For example, in Africa and Latin America, extremely diverse cultural, economic, and political landscapes mean that a uniform approach may do disservice to specific local needs. Global goals can also be in conflict with local priorities and significant financial constraints can hinder the ability to invest in the infrastructure and programmes required to achieve the SDGs. Regions that are vulnerable to the impacts of climate change and resource depletion may struggle to achieve the goals. It is widely acknowledged, for example, that poorer countries are hit hardest by climate change (Bhargawa & Bhargawa, 2023Bhargawa, R., & Bhargawa, M. (2023) The climate crisis disproportionately hits the poor. How can we protect them? World Economic Forum. https://​www​.weforum​.org​/stories​/2023​/01​/climate​-crisis​-poor​-davos2023​/#:~:text​=The​%20​lowest​%20​income​%20​countries​%20​produce,and​%20​water%2C​%20​education​%20​and​%20​moreBhargawa, R., & Bhargawa, M. (2023) The climate crisis disproportionately hits the poor. How can we protect them? World Economic Forum. https://​www​.weforum​.org​/stories​/2023​/01​/climate​-crisis​-poor​-davos2023​/#:~:text​=The​%20​lowest​%20​income​%20​countries​%20​produce,and​%20​water%2C​%20​education​%20​and​%20​more). Similarly, deep-rooted social inequalities, such as discrimination based on gender and income, constitute significant challenges in some parts of the world (Morgan et al., 2020Morgan, R., Dhatt, R., Kharel, C., & Muraya, K. (2020) A patchwork approach to gender equality weakens the SDGs: time for cross-cutting action. Global Health Promotion, 27 (3), 3–5. https://​doi​-org​.libezproxy​.open​.ac​.uk​/10​.1177​/175797592094973. Morgan, R., Dhatt, R., Kharel, C., & Muraya, K. (2020) A patchwork approach to gender equality weakens the SDGs: time for cross-cutting action. Global Health Promotion, 27(3), 3–5. https://​doi​-org​.libezproxy​.open​.ac​.uk​/10​.1177​/175797592094973. ). Thus, efforts to achieve the SDGs must take account of marginalised and under-resourced populations to ensure an inclusive way forward.

As regards “public engagement”, while in some projects students work with local partners and directly interact with community members, in others, direct interaction with the community may not be possible. Sevilla-Pavón and Nicolaou (2022)Sevilla-Pavón, A., & Nicolaou, A. (2022) Artefact co-construction in virtual exchange: “Youth Entrepreneurship for Society.” Computer Assisted Language Learning Journal, 35 (7), 1642–1667. Sevilla-Pavón, A., & Nicolaou, A. (2022) Artefact co-construction in virtual exchange: “Youth Entrepreneurship for Society.” Computer Assisted Language Learning Journal, 35(7), 1642–1667. report on the Youth Entrepreneurship for Society (YES) project located in the Global North which explicitly took account of the participants’ wider socioeconomic contexts. Business Communication students from Cyprus University of Technology worked with Management students from the University of Valencia in Spain. The aim of the YES project was to connect the respective classrooms with the outside world through the involvement of local organisations to promote the students’ transversal skills development and to help them develop a social entrepreneurial mindset. Via the HEI engagement offices at both institutions, the students were put in contact and worked with local associations and NGOs, identifying the main challenges faced by those organisations. In their cross-cultural groups, they discussed and proposed solutions to social challenges in their respective local communities and designed their own initiatives including elevator pitches and digital campaigns, which they subsequently presented in an online social entrepreneurship fair. In cases where such direct community outreach work is not possible, engagement with public issues, we propose, can be indirect, e.g., through documentaries or authentic social media content.

The following section features three examples of exchanges that “gesture towards” CVE, reflecting different aspects of the CVE framework as outlined an discussed above (Section 3).

4.Exchange examples “gesturing towards” CVE

The examples in Sections 4.1–4.3 are drawn from the Brazilian Virtual Exchange Programme: BRaVE-UNESP (Salomão & Freire Jr, 2020Salomão, A. C. B., & Freire, J. C. (2020) Perspectivas de internacionalização em casa: intercâmbio virtual por meio do Programa BRaVE-UNESP. Cultura Acadêmica Editora. http://​hdl​.handle​.net​/11449​/202860Salomão, A. C. B., & Freire, J. C. (2020) Perspectivas de internacionalização em casa: intercâmbio virtual por meio do Programa BRaVE-UNESP. Cultura Acadêmica Editora. http://​hdl​.handle​.net​/11449​/202860). BRaVE-UNESP (www​.inter​national​.unesp​.br/​%23!/​study/​virtual-​exchange-​program/) was created by the Brazilian Association of International Education (Associação Brasileira de Educação Internacional — Faubai) with the aim of promoting an online collaborative learning model that furthers intercultural contact and knowledge sharing by connecting Brazilian undergraduate and/or postgraduate students with students from different HE institutions around the world (Salomão & Freire Jr., 2020Salomão, A. C. B., & Freire, J. C. (2020) Perspectivas de internacionalização em casa: intercâmbio virtual por meio do Programa BRaVE-UNESP. Cultura Acadêmica Editora. http://​hdl​.handle​.net​/11449​/202860Salomão, A. C. B., & Freire, J. C. (2020) Perspectivas de internacionalização em casa: intercâmbio virtual por meio do Programa BRaVE-UNESP. Cultura Acadêmica Editora. http://​hdl​.handle​.net​/11449​/202860). The second author of this contribution is responsible for the BRaVE programme at UNESP and proposes the examples as representative of initiatives “gesturing towards” CVE in the Global South.

According to a report by the Coordination for the Improvement of HE Personnel (Fundação Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior — CAPES, part of the Brazilian Ministry of Education, which plays a fundamental role in the expansion and consolidation of stricto sensu postgraduate programs in all states of the Federation), the internationalisation of Brazilian universities (Brasil, 2017Brasil. Ministério da Educação (2017) A Internacionalização na Universidade Brasileira: resultados do questionário aplicado pela CAPES. Diretoria de Relações Internacionais. https://​www​.capes​.gov​.br​/images​/stories​/download​/diversos​/A​-internacionalizacao​-nas​-IES​-brasileiras​.pdfBrasil. Ministério da Educação (2017) A Internacionalização na Universidade Brasileira: resultados do questionário aplicado pela CAPES. Diretoria de Relações Internacionais. https://​www​.capes​.gov​.br​/images​/stories​/download​/diversos​/A​-internacionalizacao​-nas​-IES​-brasileiras​.pdf, p. 6), should focus not only on the mobility of students and teachers, but also on the integration of an international dimension into curricula, teaching, research, and outreach.

Implemented at São Paulo State University (Universidade Estadual Paulista “Julio de Mesquita Filho” — UNESP) in 2018, BRaVE reflects actions stipulated in the university’s Strategic Internationalisation Plan (Plano Estratégico de Internacionalização — PEI) to foster the creation of networks in the training of interconnected professionals for global learning and to democratise access to internationalisation opportunities for students who, for different reasons — mostly financial in nature — would otherwise not have access to an international experience.

UNESP’s track record in IaH started in 2006 with Teletandem Brasil (Telles & Vassallo, 2006Telles, J. A., & Vassallo, M. L. (2006) Foreign language learning in-tandem: Teletandem as an alternative proposal in CALLT. The ESPecialist, 2 (27), 189–212. https://​revistas​.pucsp​.br​/index​.php​/esp​/article​/view​/1629Telles, J. A., & Vassallo, M. L. (2006) Foreign language learning in-tandem: Teletandem as an alternative proposal in CALLT. The ESPecialist, 2(27), 189–212. https://​revistas​.pucsp​.br​/index​.php​/esp​/article​/view​/1629), a large scale project to support second language education through synchronous VE practice. The BRaVE programme consists of an institutional strategy for internationalising the curriculum through co-designed exchanges for class to class collaboration using tasks that engage students in technology-mediated collaborative learning connected to the SDGs. It is thus aligned with the telecollaborative model of VE (see Section 2). As Salomão (2022)Salomão, A. C. B. (2022) Foreign Language Communication in Virtual Exchanges: Reflections and Implications for Applied Linguistics. International Journal of Computer-Assisted Language Learning and Teaching, 12 (3), 1–14. https://​dl​.acm​.org​/doi​/abs​/10​.4018​/IJCALLT​.307061. Salomão, A. C. B. (2022) Foreign Language Communication in Virtual Exchanges: Reflections and Implications for Applied Linguistics. International Journal of Computer-Assisted Language Learning and Teaching, 12(3), 1–14. https://​dl​.acm​.org​/doi​/abs​/10​.4018​/IJCALLT​.307061. states, “the contact established between classes can be entirely online, with synchronous or asynchronous interactions, or in hybrid formats, seeking to create a context that emphasises learning through experience and joint knowledge construction” (p. 3).

In what follows, three exchange examples including partners from Angola, Brazil, and Mexico will be introduced and mapped against the characteristics of CVE as presented in Section 3. We include information about the institutions, educators, and learners involved, the duration of the exchanges, the main exchange topic(s), the tasks the participants carried out, the online tools and applications they used, their main mode of communication synchronous/asynchronous) and the main outcomes/products of their collaborative project work. The information stems from the VE educators’ accounts of their projects as published on the BRaVE-UNESP programme website (BRaVE-Unesp, 2025BRaVE-Unesp (2025) Disciplinas já realizadas no BRaVE-Unesp. https://​www2​.unesp​.br​/portal#!​/brave​/disciplinas​-realizadas/BRaVE-Unesp (2025) Disciplinas já realizadas no BRaVE-Unesp. https://​www2​.unesp​.br​/portal#!​/brave​/disciplinas​-realizadas/). All of them gave permission to use change their real names for the materials.

What sets this work apart from the majority of VE studies reported in the literature to date is the fact that all partners are located in the Global South. It is thus also a contribution to decolonising VE itself and to redressing the power balance in published VE research.

The examples are introduced by a brief summary of each project in the following sections while more complete descriptions are available in the appendices in Portuguese. The characteristic features of CVE mentioned in the presentation of each example have been highlighted in italics. They illustrate the aforementioned exploratory and tentative dimensions of this work, i.e., the fact that in our efforts to decolonise global citizenship education (Donnelly, 2022Donnelly, M. (2022) Non-university higher education: geographies of place, possibility and inequality: By Holly Henderson, London, Bloomsbury Academic Press, 2020, 224 pp., ISBN 978-1-350-14532-0 Hardback. British Journal of Sociology of Education, 43 (8), 1297–1299. Donnelly, M. (2022) Non-university higher education: geographies of place, possibility and inequality: By Holly Henderson, London, Bloomsbury Academic Press, 2020, 224 pp., ISBN 978-1-350-14532-0 Hardback. British Journal of Sociology of Education, 43(8), 1297–1299. ; Kerr & Andreotti, 2018Kerr, J., & Andreotti, V. (2018) Recognizing more-than-human relations in social justice research: Gesturing towards decolonial possibilities. Issues in Teacher Education, 27 (2), 53–67.Kerr, J., & Andreotti, V. (2018) Recognizing more-than-human relations in social justice research: Gesturing towards decolonial possibilities. Issues in Teacher Education, 27(2), 53–67.; Stein et al., 2020Stein, S., Andreotti, V., Suša, R., Amsler, S., Hunt, D., Ahenakew, C., & Okano, H. (2020) Gesturing towards decolonial futures: Reflections on our learnings thus far. Nordic Journal of Comparative and International Education, 4 (1), 43–65. Stein, S., Andreotti, V., Suša, R., Amsler, S., Hunt, D., Ahenakew, C., & Okano, H. (2020) Gesturing towards decolonial futures: Reflections on our learnings thus far. Nordic Journal of Comparative and International Education, 4(1), 43–65. ) “we can only ‘gesture’ towards the direction of decolonization” (Stein et al., 2020Stein, S., Andreotti, V., Suša, R., Amsler, S., Hunt, D., Ahenakew, C., & Okano, H. (2020) Gesturing towards decolonial futures: Reflections on our learnings thus far. Nordic Journal of Comparative and International Education, 4 (1), 43–65. Stein, S., Andreotti, V., Suša, R., Amsler, S., Hunt, D., Ahenakew, C., & Okano, H. (2020) Gesturing towards decolonial futures: Reflections on our learnings thus far. Nordic Journal of Comparative and International Education, 4(1), 43–65. , p. 45).

5.Preliminary conclusions

The exploration of Critical Virtual Exchange (CVE) in this conceptual contribution to the field of VE testifies to the transformative potential of CVE in applied linguistics and its role in advancing SDGs and equity and inclusion across disciplines and languages. The CVE framework we draw on offers a robust methodology for critical IaH fostering diverse perspectives, intercultural communication and understanding, and inclusive approaches through accessible, technology-mediated interactions. This is especially relevant in tackling the lasting effects of colonialism in language education and across the curriculum, as CVE challenges hegemonic educational practices (included in VE itself), promotes epistemic diversity, and can contribute to transcending the “abyssal line”.

The three examples presented and discussed illustrate the application of the framework within a Global South context and are meant to be a source of inspiration for other educators who decide to “gesture towards” the direction of decolonisation in VE-based critical IaH. These examples, ranging from linguistic exchanges between Brazil and Angola to discussions on indigenous peoples in Brazil and Mexico, demonstrated how CVE can effectively engage underrepresented communities and facilitate critical dialogue on social justice and inclusion issues. By aligning exchange topics with SDGs, such as Quality Education (SDG 4) and Sustainable Cities and Communities (SDG 11), CVE projects contribute to a more inclusive and equitable global education landscape. The use of low-bandwidth technologies and translanguaging approaches highlights the practical strategies employed to bridge digital divides and linguistic barriers, ensuring broader participation and meaningful engagement.

The relevance of CVE in drawing attention to epistemic injustices and deconstructing colonial legacies in VE-based critical IaH is evident in its emphasis on equitable partnerships and inclusion of diverse voices and knowledges in VE. Incorporating CVE into applied linguistics research and practice offers a way to critically examine and deal with the power imbalances that permeate HE practices in particular, at times also in VE. By fostering an environment that encourages critical reflection and dialogue on global and local challenges and by using accessible technologies and a variety of semiotic/linguistic resources, CVE supports the development of a more connected and inclusive global society that values diversity.

Future practice and research in VE should focus on expanding CVE across the curriculum and HE institutions globally, ideally accompanied by longitudinal studies that allow to demonstrate its impact in terms of social justice and inclusion and its contribution to the decolonisation of HE curricula. This should involve addressing inequalities in access to technology and ensuring that all participants have the resources required for full participation.

Another avenue for applied linguistics research in particular, is exploring the interface between language, identity, diverse local educational practices, institutional and national policies, and how these dynamics influence learning outcomes in CVE-based critical IaH. Finally, in line with Satar et al. (2024)Satar, M., Aranha, S., Cavalari, S. M. S., & Almijiwl, W. (2024) Low proficiency level learners’ translingual and transmodal practices in teletandem: Challenging the separation of languages principle. System, 120 , 103187. Satar, M., Aranha, S., Cavalari, S. M. S., & Almijiwl, W. (2024) Low proficiency level learners’ translingual and transmodal practices in teletandem: Challenging the separation of languages principle. System, 120, 103187. , we argue that further research is needed to challenge monolingual assumptions and the dominance of English in VE and to propagate a “translanguaging principle” in transnational and multilingual CVE.

Overall, the CVE framework presented in this article offers a powerful foundation for rethinking VE as a vehicle for social justice, socio-political change, and critical international/intercultural understanding. By prioritising IDEA and addressing local issues from global perspectives, CVE can contribute to a more equitable world where voices of the invisible are heard and read and marginalised knowledges are systematically brought to the fore. An ongoing challenge remains in how to be responsive to the diverse needs of educators and students in VE partnerships within inclusive global virtual learning communities.