Telecollaboration to promote preservation of Asian local indigenous knowledge and intercultural communicative competence

Abstract

Local Indigenous Knowledge Systems (LINKS) are local body of knowledge practiced by people with their natural environment which are essential to modern living. However, LINKS have deteriorated due to dominance of Western science and prejudice. This collaborative research among 144 students and professors from Malaysia, Mongolia, the Philippines and Thailand examined the affordances of telecollaboration in preserving the four countries’ LINKS by producing an e-book. It also determined the effect of telecollaboration on students’ Intercultural Communicative Competence (ICC). First, the students conducted a LINKS inventory in their countries. Then, they analyzed the dis/similarities of the four countries’ LINKS through telecollaboration tools. Data were collected from videoconferencing evaluation, Facebook group posts, post-project questionnaire, and interviews. Findings show the four countries have similar LINKS on health and pregnancy, navigation, parenting style, farming/fishing and risk-disaster. The use of telecollaboration tools depends upon the nature of the tasks. Social media and emails are used for critical reading and instant feedbacking while videoconferencing is used for wider dissemination and reflections. The project developed the participants’ ICC with specific elements on openness to learn other cultures; knowledge of their own and other social groups’ practices; and critical cultural awareness to evaluate in one’s own and other cultures. Their active telecollaboration widened their picture of understanding their own and other cultures in the context of global understanding and mutual respect.