Virtual exchanges for intercultural communication development: Using can-do statements for ICC self-assessment

ABSTRACT In a 6-week synchronous virtual exchange, 106 participants self-assessed themselves on proficiency benchmarks and performance indicators before and after the exchange by answering open-ended questions and utilizing Can-Do Statements for Intercultural Communication (NCSSFL-ACTFL. 2017a. NCSSFL-ACTFL Can-Do statements proficiency benchmarks. https://www.actfl.org/sites/default/files/CanDos/Intercultural%20Can-Do_Statements.pdf ). This study laid groundwork for the NCSSFL-ACTFL (2017a. NCSSFL-ACTFL Can-Do statements proficiency benchmarks. https://www.actfl.org/sites/default/files/CanDos/Intercultural%20Can-Do_Statements.pdf ) Can-Do Statements as this was the first study to utilize them for intercultural communication. Qualitative data showed how this exchange promoted twenty-first-century Skills for today’s learner (Partnership for 21st Century Skills. 2011. 21st century skills map. Washington, DC. https://www.actfl.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/21stCenturySkillsMap/p21_worldlanguagesmap.pdf ) while quantitative results showed significant average differences between pre- and post-surveys for 7 of the 10 Can-Do categories.