Paper Title
INTERCULTURAL SENSITIVITY DEVELOPMENT AMONG UNIVERSITY STUDENTS ENGAGED IN COLLABORATIVE ONLINE INTERNATIONAL LEARNING

Abstract
Collaborative online international learning (COIL) is a pedagogical approach that brings together students from different countries through the use of various online technologies. A COIL project typically involves academics and students from different countries engaged in a shared project or activity. The benefit of such an engagement for university students are manifold, some of which include exposure to international learning, engagement with students from different cultural contexts and the opportunity to develop intercultural competencies such as intercultural sensitivity, awareness, communication and empathy. Intercultural sensitivity is crucial for the development of effective cross-cultural communication, the fostering of mutual understanding and the preparation of students to navigate the challenges and opportunities of the globalised world. This research explored the intercultural sensitivity of university students in South Africa engaged in a COIL project. The research adopted the Intercultural Sensitivity Scale developed by Chen and Starosta (2000) combined with a questionnaire to investigate whether there were any differences amongst the students in terms of intercultural sensitivity development pre and post the project participation. The instrument evaluates intercultural sensitivity in terms of five dimensions: (i) interaction engagement, (ii) interaction confidence, (iii) respect for cultural differences, (iv) interaction enjoyment and (v) interaction attentiveness. Keywords - Collaborative Online International Learning, Cross-Cultural Communication, Intercultural Sensitivity, University Students