{"id":1062,"date":"2026-01-09T17:16:52","date_gmt":"2026-01-09T17:16:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/iro\/?p=1062"},"modified":"2026-01-12T14:12:16","modified_gmt":"2026-01-12T14:12:16","slug":"virtual-exchange-and-collaborative-online-international-learning-for-university-of-bath","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/iro\/2026\/01\/09\/virtual-exchange-and-collaborative-online-international-learning-for-university-of-bath\/","title":{"rendered":"Virtual Exchange and Collaborative Online International Learning for University of Bath"},"content":{"rendered":"

 <\/p>\n

Written by Dr Pete Manning, Senior Lecturer, Department of Social and Policy Sciences<\/em><\/p>\n

In August 2025, we received news that we had\u00a0secured a\u00a0<\/span>Fulbright Global Challenges Teaching Award<\/span><\/a> (CGTA) \u2013 the first such grant successfully awarded to the University of Bath. The Fulbright GCTAs partner UK\u00a0<\/span>and US universities in the co-delivery\u00a0of\u00a0teaching, where UK and US student counterparts are brought together\u00a0through an approach\u00a0known as\u00a0Collaborative Online International\u00a0Learning\u00a0(COIL)\u00a0\u2013\u00a0a form of\u00a0<\/span>Virtual Exchange<\/span><\/a>\u00a0(VE).\u00a0COIL and VE approaches promise significant\u00a0<\/span>benefits for\u00a0the student experience<\/span><\/a>\u00a0\u2013 and, indeed,\u00a0the\u00a0University\u00a0of Bath\u2019s wider\u00a0<\/span>internationalisation\u00a0strategy<\/span><\/a>\u00a0\u2013\u00a0such as\u00a0encouraging intercultural learning and dialogue;\u00a0forms of\u00a0(virtual)\u00a0mobility that remain accessible, inclusive, and affordable\u00a0to all students; and the development of\u00a0employability\u00a0and digital skills\u00a0that are increasingly crucial for\u00a0workforce readiness.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

With international collaboration and dialogue at their core, VE and COIL approaches lend themselves to\u00a0learning about and\u00a0tackling\u00a0urgent global challenges:\u00a0Fulbright has awarded four paired grants\u00a0to develop collaborative teaching\u00a0around\u00a0<\/span>misinformation, health\u00a0inequality, climate action, and peace and justice<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0University of Bath\u00a0was selected as the UK lead for the\u00a0peace and justice\u00a0award, and\u00a0has been partnered with\u00a0<\/span>Dr Sandy Marshall<\/span><\/a>\u00a0at\u00a0Elon University, North Carolina.\u00a0Innovative,\u00a0interdisciplinary\u00a0and inclusive teaching\u00a0are at the\u00a0heart\u00a0of Elon\u2019s\u00a0<\/span>mission<\/span><\/a>, and the university has been \u201c<\/span>\u2026ranked #1 in the nation for excellence in undergraduate teaching for a fifth straight year<\/span><\/a>\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Sandy, our teams, and I\u00a0have been\u00a0working closely\u00a0since September 2025\u00a0on the redevelopment of the Atrocities, Conflict, Human Rights unit\u00a0\u2013\u00a0a final year\u00a0option\u00a0on the\u00a0<\/span>BSc Criminology<\/span><\/a>\u00a0in the Department of Social and Policy Sciences\u00a0\u2013\u00a0in anticipation of\u00a0co-delivery in October\u00a0this year.\u00a0From the start, Sandy and I worried that existing research and teaching on issues of peace, conflict and justice\u00a0was struggling to keep up with the rapid geopolitical changes, challenges, and\u00a0crises that we have\u00a0witnessed\u00a0in\u00a0recent\u00a0years. We\u00a0saw technology\u00a0\u2013 especially\u00a0artificial intelligence\u00a0and the role of social media\u00a0\u2013 as\u00a0key\u00a0forces\u00a0shaping these changes that could pose significant threats, but also\u00a0potential\u00a0opportunities. We\u00a0agreed\u00a0that six weeks of collaborative online exchange between UK and US students\u00a0focusing on AI and social media in conflict and peace\u00a0would\u00a0offer a platform for students to learn with and from each other,\u00a0encouraging mutual understanding,\u00a0while\u00a0equipping students to tackle issues of\u00a0conflict, peace and justice\u00a0with a greater empathy and respect for difference.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"
Dr Manning meeting with students on his visit to Elon University (Photo credit: Sandy Marshall)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As part of the award, I conducted an institutional visit to Elon in October 2025, giving guest lectures and seminars\u00a0to Elon undergraduates, meeting colleagues across Elon\u2019s\u00a0College of Arts and Sciences, presenting my own research,\u00a0while working with Sandy on our\u00a0VE\/COIL\u00a0project. I was struck by\u00a0Elon\u00a0students\u2019 curiosity and insight,\u00a0as well as the\u00a0commitment to high quality and engaging teaching among staff.\u00a0There is much to learn from the partnership\u00a0with Elon, from\u00a0their\u00a0work\u00a0<\/span>reflecting on and promoting global learning internationally<\/span><\/a>, to more locally\u00a0focused\u00a0engagement\u00a0that brings Elon\u00a0faculty\u00a0into dialogue with its immediate community and their histories, such as the\u00a0<\/span>Power and Place Collaborative<\/span><\/a>\u00a0\u2013\u00a0often\u00a0utilising\u00a0<\/span>student led and participatory approaches to\u00a0learn about\u00a0(often challenging) local stories and issues<\/span><\/a>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Sandy and colleagues from Elon University\u2019s international and\u00a0learning technology\u00a0teams will be reciprocating with a visit to the University of Bath around 19-23 March,\u00a0for meetings and co-presentations.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Going forward,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Fulbright encourage\u00a0GCTA\u00a0grant holders to explore ways to scale up and multiply their\u00a0learning from their\u202finitial\u202fVE\/COIL\u00a0projects for the benefit of others at their\u00a0respective\u00a0institutions.\u00a0We have one eye on this\u00a0task\u00a0with\u00a0our\u00a0recent award of a Humanities and Social Sciences Teaching Development Fund project,\u00a0\u201cDeveloping VE\/COIL approaches for internationalisation at University of Bath\u201d\u00a0(with\u00a0<\/span>Marie Salter<\/span><\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span>Emily Richards<\/span><\/a>).\u202fOur central aim is to\u00a0raise awareness of the benefits of\u00a0VE\/COIL approaches\u00a0to teaching\u00a0and the student experience, while producing a guide and resources to make VE\/COIL\u00a0uptake\u00a0as accessible and straightforward\u00a0as possible for colleagues across the University.\u00a0Our\u00a0plan\u00a0then\u00a0is\u00a0to recruit a group of \u2018pilot\u2019 or\u00a0\u2018second wave\u2019\u00a0VE\/COIL projects\u00a0for rollout in the Academic Years 2026\/27 and 2027\/28.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

If you are interested in talking about VE\/COIL \u2013 or becoming involved in the \u201cDeveloping VE\/COIL approaches for internationalisation at University of Bath\u201d Teaching Development Fund project \u2013 please contact me on the link below.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"""\"
Skylight of Elon University atrium (Photo credit: Pete Manning)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

  Written by Dr Pete Manning, Senior Lecturer, Department of Social and Policy Sciences In August 2025, we received news that we had\u00a0secured a\u00a0Fulbright Global Challenges Teaching Award (CGTA) \u2013 the first such grant successfully awarded to the University of...<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1322,"featured_media":1065,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[5,16,134],"tags":[],"coauthors":[88],"class_list":["post-1062","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-award","category-partnership","category-virtual-exchange"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/iro\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/98\/2026\/01\/IMG_6352-Copy_a.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/iro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1062","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/iro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/iro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/iro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1322"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/iro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1062"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/iro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1062\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/iro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1065"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/iro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1062"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/iro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1062"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/iro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1062"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/iro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=1062"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}