Virtual Global Experiences

The Virtual Global Experiences (VGE) program is designed to provide students with opportunities to collaborate with students around the world through virtual exchanges, commonly referred to as Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL).  Faculty develop a VGE module in one of their courses with an international colleague teaching a similar or related course at their university. The UMF and international students learn about each other’s country — their culture, history, political and economic systems — and collaborate through virtual platforms to plan an event or create a presentation that relates to their course and each participating country. The final product is then shown to students, whether it’s in a classroom setting or for the UMF community to enjoy.  Through collaboration on a small group project in each course, the students learn key skills sought after in our global economy, including:

• • Gain new global perspectives
  • Develop cultural self-awareness
  • Strengthen their intercultural competencies  

Fall 2023

Japan

Details coming soon!

Senegal

Details coming soon!

Spring 2023

University of Dakar (Senegal)

Details coming soon!

University of Nicosia (Greece)

Details coming soon!

Fall 2022

Stone Child College (United States)

Students in this anthropology course collaborated with students in Montana to create awareness for Indigenous Peoples’ Week, where community members came to campus and learned about indigenous peoples’ culture, history, and hear their voices as Maine is on Wabanaki land.

Conservatorio di Musica (Italy)

Students from the conservatory in Venice and UMF students colaborated to learn about Italian culture and history. Participating UMF students in the music course organized a community event celebrating Italian culture, where they presented a screening of “Invisible Cities: An Opera Set in Los Angeles Union Station”.

University of Ryukyu (Japan)

UMF students collaborated with students in Japan through virtual conversations, phone calls, and more to create, organize, and present a Japanese Cultural Event at UMF. This event included food originating from Japan, calligraphy tutorials, origami demonstrations, and a screening of an anime movie from Studio Ghibli.

Spring 2022

University of Nicosia in Cyprus (Greece)

Students in EDU 420 virtually collaborated with students from the University of Nicosia in Cyprus to learn about their culture, history, and how it affects their life today. At the end of the semester, the participating UMF students organized an event open to the UMF community to celebrate Cyprus’s culture. This outdoor celebration included authentic food, music, and more on UMF’s Mantor Green.

Fall 2021

Akita International University (Japan)

Psychology students learned about how Japanese culture creates conversations and discusses the dead, dying, and grieving in comparison and in contrast to the United States. At the end of the semester, students organized an event to watch a movie that confronts the idea of death, grief, and afterlife in media and participated in Forest Bathing, a Japanese meditation exercise.

Anglia Ruskin University (United Kingdom)

Students from both universities collaborated virtually to learn about the effects of a positive community and how events can bring them together. At the end of the semester, UMF students organized a bonfire on Fawkes Day to celebrate the U.K.’s annual holiday and bring the Farmington community together.

Universidad de Alicante (Spain)

UMF students in SPA 201H collaborated virtually with students from Spain to learn about their country’s history, culture, and customs so they could present it to the UMF community. As their final presentation, UMF students organized an evening of traditional Spanish dance and appetizers. This event brought traditional Spanish traditions to UMF for students to enjoy for free.

University of Ryukyu (Japan)

Students in EPP/GEO 238S: Forest Management: Science, Institutions, and Communities learned about the art of forest bathing as an appreciation for the physical environment while also tying the idea of self-empowerment. This, and more practices, were taught by students in Japan. UMF students led a forest bathing event in Farmington’s Flint Woods. Leading others through a successful experience taught students the effects of a community and how community and nature can come together.

Spring 2021

Hong Kong

Students in EDU 304 Science Education K-8 collaborated with students in Hong Kong to discuss different countries’ approaches to teaching science to children. Through video calls and other virtual communication platforms, students from both universities were put into groups to create lesson plans that they would present to their classes.

La Universidad Naciónal San Cristóbal de Huamanga (Peru)

UMF students in ANT 210, which studied cultures and contexts in Latin America, completed a virtual exchange with students in Peru. In order to learn more about Peru’s history and culture, UMF students watched films and discussed interesting points. Films shown in this course included:

• Wildest Latin America
• When Worlds Collide: The Untold Story of the Americas After Columbus
• Street Food Latin America: Salvador, Brazil
• Para sempre Chape
• When Two Worlds Collide
• Voices on the Road
• Hija de la Laguna
• The Edge of Democracy

Le Mans Université (France)

In GEO 219, which taught Maine’s unique geography and how it tells Maine’s past, present and future., students created presentations with students from France. In these presentations, students from both universities were put into small groups and collaborated virtually to research information on each country and find comparable geographical features that can be found in France and Maine. These presentations were presented in both classes through virtual video phone calls.