Digital Identities and Study Abroad: Teaching Intercultural Competence through Social Media Literacy

Social media platforms are contemporary spaces where selves are revealed and exposed in reciprocity. By imagining digital communication, technology use, and online representation in the same vein as we discuss the experiences of the physical self, the ability to adapt across cultures becomes a skill to hone online as well as in person. As such, digital media is a prime learning tool that practitioners in the field can utilize to reach their target student population no matter their physical location and during each phase of the study abroad process. In this way, study abroad offices can fulfill a mission that goes beyond the logistics of travel in order to concentrate attention on the development of student intercultural competencies

The Negotiation of Writing in a Plurilingual Country: An Ethnography of the Malian Literary Scene

In the West African country of Mali, fourteen languages are recognized by the constitution as official. Of these, one is French, the language of the former colonial power, and the other thirteen are indigenous African languages. These languages have traditionally been used for oral communication and storytelling, but as the technology of writing has been introduced, the languages have been codified and used by some writers in creative writing. This thesis explores the reasons writers in this plurilingual environment select the language in which they write. It provides a portrait of how writers perceive their role in the traditionally oral culture of Mali. Through an examination of connected institutions such as education and development, my work exposes the different forces that shape the choices made by these writers