Context, Background and Objectives Social media have changed the way people communicate. F2FCult, From Facebook to Face2Face: Cross-Cultural relations through Social Media and Beyond, is a project that incorporates social media in the learning environment, by involving the cross-cultural communication and relationship between (vocational) high-school students in Croatia and Iceland, both on-line, via Facebook and other social media, and in person, with students from each country visiting the others. Thus, social media is not solely used for the purpose of cross-cultural interaction, but also as a vital part of the teaching and learning environment, creating a new dimension in the social learning space. It empowers foreign language classes by improving and enhancing all four language skills for the autonomous language learners, and broadens their cultural competences and interests, networking and exchanging information and personal impressions relating to their fields of interest. MK has been at the forefront in the use of digital technology in teaching and learning in Iceland. This development has to a great extent been driven by the language departments at the school, and in recent years, language teachers have been adding social media to the learning environment. The key person involved, Dr Eggertsson in Iceland and Ms Magda Maver in Croatia, met at a European Centre for Modern Languages workshop on Action Research in November 2016 and have since been working on a joint project where Facebook is not only a place for social interaction, but an active learning environment where students find and submit assignments and projects. Methodology The methodology focuses on activating the students in their own learning, for instance, by giving them active roles and full opportunity for self-expression, encouraging them to develop their new language and learning beyond the classroom, increasing their self-motivation and participation, providing a greater integration of all necessary skills including communication, providing links with the outside world through realistic situations, and increasing the students' critical thinking. The teachers must have the flexibility and the patience to explain the material until it is fully understood, and should use additional tools for teaching including excursions to cultural and historical sights. Number and profile of participants Up to 30 students, aged 15-19, will be involved directly with F2FCult. The students in Croatia have been attending 1st and 2nd grade of Secondary school for civil engineering, studying to become land surveyors, architectural technicians and civil engineering technicians. The Icelandic students all belong to the new International Line, where they are learning about international relations, among other things. Both groups of students will enhance their networking and collaboration skills, as well as their technological know-how through cross-cultural digital projects. Expected results F2FCult is expected to increase the students' English skills and to build a bridge of friendship between the students involved and subsequently a better understanding of the different traditions and cultures that form our lives and our attitudes. The social and networking aspect of the project, and consequently the academic one, will be strengthened by t school visit from each country to the other, as the suspense prior to the visits will increase the students' interests in their work, and their post-visit relationship will support the continuing engagement to the work. This will hopefully lead to lifelong transnational friendships between some students, and at least a better understanding between young people of European countries that would generally be unlikely to become acquainted with one another. Furthermore, F2FCult is expected to help increase the students' understanding of the European Project, which would make them better prepared for a future as citizens in open and free democratic countries. The organizations will gain experience working together, hopefully building a lasting relationship, which will bring in new generations of organisers and students, leading to a shared wealth of teaching knowledge. On a local level, this collaboration might lead to further partnerships between schools in Split and Kópavogur, and possibly even to a formal twinned relationship between the two municipalities. On a national level, we hope to strengthen the cultural bond and alliance between Iceland and Croatia, created in 1991 when Iceland became the first western state to acknowledge the independent sovereignty of Croatia. On an international level, we hope that the project will inspire other teachers to use social media to facilitate and enhance the learning environment for the next generation of learners.
The context of the project and its major field is strategic partnerships. Its key action is cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices. Social media have changed the way people communicate. F2FCult, From Facebook to Face2Face: Cross-Cultural relations through Social Media and Beyond, is a project that incorporates social media in the learning environment, by involving the cross-cultural communication and relationship between (vocational) high-school students in Croatia and Iceland, both on-line, via Facebook and other social media, and in person, with students from each country visiting the others. Thus, social media is not solely used for the purpose of cross-cultural interaction, but also as a vital part of the teaching and learning environment, creating a new dimension in the social learning space. The project involved cross cultural communications and relationship between high school students in Croatia and Iceland both on-line and via Facebook and other social media. The Croatian school Graditeljska geodeska is a civil engineering school. It has many fields in form of architecture, civil engineering and land surveying. Menntaskolinn Kopavogur-school in Iceland is a grammar school, hospitality and culinary school and its motivation is to give best academic and vocational education. The school has been in the forefront of the use of digital technology in teaching and learning in Iceland. The Croatian students were 10 in total and attended the 1st and 2nd grade of the secondary school for civil engineering, studying to become land surveyors, architectural technicians and civil engineering technicians. The Icelandic students, 13 in total, all belonged to the international line where the learned about international relations among other subjects. Communication between partnering groups was done one line, via Facebook and other social media. Also in person were students from each country visited each other. Social media is a vital part of teaching and the whole learning environment. Assignments and project were shared in a common Facebook group between the students in Iceland and Croatia. That created a new dimension of in the social learning space. It empowers foreign language classes by improving language skills, broadening their cultural competences and overall interest in different cultures. Students get better at networking and exchanging information and personal impressions relating to their fields of interest. They got an impressive training in filming cultural city sights and events and many other thing regarding their work together on projects that increased their social and language skills. Both groups of students enhanced their networking and collaboration skills, as well as their technological know-how by using cross cultural digital projects. The project F2FCult built a bridge of friendship between the students and gave them a better understanding of their different traditions and cultures. They learned how lives and attitudes are formed by the culture and environment we live in. Some students became friends for life with the help of social media while others have good memories of the project and will help them, as they grow older, to become a better citizen in their own country as well as seeing themselves as citizens of Europe were democracy is a strong part of their trait and tradition.