The study presented here is trying to understand the nature of human communication and learning in online synchronous communities within higher education in Sweden. The preliminary findings from the pilot study draws upon empirical material that consist of 12 sessions of approximately 30 minutes each, that are part of an “Italian for beginners” language online course. These sessions take place once a week over a period of one semester.
Our study focuses upon interaction in the virtual classroom as a community of practice where students participate without teacher intervention. Our interests here relate to accounting for what communicative strategies are employed by students who are dealing with a common task without teacher supervision, and how these activities are negotiated within the constraints and opportunities accorded in the multimodal multilingual virtual setting. Taking sociocultural theoretical points of departure, we are currently analyzing how students create meaning in language learning using tools that allow them to interact when they have access to multimodal resources.
Preliminary findings suggest that the students interact in the online videoconferencing environment using communication strategies in a rather flexible manner. Examples of the use of different modes – i.e. instant messaging, whiteboard and audio – and different codes will be presented. These highlight the complexity of communication in online communities of practice.