Teaching and Learning in a Time of Disruption: Global Competence, Digital Acceleration, and the Recalibration of Internationalization

The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the central mechanism through which universities have historically cultivated global competence (GC): international mobility and in-person intercultural engagement. This study defines GC as the ability to identify and solve problems through interaction and cooperation with people from diverse cultural backgrounds. Based on the definition, it examines how GC can be sustained, supplemented, or transformed in digitally mediated environments. Drawing on mixed-methods qualitative data collected between 2022 and 2024, including semi-structured faculty interviews (n = 5) in the United States and Taiwan and student surveys and interviews (n = 28) from the United States, Europe, and Taiwan, the study analyzes the affordances and constraints of online and hybrid modalities for internationalization. Findings based on the data analysis suggest that while digital platforms expanded access to cross-border dialogue and accelerated digital literacy, they did not replicate the embodied, immersive dimensions of study abroad. Students reported psychological strain, motivational challenges, and diminished social integration, alongside gains in self-discipline and online communication skills. Faculty observed widened engagement gaps among undergraduates and deficiencies in collaborative and practice-oriented learning. Across regions, generational characteristics of digital native students appeared more salient than national differences. The pandemic appears to have recalibrated rather than created core competencies associated with GC, underscoring the need for strategically designed hybrid models that preserve experiential depth while leveraging digital flexibility.