VEs make it possible for learners to develop many different skills and competences in a real, problem-based collaboration project. While focus is on project goals (e.g., designing presentations together, conducting (mini) research, working on activity or lesson plans together, developing assessment tools, etc.) learners develop their foreign language knowledge, digital competences, intercultural or global competences (Lewis & O’Dowd, 2016). They may also display their digital competencies and skills for building a community (Dooly & Sadler, 2013; Kóris et al., 2020b.). In a VE project, communication, negotiation, and project outcome-related work is the responsibility of the student participants, but the processes are overseen and facilitated by their instructors. This means that throughout a VE project, learners frequently and actively keep in touch and work on all project-related issues together in the project’s lingua franca, English.

VEs involve the use of multiple technologies in a learner-centred way. For example, a seminar group of learners from a Spanish and Hungarian university worked together in an ESP-related course to tackle common European economy-related problems between Spain and Hungary (Kóris et al., 2020a). After a socialisation and teambuilding phase, teams of fours were created (two Spanish and two Hungarian students per group) who worked together to research a sub-area of said economy-related problems (e.g., the EU’s foreign trade, common currency). The ultimate goal was to put together a final video presentation, which was played, discussed by and reflected on by peers at the end of the semester. Selected students were also asked to provide a strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) analysis in reflection of the project. The majority of these students who were asked to provide their detailed reflections on the VE project said that they enjoyed the innovative learning experience, reported gains in foreign language knowledge and academic skills, but also mentioned some uneven workloads and much more invested time compared to if the course had been a regular university course (Kóris et al., 2020a).

Additionally, in a Turkish-Hungarian VE project focusing on the TPACK development of pre-service EFL teachers, Kaçar and Fekete (2021) designed a course in which teams of two or three students worked together on an ICT-inclusive microteaching activity plan. In the preparatory stage of the projects, both Turkish and Hungarian students received instruction on the underpinnings of using ICT in the EFL classrooms and had the chance to try certain applications, websites and programmes in a hands-on learning environment. During this phase, the students were also engaged in teambuilding activities. After pairing or grouping learners, the teams designed their activity plans, which were peer- and instructor-evaluated. Then, the teams updated or redesigned their activity plans following the reflections, which resulted in a second, final version of the plans. At the end of the semester, learners were required to put together a reflective portfolio, which was evaluated by both instructors (Kaçar & Fekete, 2021). To illustrate the complexity of the project and the technologies used, Figure 4 details what tasks were undertaken by the instructor-facilitators and the learners of the VE project in question. Based on the analysis of the reflective portfolios and the feedback received through an anonymous feedback channel post-project, most learners reported gains in foreign language knowledge, technological-pedagogical knowledge, teaching methodological knowledge as well as expressed that they enjoyed the collaboration experience with their team members, which resulted in friendships. However, some students expressed that the project was time-consuming, and not every team could develop a friendly work atmosphere that resulted in negative attitudes towards joint work (Kaçar & Fekete, 2021).