Managing Study Abroad During a Global Pandemic

Described in this chapter is an innovative online course that was created to support Spanish language students whose study abroad program was cancelled during the summer of 2020 due to the pandemic. While many students were able to enroll quickly in summer online language course offerings at their home campus to substitute for their study abroad coursework, students who were scheduled to complete field experiences in Spain as part of their certificate in Spanish for Professionals were unable to do so. In response to this problem, the author created an online professional practicum course to substitute for students' service-learning course in Spain. The design, development, and delivery of the online course, which featured a virtual language exchange between students in the U.S. and Spain, is the focus of the present chapter. Also described in this chapter is the conceptual framework that underpins sound instructional design for online communicative language teaching.

Constructive Disequilibrium and Transformative Pedagogy

In this reflective essay we examined the experiences of a group of students from a small liberal arts college in the United States on a study abroad program to the Marshall Islands to intern as preservice teachers in Marshallese schools. Specifically, we examined 32 students’ critical reflections written once they returned from their programs. We interrogated their understanding of themselves regarding their privilege as American students and the inequality between the two nations. Through their teaching of Marshallese students, they deeply questioned the meaning of privilege, culture, identity, and community. We interpreted these experiences through the lens of transformative learning theory and the notion of constructive disequilibrium. When critical-transformative pedagogies inform these experiences, they nudge students out of their comfort zone and offer them opportunities to consider new possibilities that widen their life trajectories and develop global citizenship. We conclude with advocating for the importance of study abroad experiences.

Investigating the impact of a semester-long study abroad program on L2 reading and vocabulary development

This study investigates the impact that a semester-long study abroad program has on the L2 reading and vocabulary development of a group of Catalan/Spanish bilinguals learning English as an L2 (n = 30). Another objective is to determine whether gains in participants’ vocabulary and reading – if any – are related to their initial L2 proficiency and L2 vocabulary level. Participants were administered (1) a reading text, (2) the Updated Vocabulary Levels Test, (3) a written essay, (4) a placement test and (5) an online questionnaire before and after their SA experiences. The results suggest that the sojourn was positive for participants’ reading comprehension, receptive vocabulary and lexical accuracy, but not for reading fluency, lexical fluency, lexical density and lexical sophistication. It was also found that the students’ initial L2 vocabulary and proficiency level were related to gains in receptive vocabulary and reading comprehension.

Norwegian nursing students’ experiences of theoretical and clinical studies in Tanzania: A descriptive qualitative study

Internationalization has been a priority in higher education for several decades. No studies reporting nursing students’ learning experiences from both theoretical and clinical studies in Africa were identified. The study aimed to describe learning experiences of Norwegian nursing students after participating in a study-abroad program that includes theoretical and clinical studies in Tanzania. A qualitative descriptive design was chosen. Five group interviews were carried out from 2013–2016. The students entered new ground; they were in a challenging learning process but most of all they experienced personal and professional growth. The students increased their cultural competence, enabling them to meet patients and relatives from foreign cultures more open-mindedly. Being part of a student group, sharing experiences and reflecting on these are crucial for personal and professional growth. Returning home and experiencing a kind of ‘reverse culture shock’ underlines the importance of debriefing shortly after return to their home university.

Near Peers Impacting Local Thai Tutors’ Intercultural Communication Competence Development

Most study-abroad research has focused on visitors’ development overseas; however, fewer studies have investigated hosts’ development through intergroup contact experience in home environments. This study, which is situated within a larger project, builds on earlier research (see Deacon & Pholboon, 2020) that examined the intercultural communication competence (ICC) development of 8 local Thai tutor hosts (N = 8) who were buddy partnered with 8 Japanese university student visitors during a short-term study-abroad program. In the present study, a qualitative semi-structured interview approach helped to determine the effect and influence that one significant factor, near-peer role models (NPRMs), had on tutor hosts’ cognitive, affective, and behavioral dimensions in their “Internationalization-at-Home” context. Findings revealed the perceived impact that previous senpai tutor NPRMs had had on present tutors’ L2 self-efficacy, imagined and actual cross-cultural friendships, and ICC ability. Implications for effectively supporting hosts’ ICC development in local environments are offered. 従来の留学研究は、訪問者側の成長に焦点を合わせることが多かったが、自国環境における異種集団との接触を通じた受入側の成長を調査する研究は少なかった。本論は、短期留学中の8人の日本人大学生とバディを組んだ受入側8人のタイ人チューター(N=8)を対象とした異文化コミュニケーション能力に関する先行研究(Deacon & Pholboon, 2020) に基づいている。本論は質的な半構造化面接により、身近なロールモデルの存在が 重要な要素として受入側 チューターの「内なる国際化」における認知的、情緒的、行動的な側面に影響を及ぼすことを明らかにした。結果として、過去の先輩チューターのロールモデルが、現チューターの第二言語における自己効力感や、想像上または実際の異文化を超えた友情、そして異文化コミュニケーション能力に影響をもたらすことがわかった。本論は、受入側の異文化コミュニケーション能力の向上を効果的に支援するための示唆を与えるものである。

Supporting Learning During Short-Term Study Abroad: Evaluating a Pedagogical Intervention

This paper will discuss a pedagogical intervention that was implemented during a short-term study abroad program conducted in the summer of 2019 to Brisbane, Australia. The aim was to create a deeper learning experience by encouraging participants to actively engage with their study abroad communities in the target language and to reflect on their experiences. The effectiveness of the intervention, titled the Challenges Project, is considered through an analysis of the reflection reports students wrote as part of the intervention, as well as responses to a post-program feedback questionnaire. From this analysis the paper suggests that the effectiveness of the intervention could have been strengthened by providing more support of the reflection process before, during, and after the study abroad program. Specific recommendations for how this can be achieved are given. 本論文は、短期留学プログラムにおける学生の留学経験をより有意義なものにすることを目指して、2019年夏にオーストラリア・ブリスベンでの短期留学期間中に実施した教育的介入について分析した。その教育的介入では、筆者が参加者に対して、留学先のコミュニティと対象言語を使って積極的に関わることを目的としたアクティビティへの参加とその経験について振り返ることを促した。ここでは、介入の一環として参加学生が留学中に書いた振り返りレポートの内容分析および帰国後に行ったアンケート調査の分析結果から介入の効果を考察した。分析からは、留学開始前・留学中・留学後の各過程において、振り返りのあり方に関するサポートをより充実させることによって、教育的介入の効果を高めることができるという結論に至った。教育的介入においては、学生の振り返り活動をどのようにして支えればよいかに関する具体的な方法を提示する。