Teaching inequality in Brazil: A study abroad exploration of race, class, gender, sexuality, and geography

This paper presents and analyzes a case study of a five-week study abroad course called Inequality in Brazil: An exploration of race, class, gender, sexuality, and geography. The course was constructed to teach social inequality in the context of Brazil by using place-based and experiential learning within the framework of critical pedagogy (Freire, 1989). By examining inequality through the lens of culture and geography, students were empowered to become student-teachers in their explorations of race, class, gender, and sexuality as they linked theory to practice and lived experience. This paper provides an example of how study abroad can be used to teach about issues of inequality by partnering with community members to build learning environments where students and community members can all benefit.

Book Review: Researching second language acquisition in the study abroad learning environment: An introduction for student researchers

Researching Second Language Acquisition in the Study Abroad Learning Environment: An Introduction for Student Researchers (Isabelli-García and Isabelli, 2020) presents an overview of some of the major topics relevant to research on study abroad. This book is intended to be a basic primer for advanced students and beginner professional researchers and serves to provide general orientation on various aspects ranging from language and interactional systems to research gaps in the topic area. The book gives a relatively thorough presentation on some of the scholarly perspectives on study abroad that can be used as a guidebook for anyone who is interested in conducting academic research in the area. While there are some shortcomings, the book does an excellent job of synthesizing some of the major scholarly themes that are relevant to study abroad. Consequently, this is a useful book not only for novel researchers but also for faculty or staff who are interested in organizing university study abroad programs and would like a more thorough background.

Study Abroad and Student Exchange Experiences of International Students: The Sociocultural and Psychological Racism Perspective

Malaysian students like to study abroad and experience the international exchanging programmes during their university voyage. Due to the technology and entertainment developments, South Korea is one of the popular education destinations for many international students, particularly Malaysian students. Based on the Sociocultural and Psychological-Racism perspective, this study's purpose focused on describing their challenges, academic experiences, and living experiences in South Korea. The results indicated that Chinese-Malaysian students experienced significant negative experiences, including discrimination based on their place of origin, cultural characteristics and social behaviours, and special background and status as non-traditional students. Although Malaysia and South Korea share similar East Asian practice, all participants regretted their study abroad experiences in South Korea. The findings of this study will contribute to the knowledge about the study abroad experiences of Malaysian students, overseas learning experiences, managerial developments of international students’ services, and the governmental policies for global views for the South Korean communities. Received: 6 August 2021 / Accepted: 7 October 2021 / Published: 3 January 2022

Global Education Beyond Immersion and Regimes of Mobility

This chapter suggests new approaches to global education based on ethnographic fieldworks of students' study abroad experience and a classroom project that challenges the binary opposition of “cultures” in the notion of immersion by drawing on the multi-scalar networks framework where individuals are seen to have multiple connections to others and by replacing the notion of “global competence” with “structural competence” that sees mundane practices as symptoms of wider structural arrangements. This chapter also challenges the double standard over mobility in “regimes of mobility” and argues for connecting study abroad and minority immigrant experiences on campus and including diverse programs within the purview of global education.

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.

Redefining Interaction in Study Abroad Programs

As international borders closed because of the COVID-19 pandemic, study abroad programs struggled to send students back to their home countries and to maintain academic continuity by transitioning from in-person to remote instruction. Afterwards, university administrators found themselves in the unenviable position of having to make decisions based on limited information regarding the feasibility and safety of allowing students to travel abroad. Uncertain mobility and visa processes, limited flights, health risks, and lack of preparedness for managing students abroad in a pandemic contributed to cancellations. Some programs remained open by reinventing their programming and procedures. In the meantime, those responsible for study abroad, both on home campuses and on international sites, began to examine different ways to provide opportunities to interact with first language (L1) speakers without physical proximity. This chapter focuses on how interaction has been redefined and adapted to limited in-person, hybrid, and virtual study abroad.

Sustainable Study Abroad

The number of business students in higher education pursuing an international experience continues to increase due to a range of opportunities offered by universities. International experiences lead to positive outcomes for students, but there is a misalignment between the countries sending students to the U.S. and the destinations chosen by U.S. students. Host countries selected by students for their international experience are the recipients of economic benefits, but they also are facing environmental and social consequences of over-tourism. As such, a more sustainable approach to the planning and selection of study abroad programs must be taken. This chapter reviews the data and trends for U.S. students studying abroad and international students studying in the U.S. and also looks more closely at the data for one large public university. Stakeholders are identified and the pros and cons of non-traditional study abroad destinations discussed. The chapter concludes by offering suggestions for designing programs in non-traditional study abroad destinations.