Walking in English Learners' Shoes

This chapter reports on a university short-term study abroad immersion experience in Costa Rica for preservice teachers. Qualitative data from instructors' field notes and participants' photo blogs, exit interviews, and formal course evaluations were analyzed for evidence of expressions of empathy for English Learners (ELs), resolve to use effective teaching strategies with ELs, personal growth and cross-cultural awareness. Findings show that participants demonstrated empathy that was linked to personal and professional growth as a future teacher. The course's design strategically causing authentic physical and emotional struggles similar to ELs' with purposefully facilitated reflection time to address feelings and experiences was effective in achieving overall course goals.

International Service-Learning

International Service-Learning (ISL) is a structured service-learning experience in another country where students learn from interaction, cross-cultural dialogue, and reflection. This humanistic pedagogy was utilized at the University of Canterbury after earthquakes rocked Christchurch, New Zealand (NZ) in 2010 and 2011. The present comparative-case study examined United States (US), European Union (EU), and Kiwi students' transformative learning through working together in a university-based ISL course designed around re-building Christchurch. Data were analyzed through the Kiely's (2005) Transformative Service-Learning Model. The findings of this study contribute new elements to the dimension of the model and argue that the concept of global citizenship may better explain a mixed cohort of international students' service-learning experiences in a post-disaster setting. Implications to the study's findings and recommendations for future research are briefly discussed.

Fostering Global Citizenship in Higher Education

Despite growing public awareness, health systems are struggling under the escalating burden of non-communicable diseases. Arguably, one must place themselves within the broader/global context to begin to truly understand the health implications of personal choices. Fostering a ‘global citizen' perspective among graduates has become an integral part of the Higher Education (HE) discourse; this discourse can and should be extended to include global health. A global citizen is someone who is aware of global issues, socially responsible, and civically engaged. From this perspective, personal health is not solely an individual, self-serving act. Rather, the consequences of lifestyle choices and behaviours have far-reaching implications. This chapter details: (a) the development of an international global health course designed to foster global citizenship; (b) the research-led pedagogy; (c) the methods of student evaluation; and (d) the importance of such a course within the broader context of HE.

Value Co-Creation in Faculty-Led Study Abroad Programs

Study Abroad (SA) education has become an increasingly important educational program for teaching global learning and intercultural competence, maturity, and sensitivity of students. Since the price tag attached to SA programs can be daunting, the question arises how value can be defined and, more importantly, how value is created. Some scholars have used the principles of service-dominant logic proposed by Vargo and Lusch (2004) to suggest that students should be engaged as an active co-creator of the university experience. Utilizing a qualitative research approach this chapter proposes that the value process of SA programs consists of three stages: (1) value proposition and potential; (2) resource integration and value co-creation; and (3) value realization evaluation. This study identifies key roles of the participants and their operand and operant resources that guide the value co-creation process. The framework provides faculty with a way to understand, adapt, and manage resource integration and influence students' SA value realization processes.

Encountering Unfamiliar Educational Practices Abroad

As internationalization efforts intensify across the globe, the number of students who are studying outside their home country for part of their tertiary education has increased significantly. The vast majority of students from East Asian nations (Hong Kong SAR, Japan, Korea, Macau SAR, Mainland China, and Taiwan) study in a second language while abroad, with English the most common medium-of-instruction. As institutions of Higher Education (HE) in other regions compete for students from this part of the world, increasingly, questions are being raised about what students gain from outbound mobility programs. Scholars have drawn attention to the need for systematic empirical research that critically examines the experiences of student sojourners in order to determine the most effective ways to support and enhance their learning (e.g., linguistic, cognitive, social, academic, (inter)cultural, and professional).

Integrating Study Abroad in Teacher Education

This chapter describes the design of an innovative ‘Study Abroad' curriculum to be integrated into teacher education departments. The curriculum is based upon the results of in-depth interviews administered to teacher candidates and/or practicing teachers of English following their return from a study abroad program. The curriculum is designed with a view to meeting the needs of prospective study abroad student teachers of English, and to address possible challenges that may result from their participation in such programs. The most innovative aspect of the curriculum is that it incorporates problem scenarios, and provides experiential hands-on practice. The curriculum comprises ten modules, each focused on a different topic. It is expected that the curriculum will enhance teacher educators' awareness of the contribution(s) study abroad makes to create global citizens, and increase teacher educators' knowledge about the learning needs of prospective study abroad student teachers.

Beyond Accommodations

Colleges and universities have increasingly worked to provide an international curriculum acknowledging that students must be prepared to deal with international issues in a globalized world. Study abroad programs provide students with opportunities to learn about cultural and linguistic systems outside the United States (US). While scholarship on learning outcomes associated with study abroad programs is emerging, inquiry into offerings that employ critical disability studies perspectives acknowledge power and intersectionality is absent. The inclusion of these frameworks provide opportunities to disrupt traditional, hegemonic, and ethnocentric understandings of knowledge and work to reflect the increasingly diverse demographics of college students. By examining the experiences of students on a short-term program to Brazil, the authors illustrate how disability studies, inclusive education, culturally relevant pedagogy and intersectionality address access, participation and learning outcomes to and about historically underrepresented groups.

Teaching Practicums Abroad

European student teachers have the opportunity to complete a work placement at a partner school in a target language country. The focus of this study was on 35 undergraduate preservice teachers who completed a teaching practicum placement in the United Kingdom (UK) and Ireland between 2010-2014. Data from five years of reflective reports were content analysed and complemented with focus group discussions after the students' stay abroad. This chapter briefly outlines the structure of the teaching practicums, delineates data collection and analysis methods, and discusses the results in order to gauge the potential of such experiences for students' intercultural learning and overall professional development. Results indicated an interconnection of categories with the ‘professionalization' of preservice teachers featuring most prominently.

Beyond Borders

International social work field education placements pose considerable challenges for students, educators, universities and host communities. Students may face conceptual challenges as international placements often occur in developing countries that rely upon collective rather than individual models of practice. contextual differences require staff and students to consider their new context and appropriate ways to interact and learn. This chapter draws upon the experiences of the authors in adopting different models with students over the years and concludes that the preferred approach is the partnership model where there is close collaboration between the ‘home' and ‘host' universities. We consider educational, organisational, personal and professional factors that students face while on international placements. This is followed by identification of different exchange models, and teaching and learning issues arising from culture, language, pedagogy, critical reflection and assessment. We argue that a Relational/Equitable Model is best suited to international social work field education placements.

International Medical Experiences Outbound New Zealand

Medical schools and colleges of medicine are increasingly highlighting the role of short-term outward mobility programs in the form of International Medical Experiences (IMEs). In this way, doctors acquire skills as they study or work outside their countries of training. Although many benefits have been reported about the role of these IMEs in staff development, few studies have linked these with national workforce strategies, national economic and diplomatic strategies. This chapter fills that gap by arguing how these IMEs can be used to meet New Zealand workforce challenges such as the emigration of this country's doctors, as well as national economic and diplomatic agendas of increasing trade with Asian countries. This chapter concludes by challenging key stakeholders of these experiences to increase support through a range of strategies: IME recognition in accreditation programs; policy action; student resourcefulness; and multi-stakeholder involvement in funding and promotion of IMEs.