As a consequence of globalization and internationalization, there has been a dramatic increase in the number and diversity of students who are gaining international educational experience. Making connections between contemporary study abroad research, theory, and practice, Intercultural Interventions in Study Abroad describes innovative programmes that have been designed to deepen the intercultural learning and engagement of student sojourners. In addition to reviewing the benefits and limitations of these interventions, this volume offers recommendations for further enhancements in the field. Exploring examples of intercultural interventions in a wide variety of countries from pre- to post-study abroad, this book helps readers develop a critical awareness of their strengths and limitations, and provides directions for future developments in intercultural pedagogy. Written by intercultural educators and study abroad scholars from different parts of the world, each chapter describes an innovative pedagogical intervention that has been designed to enhance intercultural learning and engagement, including: designing and implementing pre-sojourn intercultural workshops; using guided, critical reflection to deepen students' intercultural learning and engagement; monitoring class interaction to maximize intercultural learning; optimizing intercultural learning and engagement abroad through online mentoring. Truly international in scope, this text is essential for study abroad professionals who seek to enhance the intercultural development, global-mindedness, and second-language learning of students through innovative intercultural programming.

This comprehensive volume provides a state-of-the-art overview of the key issues and developments in study abroad research and practice with a specific focus on the intercultural and language learning dimensions of the study abroad experience. Rather than looking at individual studies, the book seeks to capture the full complexity of the language learning and intercultural dynamics of study abroad by exploring a wide range of topics of particular interest to study abroad researchers and practitioners, including the role of individual differences, identity reconstruction and interculturality, the challenges of assessing learning outcomes, and recent pedagogical interventions designed to enhance and extend language learning and engagement in these contexts. The volume also takes a step back to look at future directions for study abroad research and offers innovative interventions in study abroad programming that emphasise its intercultural elements. This book is an authoritative resource for study abroad scholars and researchers in such fields as intercultural communication, applied linguistics, sociolinguistics, and language education.

With the increasing focus on international education and study abroad programmes, Online Intercultural Education and Study Abroad meets the need for a text that addresses ways in which technology may be harnessed to enhance student experience. Combining case studies with theoretical insights, this book critically investigates the effectiveness of a fully online study abroad intervention that was designed to optimise intercultural learning in an international context. Intercultural education researchers and practitioners are provided with theory-based practical ideas such as eLearning strategies and online mentoring tips to help students maximise their intercultural education journey, intercultural competence development, and social engagement while abroad. Both practical and research-focused, this volume considers a wide range of topics, including: Contemporary notions of experiential learning Guided critical reflection through e-mentoring A social contructivist orientation towards eLearning pedgagogy Tools to help understand and measure learner development abroad Online Intercultural Education and Study Abroad is suitable for both novice and experienced study abroad practitioners, researchers, and administrators. Satisfying the growing interest in using eLearning within study abroad programmes, this book will be a necessary point of reference for any institution that aims to enhance international educational experience, especially through the use of technology.

A central purpose of this book is to question the claims commonly made about the educational benefits of study abroad. Traditional metrics of enrollment increases and student self-report, and practices of structural immersion, are being questioned as educators voice growing uncertainty about what students are or are not in fact learning abroad. This book looks into whether these criticisms are justified—and what can be done if they are.The contributors to this book offer a counter-narrative to common views that learning takes place simply through students studying elsewhere, or through their enrolling in programs that take steps structurally to “immerse” them in the experience abroad.Student Learning Abroad reviews the dominant paradigms of study abroad; marshals rigorous research findings, with emphasis on recent studies that offer convincing evidence about what undergraduates are or are not learning; brings to bear the latest knowledge about human learning and development that raises questions about the very foundations of current theory and practice; and presents six examples of study abroad courses or programs whose interventions apply this knowledge. This book provokes readers to reconsider long-held assumptions, beliefs and practices about teaching and learning in study abroad and to reexamine the design and delivery of their programs. In doing so, it provides a new foundation for responding to the question that may faculty and staff are now asking: What do I need to know, and what do I need to be able to do, to help my students learn and develop more effectively abroad? Contributors:Laura BathurstMilton BennettGabriele Weber BosleyJohn EngleLilli Engle Tara HarveyMitchell HammerDavid KolbBruce La Brack Kris Hemming LouKate McClearyCatherine MenyhartR. Michael PaigeAngela PassarelliAdriana Medina-López PortilloMeghan QuinnJennifer Meta RobinsonRiikka SalonenVictor SavickiDouglas StuartMichael Vande BergJames ZullWhile the authors who have contributed to Student Learning Abroad are all known for their work in advancing the field of education abroad, a number have recently been honored by leading international education associations. Bruce La Brack received NAFSA’s 2012 Teaching, Learning and Scholarship Award for Innovative Research and Scholarship. Michael Paige (2007) and Michael Vande Berg (2012) are recipients of the Forum on Education Abroad’s Peter A. Wollitzer Award.

Over the past three decades, the population of international students throughout the world has steadily increased. Although university students choose to study in locations other than their home country for a variety of reasons, including professional development and disciplinary training, nearly all education abroad programs have intercultural learning as a central goal. In this Element, perspectives derived from cross-cultural psychological research are applied to an investigation of the effectiveness of study abroad as a mechanism for intercultural learning. Effectiveness is broadly defined and includes not only overall favorable program outcomes, such as gains in intercultural skills, knowledge, attitudes, and awareness, but also a recognition that study abroad experiences and outcomes may vary depending upon participants' diverse and intersectional identities. Best practices for facilitating intercultural learning through study abroad are identified and strategies are outlined for addressing the methodological challenges of research in this area.

Comprehensive and evidence-based, this book presents the best practices for designing and sustaining study abroad programs to maximize the outcomes and benefits of education abroad for all students. Distilling the history, research, and variations of study abroad programs, Goertler and Schenker provide a clear-eyed analysis of the lessons learned and the common obstacles associated with education abroad. Organized in three parts – the state of education abroad in the US; research on education abroad outcomes; and best practices – Goertler and Schenker demonstrate the benefits of long-term study abroad for the development of advanced language skills and intercultural competence, and the need for diversity in participation. Chapters offer theory-based, practice-proven recommendations to invigorate, innovate, and implement successful study abroad programs that are sustainable and ethically engage with the local community. The authors discuss design features to maximize language proficiency and intercultural competence. Grounded in up-to-date research and theory, the book responds to the challenges associated with long-term education abroad programs and provides recommendations on (re)invigorating long-term programs and diversifying participation in education abroad. From Study Abroad to Education Abroad is vital reading for academics, researchers, and students in the fields of language education and education policy, as well as practitioners, such as language program coordinators and education abroad administrators.

Focusing on the actual experiences of L2 students who travelled from their homes to foreign lands as part of a faculty-led, short-term SA program, the author explores the linkage between intercultural awareness and sensitivity, language development (e.g., sociopragmatic awareness), and identity reconstruction in young adult L2 learners.

Do you think that communicating across cultural boundaries is a necessary skill in today's globalized economy? Do you believe that immersion in another culture automatically means becoming interculturally competent? Have you ever wondered why students sometimes come back from their placement abroad with negative stereotypes confirmed? What can universities do to ensure that students develop these skills? If these are issues you want to address, then reading this book may help you in finding relevant answers. This book provides a theory-based insight on why intercultural competence acquisition does not happen automatically when a student is exposed to a different organizational and host country culture environment, but requires well-designed intervention measures. The chapters present a comprehensive, but scalable support structure for students on work placements abroad based on the outcomes of the university-enterprise cooperation project SKILL2E. In this project seven universities and five enterprises from Austria, Finland, Spain, Romania, Turkey, the UK and the US have collaborated in designing a framework that supports intercultural learning for students on work placements abroad. These intervention measures include pre-departure training to raise awareness regarding sensitive issues in different organizational and host country cultures, guided reflection during and after the placement to trigger deeper learning, a model for cultural mentoring, and an evaluation concept to measure the effectiveness of the interventions in order to continuously improve. Real examples demonstrate how universities can prepare graduates for the networked workplace of tomorrow and how enterprises can integrate and benefit from the innovation and productivity potential of diversity.

This book explores the notion of interculturality in education and supports scholars in their discovery of the notion. Continuing the author’s previous work, the book urges (communication) education researchers and educators to 'interculturalize' interculturality. This book corresponds to the authors’ endeavor to complexify the way interculturality is discussed, expressed, (co-)constructed and advocated in different parts of the world and in different languages. To interculturalize interculturality is to expand the way we deal with the notion as an object of scientific and educational discourse, noting the dominating voices and allowing for silenced voices that are rarely heard around interculturality to emerge. This book is based on broken realities and (the authors’) rebellious dreams. As two researchers and educators with a long experience examining discourses of interculturality, this book represents the authors’ program for the future of intercultural communication education. The book is divided into three 'tableaus' (living descriptions) depicting today’s 'broken' realities of interculturality and two 'rebellious' dreams of what it could be in research and education.

This edited volume offers an insightful theoretical conceptualization of issues central to 21st century foreign language learning and teaching. Drawing on research results obtained in the fields of pedagogy, social psychology and sociology of education, this book provides a comprehensive practical exploration of issues experienced by researchers in Poland and in Europe, and which can easily find far-reaching implications in other educational contexts. Part I, Focus on the Teacher, includes seven texts discussing topics relevant to teacher initial and in-service education, as well as the functioning of foreign language instructors in educational systems. The eight contributions included in Part II, Focus on the Learner, explore learner-internal and learner-external factors that affect the effectiveness of the language learning process. The exploration of key contemporary topics and the wide range of methodologies applied make this book of high relevance to Second Language Acquisition scholars, teacher educators, teachers, and language education policy makers.