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Comparison Of Language Gains Across Classroom, Foreign Language Housing, And Study Abroad Environments, Kari Tanner, Dr. Jeffrey Turley

Journal of Undergraduate Research

When it comes to learning a foreign language, study abroad contexts have generally been assumed to produce the best results. However, with rising program costs it becomes necessary to evaluate alternate options as well. The three main language learning contexts are classroom, foreign language housing (domestic immersion) and study abroad. While many studies have analyzed language gains in these settings independently of each other, little research has actually compared the gains across these three environments. I chose to conduct this research with learners of Italian, so I started by finding participants in each of the three contexts. The classroom learners …