Education Commons^™

Coronacredits: Program Innovations To Aid Student Completion Of Disrupted Fieldwork Abroad Due To The Covid-19 Pandemic, Benning W. Tieke, Marcela Pino Alcaraz, Melissa Armstrong

Journal of International Engineering Education

The Spring 2020 semester provided unique challenges for global experiences of all types to meet the intended learning objectives for students due to the COVID-19 pandemic disruption. This was especially true for experiential language and cultural immersion programs where engineering students were in the midst of their fieldwork experience abroad. The COVID-19 disruption presented unique challenges to recreate language and cultural understanding within international engineering fieldwork experiences in the US. This article outlines the response to the COVID-19 pandemic by the Interdisciplinary Global Programs (IGP) at Northern Arizona University (NAU). The IGP response was an innovative interdisciplinary and cross-institutional collaboration …

Strengthening The Bridge Between Financial Aid And Study Abroad, Amy Leap, Stephanie Tignor, Evan Udowitch

Journal of Student Financial Aid

This article features a case study from Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), a large, public, urban, research university, in which challenges in administering financial aid for study abroad early in the COVID-19 pandemic led the Education Abroad and Student Financial Services teams to revisit practices and protocols. This article describes compliance concerns, student service, administrative optimization, and interdepartmental relationships. The outcomes emphasize the importance of a strong, sustained partnership between university study abroad and financial aid offices, provide a framework for administrative structures in managing financial aid for study abroad programs, and highlight strategies to provide equitable study abroad opportunities.

Examining The Associations Between Financial Conditions And Study Abroad In Diverse, Low-Income College Students, Radomir R. Mitic, Gregory C. Wolniak

Journal of Student Financial Aid

The study examines ascribed, financial, and college factors to predict study abroad participation among a national sample of students from financially disadvantaged backgrounds. Based on a longitudinal sample of 398 fourth-year participants of a national scholarship program (consisting of more than 50% students of color and 50% first-generation college goers), results show that despite higher study abroad participation among this group compared to national averages, finances remain a predominant impediment. The results provide a counter-narrative that study abroad participation is for the privileged. Findings also indicate that grant aid and prior exposure to financial adversity in the form of severe …

Need-Based Aid, Participation In Education Abroad, And Program Type Choice, Angela D. Bell, Leslie E. Hodges, Donald L. Rubin, Coryn Shiflet

Journal of Student Financial Aid

Although education abroad in the US offers participants demonstrable benefits, direct and opportunity costs are cited as primary barriers to broader participation. Yet the degree to which low-income status deters studying abroad and whether additional need-based aid beyond Pell Grants encourages participation remain uncertain. Moreover, not all education abroad programs are equivalent in terms of costs. This study is the first to examine whether need-based aid recipients differentially choose programs of varying duration or programs offered by various provider types. The sample consisted of 221,981 students from 36 institutions of the Consortium for Analysis of Student Success through International Education …

A Catalyst For Learning Or Reinforcement Of Inequities: Using A Critical Hope Lens To Understand The Potential And Limitations Of Short-Term Study Abroad In Fostering Students’ Ability To Effectively Interact Across Differences, Gudrun Nyunt, Elizabeth Niehaus, Mac Benavides

Department of Educational Administration: Faculty Publications

Study abroad is often hailed as a unique and important learning experience that fosters students’ ability to engage in effective and appropriate interactions in a variety of cultural contexts. Scholars, however, have not only questioned the learning that occurs in study abroad but have also highlighted problematic aspects such as the potential miseducation of participants and harm to host communities, particularly for short-term study abroad (STSA) experiences. Utilizing the lens of critical hope, the purpose of this study was to critically assess the potential of STSA in fostering cross-cultural learning, while also examining its limitations and potential harm. Based on …

Teaching Inequality In Brazil: A Study Abroad Exploration Of Race, Class, Gender, Sexuality, And Geography, Edvan P. Brito, Anthony J. Barnum

Journal of Global Education and Research

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 …

Building Global Leaders Through Field Research And Extension Experiences In Belize, Tom Gill, Adam S. Willcox

Journal of International Agricultural and Extension Education

One of the most complex agricultural and natural resources challenges of our time is reconciling sustainable global food security and biodiversity conservation. Providing undergraduate students effective, learning experiences to develop technical and cultural competency prepares them to address this challenge and become global leaders in their disciplines. A three-year experiential research and extension project brought together 14 students and 10 faculty mentors to investigate smallholder farmers practicing conservation-compatible adjacent to the Vaca Forest Reserve in Belize. We used an agroecological approach to foster systems-level thinking and develop transdisciplinary skills of undergraduate students. Students completed applied individual research projects that explored …

Managing Mental Health Risks On Short-Term Study Abroad Programs: A Faculty Development Approach, Katherine A. Hoffswell

Culminating Experience Projects

Over the past several decades, the increase in college students participating in study abroad programming has coincided with the increase in students reporting issues with their mental health. Faculty directors who lead short-term study abroad trips are responsible for creating a safe environment that supports student health, wellbeing, and learning while abroad. However, literature suggests that many faculty directors feel unprepared to address issues with student mental health as they facilitate their programs. This project seeks to improve faculty director competency and confidence regarding mental health risk management abroad through the creation and implementation of a virtual professional development series. …

Γλύκοπικρος & Bittersweet: An Autoethnographic Approach To Studying Abroad In Greece, Margaret Rieckman

Honors Theses

The purpose of this study is to answer the question: How can reflection via an autoethnographic approach promote sought-after outcomes of a semester studying abroad? Through an anthropological lens, I completed field work, kept field notes, and wrote a reflexive blog to navigate the social processes of learning to belong in another place within the context of a multicultural environment of study abroad program with Erasmus students. Through autoethnography as a methodology and a text, I utilized linguistic analysis to identify key themes that represent my transformative experience. The personal, emotional, and intellectual growth I experienced was made transformative by …

Reconceptualizing Global Citizenship: Experiences From Women Who Have Studied Abroad, Jessica L. Colston

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study used self-curated photo elicitation to express students’ awareness of power, privilege, and identity. The purpose of this qualitative research was to explore how female undergraduate students interacted with their environment and conceptualized a critical understanding of global citizenship. As such, this inquiry asked: (1) To what extent do female undergraduate students from the United States who have participated in a study abroad program develop a critical understanding of global citizenship? (2) How are students’ awareness of power, privilege, and identity reflected in their documentation and narration of their experiences abroad?

Bronfenbrenner’s bioecological systems theory and transnational feminism explained …

Study Abroad: Perspectives From Historically Underrepresented Student Populations, Meghan Ecker-Lyster, Nadzeya Kardash

Journal of College Access

Research clearly outlines the many positive benefits associated with study abroad programs (e.g., Arghode et al., 2020; Jiang et al., 2019). Unfortunately, the majority of undergraduate students who participate in these experiences are from affluent backgrounds. To increase access to study abroad opportunities for all students, including historically underrepresented student groups (e.g., first-generation college student, lower-income background), higher education institutions need to offer affordable study abroad options. To aid institutions with this task, the current qualitative investigation provides critical insights into students’ perceptions of an affordable, abbreviated study abroad model. The findings from this study highlight the overall program model …

Faculty-Led, Short-Term Study Abroad Programs: Stories And Dilemmas Of Practice, Susan L. Pasquarelli

Education Faculty Publications

This first-person narrative unifies one professor’s experiences in applying best-practices to implement faculty-led, short-term study abroad programs in Sicily and Rome. Building on published scholarly work, the article uncovers insights to benefit international faculty while designing and implementing culturally responsive, field-based learning experiences. This narrative focuses on the dilemmas and challenges to realize student learning outcomes given unavoidable quirks of the abroad site and inevitable unexpected issues that arise while shepherding college students from the culturally familiar to the strange.

Study Abroad - Your Future Self Will Thank You, Stephanie Afful, Rebecca Foushée, Colleen Biri

Faculty Scholarship

Unavailable

Education Abroad For Students With Disabilities: Legal Implications, Heidi Fischer

BYU Education & Law Journal

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, United States (U.S.) student participation in education abroad (EA) programs increased by more than thirty percent over a ten-year span.1 During the 2018-19 academic year, more than 36,000 students studying abroad identified as students with disabilities (nearly ten percent).2 The steady rise in U.S. student participation in EA programs in the past decade not only suggests renewed post-pandemic growth, but it also supports the idea that greater quantities of students with disabilities will study abroad during their postsecondary education than in previous years. With nearly one in five undergraduate students identifying as having a dis-ability,3 …