Association of American Colleges and Universities 2017 Meeting | San Francisco, CA | January 28, 2017 | 7:45 – 9:00 AM

Discussion Facilitators:

  • Jessie L. Moore (jmoore28@elon.edu), Director, Center for Engaged Learning, Elon University
  • Lynette Bikos (lhbikos@spu.edu), Associate Dean, School of Psychology, Family, and Community, Seattle Pacific University
  • Lisa Jasinski (ljasinsk@trinity.edu), Special Assistant to the Vice President for Academic Affairs, Trinity University, and Doctoral Students, University of Texas at Austin
  • Nina Namaste (nnamaste@elon.edu), Associate Professor of Spanish, Elon University

Download the Handouts:

Proposal Abstract
Thousands of students participate in study away (e.g., study abroad and off-campus domestic study) for academic credit each year. Although researchers have investigated interactions of pre-, during-, and post- attributes of campus experiences with off-campus study (Vande Berg, Connor-Linton & Paige, 2009; Vande Berg, Paige & Lou, 2012; Engberg, 2013), questions remain about study away’s integration with the university experience. Scholars have examined individual study abroad experiences, looking at learning outcomes at the start and end of study abroad courses (Salisbury, 2011, 2013). Developing competence is an iterative process, though, necessitating more complex research methods (Haywood & Charette, 2012; Hoff & Paige, 2008; Deardorff, 2014).
Global experiences intentionally woven through the curriculum (Vande Berg et. al, 2012) can transform students, educators, and institutions (Brewer, 2009). In turn, scholarship that conceptualizes study away as global learning practices integrated into a university education can lead to higher-impact study away.
Drawing from multi-institutional research by 26 researchers from 20 institutions in Canada and the U.S., this discussion session shares snapshots of emerging research on:

  • Students’ self-efficacy for sociocultural adaptation: Social cognitive career theory (SCCT; see Lent, 2013) posits that career-related behaviors are influenced by a complex network of personal attributes, actual behaviors, and contextual variables.  The first snapshot reports on results of a mixed methods (e.g., qualitative and quantitative) approach to understanding (a) what students identified as variables that prepared them for study abroad/study away (SASA) experiences, (b) how these experiences map onto an SCCT model of interest development, and (c) how strongly of these variables (e.g., past performance accomplishments, activity selection/practice, vicarious learning) predict self-efficacy for sociocultural adaptation and self-reported level of sociocultural adaptation at re-entry.
  • Faculty perceptions of how leading study away programs impacts their professional development and well-being: In order to better support faculty and improve student learning, institutions must first understand faculty perceptions of how leading study away programs impacts teaching, research, service, and overall wellbeing. This snapshot shares preliminary findings from a multi-year survey of 230 faculty members who lead global programs at 28 private liberal arts colleges.
  • Curricular, programmatic, and institutional factors that integrate study away with students’ other global learning experiences.

The panelists then facilitate discussion about how this research might inform institutional-, programmatic-, and faculty-level efforts to integrate study away within the university experience. We conclude by prompting participants’ reflection on challenges to and opportunities for scaling-up high impact study away at their own institutions.

How to cite this post:

Emerging Research and Lingering Questions about Integrating Study Away as Global Learning with the University Experience. 2017, January 23. [Blog Post]. Retrieved from https://www.centerforengagedlearning.org/aacu2017/