Integrating Study Abroad Into the Curriculum

Theory and Practice Across the Disciplines

Elizabeth Brewer, Kiran Cunningham, Elizabeth Brewer, Kiran Cunningham

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2023
• Print ISBN: 9781579223489
• eBook ISBN: 9781000981124
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Higher Education

With the increased interest in study abroad from government, educators, employers and students, the question is: is study abroad engendering the desired intercultural competencies and intellectual development?To achieve this goal, this book proposes two strategies: structure study abroad to bridge the separation of academic learning from experiential and intercultural learning; and integrate study abroad with the undergraduate curriculum.In proposing this integration, the editors take into account the need for institutional change, and recognize faculty members' concerns about maintaining the integrity of the curriculum, teaching in areas outside their expertise, and keeping up with ever-evolving institutional missions.This book opens with two chapters presenting different theoretical perspectives relevant to the integration of study abroad into the curriculum. The following nine chapters provide examples from a variety of disciplines – from anthropology and religious studies, to literature, urban studies, biology and public health – and within such contexts as distance learning, service learning, and the senior thesis. The concluding chapter considers faculty development activities and institutional structures and policies that support curriculum integration. While the examples are drawn from Beloit College and Kalamazoo College – liberal arts colleges with substantial study abroad enrollments, and nationally recognized for their innovative practices – readers will recognize they are easily adaptable to their own institutions. The two colleges achieved their curricular innovations with limited financial resources, and in the context that most of their students are dependent on financial aid. The transformational ideas and practices described here provide material for reflection and campus conversations for anyone concerned with developing global citizens and well-educated students, and offer a blueprint for implementation.

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Half Title page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• Foreword
• Introduction
• 1. Capturing Study Abroad'S Transformative Potential
• 2. Lessons from Geography: Mental Maps and Spatial Narratives
• 3. Preparatory Courses for Students Going to Divergent Sites: Two Examples
• 4. Culture, Religion, and Nationality: Developing Ethnographic Skills and Reflective Practices Connected to Study Abroad
• 5. Embedding Preparation In Language Courses: Bonn and Erlangen
• 6. Semiotics and the City: Putting Theories of Everyday Life, Literature, and Culture Into Practice
• 7. Cool Cities: Kalamazoo and Carthage—The Intersection of Service-Learning and Intercultural Learning
• 8. Chinese Cities in Transition: The City as Classroom
• 9. Health and Microcredit: Beloit as a Laboratory for Understanding Nicaragua
• 10. Building Global Awareness through Biology, Public Health, and Study Abroad: How Science Study Can Prepare Students for Study Abroad, and How Study Abroad Can Prepare Scientists for Citizenship
• 11. Synthesis and Career Preparation: The International Relations Senior Thesis
• 12. Capacity Building for Study Abroad Integration: The Institution and the Faculty
• Contributors
• Index