Elsevier

Teaching and Teacher Education

Volume 66, August 2017, Pages 147-157
Teaching and Teacher Education

Impact of short-term study abroad program: Inservice teachers' development of intercultural competence and pedagogical beliefs

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2017.04.012Get rights and content

Highlights

  • Intercultural experiences do not guarantee growth in intercultural competence.

  • Reflection should start during the pre-departure program.

  • Foreign language learning contributes to teachers' growth.

  • Intentional and meaningful collaboration within the group is critical.

  • Assessment of teacher study abroad should include the impact on teaching beliefs.

Abstract

A comprehensive study abroad program is one of the most effective ways to prepare multicultural and global teachers. However, in teacher education, most of the study abroad programs are designed for preservice teachers. In this study, we detailed the design of a short-term study abroad program for inservice teachers and reported on the impact of the program not only on teachers’ intercultural competence development, but also their teaching beliefs and practices. Discussions and implications were provided for educators designing study abroad programs for teachers.

Introduction

There is a growing culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) student population in U.S. K-12 settings. More than ever, teachers are challenged to create culturally responsive learning environments to meet the needs of CLD learners, and leverage their funds of knowledge in classroom instruction (Gay, 2010, Ladson-Billings, 1995, Moll et al., 1992, Nieto, 2010). In addition, teachers are challenged to prepare all students with intercultural competence so that they can effectively communicate and collaborate with those from various cultural backgrounds (Boix-Mansilla and Jackson, 2011, Longview Foundation, 2008).

International cultural immersion experiences are considered one of the most effective means to prepare multicultural and global teachers (Cushner, 2007, Hadis, 2005, Stachowski and Sparks, 2007). While more and more teacher education programs integrate overseas field experience opportunities, most are designed for preservice teachers (e.g., Cushner and Chang, 2015, Cushner, 2007, Mahon and Cushner, 2002, Mahon, 2007, Zhao et al., 2009). Studies regarding programs designed specifically for practicing teachers are very limited (Biraimah and Jotia, 2013, Gleeson and Tait, 2012). Thus, understanding meaningful and effective design of study abroad programs for inservice teachers and ways to assess the impact of such programs can provide insights as teacher educators expand intercultural exchange opportunities to include practicing teachers.

In this study, we reviewed relevant literature regarding the design and assessment of study abroad programs and detailed the design of a short-term study abroad program sponsored by the Fulbright-Hays Group Projects Abroad (GPA) Program involving K-12 teachers from various disciplinary areas. Based on both quantitative and qualitative data, findings regarding the impact of the program on teachers’ growth were discussed. Discussions and implications were offered for educators interested in exploring the design and assessment of study abroad programs for teachers.

Section snippets

Design of study abroad programs for teachers

The international experience for teachers may take on many different formats. Depending on the length of the program, it may be short-term (2–8 weeks) or long-term (semester or year long). Due to the licensure requirements of preservice teacher education and the lack of flexibility in inservice teachers’ working schedules, short-term programs are far more common for teachers (Batey and Lupi, 2012, Chieffo and Griffiths, 2004). Based on the review of recent empirical studies examining the

Program context and participants

The program, Experiencing China, was designed for experienced teachers interested in interactions with Chinese students and teachers and developing curriculum activity materials integrating Chinese language and culture in their K-12 area studies. The program was carried out in three phases: 1) pre-departure course; 2) 4-week short-term program in China; and 3) follow-up curriculum design and delivery activities (He & Lundgren, 2017). Participants registered for 6 credit-hours of graduate

Teachers’ intercultural competence development

Both the pre/post program survey and IDI instrument were used to track teacher participants’ intercultural competence development. The IDI instrument revealed the group and individual developmental patterns. The program survey identified areas of development specifically related to program activities.

Based on the IDI results, a majority of the teacher participants fall into the Minimization orientation in terms of their developmental orientation. One teacher participant scored at Acceptance

Discussion and implications

The findings of this study offer insights for educators in terms of both the design and assessment of comprehensive study abroad programs for teachers. In this section, we highlight the key design and assessment considerations, especially in relationship to programs designated for inservice teachers.

First, regardless of language proficiency learning outcomes, integrating language learning experiences in the study abroad program provides practicing teachers a unique opportunity to develop

Limitations and future research

While this study offered insights for both teachers and teacher educators, there are several major limitations. First, the study only involved a small number of participants in one study-abroad program. The limited sample size and the explorative nature of the program restricted the generalizability of the findings reported in this study. Second, even though the exploration of teachers' development of PPTs and their curriculum design activities provided researchers with an opportunity to

Conclusion

Preparing multicultural and global teachers who are ready to engage with students from diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds and to educate all their students to become globally competent is an important and challenging task. Study abroad programs offer a unique opportunity for teachers to develop intercultural competency and teaching beliefs through intercultural immersion experiences. However, the overseas experience itself is not sufficient in preparing teachers to take advantage of

Author note

Ye He, Department of Teacher Education and Higher Education, University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Kristine Lundgren, Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Penelope Pynes, International Programs Center, University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

Funding

This work was supported by the Fulbright-Hays Group Project Abroad (GPA) grant [grant number P021A140018, 2015].

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