Language Learning In Study Abroad

This book addresses the multilingual reality of study abroad across a variety of national contexts and target languages. The chapters examine multilingual socialization and translanguaging; how the target language is entwined in global, local and historical contexts; and how students use local and global varieties of English.

Study abroad is often seen as a crucial dimension of language learning - developing communicative proficiency, language awareness, and intercultural competence. The author provides an overview and assessment of research on language learning in study abroad settings, reviewing the advantages and constraints of perspectives adopted in this research.

The papers in this volume offer a sampling of contemporary efforts to update the portrayal of study abroad in the applied linguistics literature through attention to its social and cultural aspects. The volume illustrates diversification of theory and method, refinement of approaches to social interactive language use, and expansion in the range of populations and languages under scrutiny. Part I offers a topical orientation, outlining the rationale for the project. Part II presents six qualitative case studies adopting sociocultural, activity theoretical, postructuralist, or discourse analytic methodologies. The four chapters in Part III illustrate a variety of approaches and foci in research on the pragmatic capabilities of study abroad participants in relation to second language identities. The volume will be of interest to a broad audience of applied linguistics researchers, language educators, and professionals engaged in the design, oversight, and assessment of study abroad programs.

This book is intended to introduce novice student researchers to second language acquisition in the study abroad learning environment. It reviews the existing literature and provides the emerging researcher an overview of the important factors to consider, informs them where to begin, and how to move forth an agenda for future research in this field. The book recognizes that aside from the academic advantages, study abroad programmes are an excellent tool for fostering extended and relevant interaction with native speakers. It provides reflection questions and activities, and guides the novice researcher in critically analysing existing research and to eventually carry out their own study. The book will be of use to beginning researchers who are new to linguistics in the areas of study abroad and second language acquisition.

Examining the overseas experience of language learners in diverse contexts through a variety of theoretical and methodological approaches, studies in this volume look at the acquisition of language use, socialization processes, learner motivation, identity and learning strategies. In this way, the volume offers a privileged window into learner experiences abroad while addressing current concerns central to second language acquisition.

This publication constitutes essential reading for academics, teachers and language policy makers wanting to understand, plan, and implement an educational language program involving learner mobility. The book provides data and analyses from a long-term program of research on study abroad (the SALA Project), which looked into the short and long-term effects of instructional and mobility contexts on language and cultural development from two perspectives: the participants’ language acquisition development over 2,5 years, and the practitioners’ perspective in relation to the design and implementation of a mobility program. The book is innovative in the longitudinal data it offers, the light it sheds on (i) an array of language skills, both productive and receptive, oral and written, tapping into phonology, lexis, grammar and discourse, (ii) the role of individual differences (including attitudes, motivation, beliefs, and intercultural awareness), and (iii) the insights on the effects of length of stay. In sum, this book represents a welcome addition to previous research on the outcomes of mobility policies to promote L2 learners’ linguistic development and the individual and educational conditions that appear to facilitate success in study abroad programs.

Comprehensive and evidence-based, this book presents the best practices for designing and sustaining study abroad programs to maximize the outcomes and benefits of education abroad for all students. Distilling the history, research, and variations of study abroad programs, Goertler and Schenker provide a clear-eyed analysis of the lessons learned and the common obstacles associated with education abroad. Organized in three parts – the state of education abroad in the US; research on education abroad outcomes; and best practices – Goertler and Schenker demonstrate the benefits of long-term study abroad for the development of advanced language skills and intercultural competence, and the need for diversity in participation. Chapters offer theory-based, practice-proven recommendations to invigorate, innovate, and implement successful study abroad programs that are sustainable and ethically engage with the local community. The authors discuss design features to maximize language proficiency and intercultural competence. Grounded in up-to-date research and theory, the book responds to the challenges associated with long-term education abroad programs and provides recommendations on (re)invigorating long-term programs and diversifying participation in education abroad. From Study Abroad to Education Abroad is vital reading for academics, researchers, and students in the fields of language education and education policy, as well as practitioners, such as language program coordinators and education abroad administrators.

This volume focuses on 'practice' from a theoretical perspective and includes implications for the classroom.