Language Teachers Studying Abroad

This book focuses on the study-abroad experiences of pre-service and in-service language teachers and language teacher educators. The diverse contributions to this volume provide readers with a deep understanding of what this mobility means for individuals and the language teaching and learning communities they encounter and return to post-sojourn. Considering the broad variability of study-abroad programs and arrangements, as well as the multidimensional, complex nature of study-abroad social, geographical and digital environments, the chapters discuss the teachers’ psychological experiences in cognitive, affective and social terms. Readers will discover the effect of mobility on identity, beliefs, practices, self-efficacy, agency, self-confidence, independence and personal growth, as well as how transitions across borders can result in feelings of self-doubt, anxiety and insecurity. This is essential reading for language teacher educators, mentors and supervisors, managers of study-abroad programs and researchers working in the fields of study abroad, international education and language teacher education.

This edited volume explores studying second languages abroad by critically and constructively reviewing established programming, providing theoretical and research-informed support for pedagogical and curriculum interventions, and analysing participant experiences. Over 12 chapters the contributors examine key issues including teaching approaches, learning activities, and relationships in the target language and culture. This book is most distinct in its attempt to promote diversity in approaches and experiences while drawing the common thread of learner- and learning-centredness through each chapter. The contributing authors represent a wide range of academies and discuss study abroad programs and participants in diverse cultural and geographic regions. The book’s international scope will acquaint educators and researchers with a broad variety of practices, stimulate comparison across contexts, and promote innovation.

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 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.

By exploring the experiences of pre- and in-service teachers, as well as the design and implementation of study abroad programs developed specifically for them, this volume highlights the potential of international learning in promoting teachers’ global and critical understandings of their roles as educators in an increasingly diverse and interconnected world. Recognizing teacher study abroad as a unique strand within the wider foreign education literature, Study Abroad for Pre- and In-Service Teachers emphasizes how it can be conceptualized, theorized, and implemented as part of initial and continuing teacher training. Chapters consider study abroad programs and teaching practices in Europe, Asia, the Americas, and in Indigenous communities, and document the transformative learning experiences which impact the way teachers think about learning, teaching, and identity. Together, the chapters foreground the personal and professional advantages of teacher study abroad and provide key insights to inform design and programming for sustainable, impactful teacher study abroad which supports teachers in building intercultural competence and enhances their capacity to serve students of varying cultural and linguistic backgrounds. This volume will appeal to researchers, scholars, education abroad facilitators, and teacher educators with an interest in international mobility, multicultural education, culturally responsive pedagogy and study abroad. In addition, pre- and in-service teachers will find the book of value.

Popular opinion has long assumed that learning a foreign language requires not only traditional classroom instruction but also immersion among native speakers of the language. This opinion is so strongly held that students who study through immersion are believed to become more proficient than those who do not. Study Abroad Contexts for Enhanced Foreign Language Learning is a critical scholarly publication that explores the importance and efficacy of international travel in the learning of a second or additional language. Including various topics such as auditory-orthographic training, grammatical ability, and learner autonomy, this book is geared toward academicians, students, and professionals seeking current and relevant research on language acquisition through immersion and its value.

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.