Sessions /
Short-term study abroad = tourist training? #160

Short-term Study Abroad programmes organised for Japanese university students are becoming increasingly common. However, the presenter’s experience of organizing and accompanying such programmes over the last twenty years suggests that there is a risk that short-term programmes may dilute the SA experience so that it is no longer recognisably educational. With shopping to be done, sights to be seen, photos to be taken, and social media to be updated constantly, there is little time to learn anything about the local cultural environment or the language(s) spoken.

The presenter will suggest that there is a real danger that these programmes will function simply as training in how to be a tourist. Students learn to be consumers of experiences, to glide over problems and learning opportunities, and to package and label experiences so they have none of the life-changing, perspective-twisting consequences educators associate with SA.

However, he will further suggest that training students to be (responsible, thoughtful) tourists is exactly what we should be doing. Tourism, domestic or foreign, is likely to be in their future: if we can equip them to reflect on and learn from their tourist experiences, we are fulfilling our role as international educators. Drawing on Kolb’s (1984) model of experiential learning, Bennett’s (2012) three paradigms of intercultural learning, and recent findings from neuroscience and cognition, he will propose practical, field-tested activities that both encourage reflection during Study Abroa, and set habits that will enrich any future touristic visits with the potential for cross-cultural learning.