Reinventing the European Experience:
Culture, Politics and Diversity in U.S. Education Abroad
Forum on Education Abroad
First European Conference
Dublin, Ireland
December 5-7, 2012
Host Institution: University College Dublin
Conference Co-Sponsors
Association of American Colleges in Greece (AACG)
Association of American College and University Programs in Italy (AACUPI)
Association of American College and University Programs in Switzerland (AACUPS)
Association of American Programs in Spain (APUNE/AAPS)
Association of American Study Abroad Programmes/United Kingdom (AASAP/UK)
Association of American University Programs in France (APUAF)
CALL FOR PROPOSALS
Deadline: July 15, 2012
(View a pdf version of this Call for Proposals here.)
The Forum on Education Abroad’s first European conference focuses on the education abroad destination that has been and continues to be the most popular for U.S. students: Europe, including the United Kingdom and Ireland.
Some students, faculty or institutions may view Europe as a mere sightseeing opportunity. While Europe is home to treasures of Western civilization, it also continues to be a vibrant theatre of contemporary cultural, political and intellectual activity, of diverse societies sharing a common core, transforming tradition without renouncing it.
This conference seeks to understand how a changing and evolving Europe creates new realities for U.S. education abroad. What attracts students to study abroad in Europe? How can we best maximize their learning opportunities by drawing on the distinctive opportunities that Europe offers? What are the special challenges of developing, implementing and sustaining education abroad in Europe?
The conference will address the interests of education abroad administrators and faculty who work and teach in Europe, as well as colleagues from the U.S. who work with European programs and universities. The common goal of the conference will be to share ideas for model practices for U.S. education abroad in Europe, including program design and curriculum, teaching, and a wide range of administrative issues and topics. Conference sessions will maintain the distinctive format of the Forum's annual conference by promoting collegial dialogue and the lively exchange of ideas through attendee participation. Preference will be given to sessions that offer several perspectives on a topic, rather than a single personal or institutional view. The European Conference is intentionally smaller in scale and shorter in duration than the Forum’s annual conference.
The Forum encourages session proposals from international education and faculty colleagues with experience in and knowledge of U.S. education abroad in Europe. Topics of interest may be divided into three areas: 1. Standards of Good Practice in the European Context; 2. Innovation for Education Abroad in Europe; and, 3. European Education Abroad as Model.
1. Standards of Good Practice in the European Context
Proposals are welcome that relate to the many areas of the Standards of Good Practice and share model solutions:
- A re-examination of the how, what and why of orientation programs, and what tone they should set.
- Guidelines for both program design and promotional campaigns to avoid a travel agent approach to marketing destinations as tourism experiences.
- Euro-specific safety, security, risk management issues, including teaching from and about social unrest.
- Effective financial structures and models for developing, managing and sustaining education abroad programs.
- Models for student and faculty exchanges.
- Euro-specific solutions for helping students use social media to enhance and not impede their integration into the local environment (orientation, local social networking, what exists within the local universities, etc.).
- What is an appropriate role of technology in students’ lives, and the implications for student support and student recruitment? Striking the balance between easing student isolation and the danger of lack of integration as a result of over-reliance on social media.
- What are the implications for European language study when there is easy access to the mother tongue through social media?
- How do students’ differing perceptions of diversity affect their experiences, and how can we best support students from diverse backgrounds?
- Issues related to student visas.
- The intersection of U.S. and European laws, especially in regards to protecting personal privacy.
- The role of the host family, including criteria and selection of the home stays, and payments to families.
- Credit transfer practices and challenges.
2. Innovation for Education Abroad in Europe
Proposals are encouraged on topics and questions related to program design and ways to assist students, home institutions and programs move beyond a travel "checklist:"
- How can education abroad in Europe help U.S. students learn about and benefit from real differences, in settings that are seemingly similar to their home culture?
- What are the importance of historical perspectives for understanding Europe's present cultural context, and understanding the importance of the historical perspective in the European mindset?
- How can we counter the perception that study abroad in an English-speaking country is less challenging or less worthwhile?
- Presenting ‘old’ Europe as ‘the new’ exotic: why are study abroad students choosing more ‘exotic’ destinations? How can we present traditional locations in new and imaginative ways? Examination of case studies of countries which have held their attraction for students and what we can learn from these.
- How can we develop supportive acculturation programs or courses?
- How can we combat the idea that study abroad is a “trip” with a relatively superficial “checklist” of places to visit?
- How to best embed programs in the local context, including the local university context?
- With the dramatic growth of short-term education abroad programming, how can semester-length programs exploit some of the appeal of short-term programs? With students often using their study abroad ‘home’ as a base for travel throughout Europe, is it possible to tap into this appetite for variety and replicate that in joint programming, working together as European institutions?
- The challenges and opportunities of offering university courses in English when the language of instruction at the university is not English.
3. European Education Abroad as Model
Proposals are encouraged on topics and questions that explore how education abroad in European destinations can contribute to positive changes and promising new directions in education abroad generally. Special consideration will be given to those proposals that highlight how European programs and universities may serve as models, and illustrate the intersection of the Forum’s Standards of Good Practice with other, pan-Europe and country-specific, standards in higher education.
- How might Europe-based education abroad programs already, or could be, on the forefront of new developments in U.S. education abroad?
- How do Europe-based education abroad programs effectively serve the segments of U.S. university student population in “non-traditional” disciplines and majors?
- How are programs designed to be part of education abroad at all stages in the four-year undergraduate experience?
- How do programs make use of minority languages as a cultural integration tool?
- How does education abroad serve as the link between a liberal education and career and other goals?
- How can we work with program alumni to have them contribute to enhance the student experience?
- What are the best models for university-based education abroad exchanges, direct enrollment for payment, European universities acting as program providers, etc.?
- How do we support strong faculty engagement and cooperation with study abroad and exchange partners, to deepen the value to education abroad? For example, how are faculty involved with the supervision of students’ research projects, and how are joint research projects between faculty in respective institutions facilitated?
- How do we further encourage student and faculty research collaborations?
Forum Dublin Conference Committee
Liam Ó Dochartaigh,
formerly of University of Limerick, Chair
Elaine Breckenridge, IES Abroad London Center
Timothy Carlson, IFE - French Field Study and Internship
Enda Carroll,
University College Dublin
Alexis Phylactopoulos,
College Year in Athens/DIKEMES
Portia Prebys,
Saint Mary’s College Rome Program
Kristopher Riggs, Brethren Colleges Abroad Marburg Program
Carlos A. Vega,
Wellesley College
Ray Vernon,
ACCENT International
Jessica Williams, Davidson College
To submit a proposal, visit http://www.forumea.org/2012sessionproposal.cfm
A pdf version of this Call for Proposals is available here.
