Measurable objectives
You can identify measurable objectives in language, culture, and skills as shown by the teacher participants in our research (Fischer & Viens, 2023). Ideally, according to our participants, your FSA learning activities should target all three objectives simultaneously:
Language
Teacher participants saw short-term study abroad as a way to develop language skills that were difficult to target in class, as indicated by previous research (Kinginger, 2009). For example, some teachers focused on students’ ability to hold non-structured, spontaneous conversations with locals. Others saw study abroad as the ideal context for learning about language varieties and registers, such as the differences between textbook language and the way language is used in real-world conversations with native speakers.
Culture
Short-term study abroad gave students first-hand experience with how cultural differences manifest in everyday life. For example, some teachers viewed study abroad as a chance for students to develop patience and tolerance for the unknown and/or the unexpected. Others saw study abroad as a way to expose students to issues of poverty/privilege and environmental degradation.
Skills
In addition to acquiring language and cultural skills, students who participated in overseas internships, projects, and service learning activities developed discipline-related skills, such as how to classify animals. Also, travelling as a group and staying with host families allowed students to develop interpersonal skills such as conflict resolution. Finally, learning life skills such as how to shop for food and cook for a group, how to navigate public transit, and how to do laundry helped students become more autonomous.
See Table 1 for examples of measurable objectives and learning process objectives.
Several of these measurable objectives meet the education ministry’s aims for college education (Ministère de l’Éducation et de l’Enseignement supérieur, 2017) and therefore can be used to justify study abroad programs to administrators and funding agencies. For example, one of the aims of college education is to “help students master language as a tool for thought, communication and openness to the world” (p. 2). Interacting in a foreign language during study abroad allows students to improve their communication skills, to share points of view, and to better express their world views and identities.
Figure 3: Measurable objectives in FSA