www.abertay.ac.u k ‘It was Kinda Awkward over Zoom’: Cultural Adaptation and Evolution of University Students' Experiences Studying Abroad During the 2020 Pandemic Teneisha R. Ellis, School of Applied Sciences, Abertay University Supervisors: Andrea Cameron and Dr. Corinne Jola Email: t.ellis@abertay.ac.uk BACKGROUND Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, over 5 million individuals participated in international student mobility programs around the world1. It is known that the depth and length of international programs have an impact on students' global awareness 2; driven by the changes they experience in the cultural environment. Yet the Covid-19 pandemic caused a series of events that reduced the opportunities for cultural immersion, leading to feelings of isolation, uncertainty, and confusion within our globalized society3. One of the main goals of studying abroad is to learn from and in another culture. However, the precautionary measures put into place because of the Covid-19 pandemic had a significant impact on students’ opportunities to immerse themselves in their host communities. This study examined the experiences of 13 international students as they transitioned to virtual learning during 2019 - 2021.
Hybrid Learner
Traditional Ed
2020 Pandemic Ed Abroad Programming
Abroad Degree-Seekers and Exchange: 2019
Virtual Exchange
The research question thus is: what are the lived experiences of university students who transition to virtual learning, on International Programs during the 2020 Pandemic? AIMS The aim of this study was to understand participants' lived experiences as they navigated their transition to from in person study abroad to virtual programs, during the 2020 global Covid-19 Pandemic. The findings will contribute to the dialogue concerning university students’ development during study abroad programs in times of social disruptions.
The Future of Ed Abroad Unknown Alternative Programming
PARTICIPANTS
DESIGN AND ANALYSIS • Qualitative semi-structured phenomenological remote interviews over a 5-month period in the Spring and Summer of 2021 • Audio and Video Recordings transcribed through Microsoft TEAMS using Microsoft STREAM • Interview Transcript Review (ITR) process: Transcription s were sent to the individual participants which validated the researcher's transcriptions.
• Data analyses using Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis (IPA)4
13 participants volunteered Gender Freq F 9 M 4
Major
Freq
Humanities
7
Part.
Non-Hum
6
Part.
13
13
IE Mobility
Freq
English
Freq
Study Abroad
5
Native
4
Degree-Seeker
8
Non-Native
9
Part.
13
Part.
13
FINDINGS Primary Meaning Units
Functioning in Ambiguity
The importance of Culture and Language in self-identity
The Reshaping of Community
Divergent Experiential Learning
5
Secondary Meaning Units • (Space) Maintaining Visibility in a Virtual Space • (Time) Perception in an unstructured reality • (Subjectivity) Virtual learning: Perceptions of Benefits and pitfalls • Self-Identity and the Inconsistency of Language usage • Regaining Identity – Uses of Intrapersonal and Interpersonal Intelligence • Sense of Community • Perceptions of Instructor Driven Interactions
• Loss of Intercultural Opportunities
“I started facilitating...student interaction myself...Showing your face can really help, as you become more of a person..." [IS-2, Female, Exchange, FA 20]
“I was very scared about not understanding the English I was like; oh my God is my English good enough? Am I gonna be able...to follow? Am I going to be able to write essays?” [IS-4, Female, DegreeSeeker, FA19 – SU 20]
6
7 “You can't do this on your own...You will still need to have, even though you won't be physically there, you still need to have that [other people] ...to just run your ideas by... [since]you're in front of your computer so you need somebody... you can get through that [virtual experience]. [IS-1, Female, Degree Seeker, FA 19 –SU 2020]
“."if I were there for 10 weeks I would have been, not fluent, but really good ...the level of proficiency that I could have gotten was just so low... It’s just [felt] different because...when you’re in the place where you’re learning the language, you’re completely immersed so you have to talk [Host Language] just going to the bathroom or like ordering food...” [IS-5, Female, Study Abroad, SU20]
8
CONCLUSION These participants self-selected to participate in study abroad and degree-seeking programs prior to the onset of the pandemic, consequently anticipated a more ‘traditional’ intercultural experience. However, they chose to be resilient by maintaining visibility in the virtual space,and reshaping their understanding of community and their sense of belonging in an unfamiliar space. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.
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