Event Details:

It is entirely possible to live abroad in a country where we hardly speak the language and not improve in fluency at all. Even in regard to language-oriented programs, the research is inconclusive about how much proficiency learners can be expected to gain and what factors will lead to those gains. Nevertheless, we firmly believe that a strategic and flexible effort to acquire language while abroad, whether the program requires it or not, can diminish the impact of "language shock" (Agar, 1994) and enhance the overall benefits of the overseas experience.

In this presentation, we will focus on language and culture in terms of dynamic skill sets that will continue to develop during a sojourn abroad rather than static content that must be acquired beforehand. Drawing on theories of intercultural competence and situated learning, we will present frameworks that can be used to design training and reflective tasks before, during, and after a study abroad program. Specifically, we will offer examples of investigative, interactive, and reflective tasks that can develop intercultural skills, support the emergence of community in a program cohort, and encourage engagement with communities in the local context while abroad. As time allows, we will workshop these tasks with participants to adapt them to the type, focus, and location of particular programs.

Presenters:

Dr. Felix Kronenberg is the Director of the Center for Language Teaching Advancement, an academic unit that supports foreign language teaching, research, and outreach at MSU and beyond. He is also a professor in the German department and a national and international leader in regard to language learning technology, gamification, and innovative language resource centers.

Dr. Amanda Lanier is faculty in CeLTA and Director of the MA in Foreign Language Teaching, an online program with students and alumni in 30 states and 10 countries that develops master teachers of over a dozen foreign languages. Her research and teaching focus on motivation, identity, culture, and other aspects of language acquisition, as well as sociocultural learning processes in online courses.

For more information or to register, please contact Kris Windorski at windorsk(at)msu.edu.