Students as Global Citizens: Lessons from the International Study Tour

Authors: Ana Hol

Abstract:

Study and work operations are being transformed with the uses of technologies and are consequently becoming global. This paper outlines lessons learned based on the international study tour that Australian Bachelor of Information Systems students undertook. This research identifies that for the study tour to be successful, students need to gain skills that global citizens require. For example, students will need to gain an understanding of local cultures, local customs and habits. Furthermore, students would also need to gain an understanding of how a field of their future career expertise operates in the host country, how study and business are conducted internationally, which tools and technologies are currently being utilized on a global scale, what trends drive future developments world-wide and how business negotiations and collaborations are being undertaken across borders. Furthermore, this research provides a guide to educators who are planning, guiding and running study tours as it outlines the requirements of having a pre-tour preparatory session, carefully planned and executed tour itineraries and post-tour sessions during which students can reflect on their experiences and lessons learned so that they can apply them to future international business visits and ventures.

Keywords: Global education, international experiences, international study tours, students as global citizens, student centered education.

Digital Object Identifier (DOI): doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.1125955

References:

[1] Australian Government, Department of Education and Training, “International Mobility of Australian University Students”. May 2016; https://internationaleducation.gov.au/research/research-snapshots/pages/default.aspx.
[2] B., Kuys, and S. Thompson-Whiteside S., “Lessons from Three Week Study Tours Europe - Model for Faculty Engagement into Asia” proceedings of Australian International Education Conference 2012. Melbourne, Australia, October 2-5, 2012.
[3] A., Alvarez, and M., Larrañaga, “Experiences Incorporating Lego Mindstorms Robots in the Basic Programming Syllabus: Lessons Learned”, Journal of Intelligent & Robotic Systems, January 2016, Vol. 81, Issue 1, pp 117-129.
[4] Study Overseas, “Key Factors to Consider When Planning Overseas Study Tour”, 22 February, 2016; http://www.studyoverseas.gov.au/sites/studyoverseas/resources/Documents/vetmobility/6.9.1KeyFactorstoConsiderwhenPlanningOverseasStudyToursReferenceTool.pdf.
[5] B. S. Bloom, M. D. Engelhart, E. J. Furst, W. H. Hill and D. R. Krathwohl, “Taxonomy of Educational Objectives: The Classification of Educational Goals: Handbook I”, Cognitive Domain. 1956, Longman: New York.
[6] D. A., Kolb, “Experiential Learning: Experience as the source of learning and development”. 1984, Prentice-Hall: Englewood Cliffs
[7] The University of Texas at Austin, Learning Sciences “Experiential Learning Defined”. 22 May, 2016, https://learningsciences.utexas.edu/teaching/engagement/experiential-learning/defined.
[8] H., Bergsteiner, and G. C. Avery, “Theoretical Explanation for Success of Deep-Level-Learning Study Tours”, College Teaching Methods & Styles Journal, vol. 4 no. 1, pp. 30-38, 2008.