Preparing for Study Abroad

Study abroad (SA) provides a space and place for second language (L2) learners to be challenged in terms of their target language skills and intercultural awareness. In order to appropriately equip learners, a task-based approach seems ideal to identify learners’ specific needs (Long 2015). The present study reports a multiphase needs analysis carried out to design a university Spanish course, geared toward students preparing to study abroad in the following semester. In phase 1, qualitative interviews were conducted by contacting resident directors and students who had returned from their study abroad programs. These interviews generated a list of 37 tasks. In phase 2, 40 students, who had completed their study abroad semester, rated the frequency and difficulty of each task on a 37-item Likert-type questionnaire. Finally, in phase 3, researchers analyzed and categorized target tasks identified in the needs assessment into five major target task types. Altogether, results suggest that learner needs in this particular institution center predominantly around tasks that involve the use of colloquial and academic speech in environments in which students need to adapt to unfamiliar situations. These reports then informed course objectives and classroom tasks

English for academic purposes · Likert scale · Mathematics education · Medical education · Needs analysis · Pedagogy · Qualitative research · Sociology · Space (punctuation) · Study abroad · Task (project management) · Computer Science · EFL/ESL Teaching and Learning · Engineering · International Student and Expatriate Challenges · Psychology · Second Language Learning and Teaching