Study Abroad as a Means of Unpacking Pedagogical Complexity in Context for Preservice Teachers

• In Event: Moscone Center West Roundtable Session 10
  In Roundtable Session: Global Mindedness in Teacher Education: Utilizing Global Perspectives and Study Abroad for Deeper Learning

Abstract

While teacher education programs are increasingly creating short-term study abroad programs to support developing teacher interculturality, programs often focus on schools typical of the host country. Few programs target a specific philosophical approach and its enactment in classrooms. This phenomenological study focuses on a two-week trip to the city of Reggio Emilia and other cities in northern Italy. Students studied the Reggio Emilia Approach (an approach previously encountered in university courses) and its practical application in municipal early childhood centers. Students developed a deeper understanding of the philosophy of the Approach and its contextual embeddedness.

Authors

• Tanya Espinosa Cordoba, Anderson University

• Stephanie C. Sanders-Smith, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign