Holistic professional development through virtual education abroad: A consideration of new programs developed during the Covid-19 pandemic

• In Event: Highlighted Session: Creating Space: Student Perspectives, Inclusivity, and Access in International Education

Proposal

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic was simultaneously a polarizing and uniting experience for many students and educators, as they remained sequestered away from each other in lockdown yet simultaneously shared the experience of living through a pandemic with others throughout the globe (Feld & Vital, 2020). This moment of personal and professional upheaval was an opportunity for education professionals to reflect on their own career and the development of their students. In order to best support students, educators had to consider the particular, complex contexts of their students, as just behind Zoom screens their unique personal lives played out and affected their learning (Perez-Lopez, Atochero, & Rivero, 2021). For many, the pandemic underlined the need to consider student development empathetically and holistically, and out of necessity led to new virtual tools to help accomplish this.
In the field of Education Abroad (EA), given the impossibility of in-person travel or gatherings, programs could either be canceled or moved to the online space (Moody, 2020). This led many EA educators to rapidly mobilize and innovate new kinds of virtual offerings that had never existed before (The Forum on Education Abroad, 2020). EA has been shown to provide many potential benefits for students (Malmgren & Galvin, 2008; Twombly et al., 2012; Ruth et al., 2019; Vanden Berg & Schwander, 2019) including providing opportunities for professional development (Norris & Gillespie, 2009; Teichler, 2017). While extensive literature exists examining the outcomes of EA and online education, few studies have examined the intersection of the two (Siergiejczyk, 2020; Slotkin, Durie, & Eisenberg, 2012; Twombly et al., 2012).
This phenomenological study sought to gather qualitative information from educators about virtual education abroad (VEA) programs developed during the pandemic and what outcomes they could offer students. This study was guided by the following research question: How did VEA programs developed during the COVID-19 pandemic contribute to participants’ holistic professional development in terms of skills, networks, and aspirations?
Methodology: Educators completed a qualitative survey with the option to participate in a follow-up semi-structured interview. Participants were recruited using a snowball through listservs and professional networks. 60 surveys and 23 interviews were collected. These data were analyzed using first and second cycle coding as explained by Miles, Huberman, and Saldaña (2014). The analysis was considered through the lens of the career counseling metatheory Systems Theory Framework (McMahon & Patton, 2004, 2017; Patton & McMahon, 2006) which posits that an individual’s professional trajectory be considered within a holistic network of personal contexts. By applying this framework to data on VEA established during the pandemic, the whole student’s needs and experiences are taken into account while examining the effectiveness of these new interventions.
Results: EA programs have been shown to help students access professional development (Norris & Gillespie, 2009; Teichler, 2017); results from these data showed VEA also accomplish this. For example, one participant reported that “It is just a great way of earning academic credit and gaining international work experience while remaining in the states”. Some expressed a shift in perception of VEA: “We were skeptical of virtual internships in spring 2020 and going through this past year working with internship hosts and students on virtual has been extremely rewarding”. While some remained less enthusiastic, others remarked that often students gained industry-specific skills, connected with international colleagues and increased intercultural competency, improved confidence in participating in virtual meetings, and developed aspirations to travel in the future. Many educators expressed the intention of continuing to use and elaborate on these programs in the future.
Discussion: There are several implications as a result of this study and recommendations for EA practitioners to consider. In order to support students in the holistic development of their professional persona and career paths, EA departments and organizations should offer VEA as one part of their portfolio alongside in-person travel programs. Specifically, virtual international internships and virtual exchanges are a way to continue offering all students the ability to develop their identities as internationally connected and virtually adept workers. EA professionals should incorporate VEA in an intentional way and operate from a mindset allowing each student to develop career readiness through these programs in a way that matches their own context. This will increase access to these skills for all students and result in an approach to EA that stems from the place of compassion that many were inspired to develop during the challenging experience of teaching and living through a pandemic. Decision-makers should consider these programs worthy of support and development. Future researchers should examine the state of VEA in the years to come, after the pandemic is over and travel is no longer impeded.

Author

• Susanne Feld, Lesley University