This article is a result of my participation as a team member involved in the ongoing development and implementation of a course students complete during their semester abroad. In the article I describe how project work was combined with the concepts of distance education and sheltered instruction to create a course which enhances the students' social and academic growth during the study abroad experience.
Miyazaki International College (MIC), in southern Kyushu, is a newly-established four-year liberal arts university offering a degree in Comparative Culture. Dr. Hisayasu Otsubo, president of the Miyazaki Educational Institute, realized his dream of establishing a Japanese university that would graduate bilingual international citizens (Otsubo, 1995) when MIC admitted its first students in April, 1994.
Three years prior to the opening, a small group of primarily American educators worked closely with Dr. Otsubo to create MIC's exceptional educational program. Designed for a student population with an English ability in the 500 TOEFL range, the program has several features unique to a Japanese university. First, except for Japanese Expression, all classes are taught in English. Second, again with the exception of Japanese Expression, all first- and second-year classes follow a content-based adjunct model; classes are taught concurrently by teaching pairs made up of a content specialist and a language specialist (Brinton, Snow & Wesche, 1989). Third, classes are small and learners are expected to participate actively. In addition, the instructional focus is on learning to use critical thinking skills in conjunction with mastery of course material. And finally, all students are required to study abroad in an English speaking country during their fourth semester.
Faced with the first group of newly-admitted students, whose average TOEFL score was 450, the founding faculty members quickly realized that the original program goals would prove extremely challenging to attain. Indeed, instructors continue to work overtime to develop innovative teaching strategies and techniques to teach successfully to the realities of the student population. MIC's 4-year probationary status provides additional pressure, since it requires that the college adhere to the original program approved by the Japanese Ministry of Education (Mombusho) in 1993.
As mentioned earlier, all students are required to study abroad in their 4th semester. The 1993 MIC Study Abroad Handbook of Policies and Procedures regulates the terms of that study. The handbook states that one of the primary objectives of the study abroad program is "to bring students into direct contact with the problems and realities of international understanding and cultural diversity, and prepare them for advanced study in comparative culture. . ." (p. 4). Thus, the study abroad program serves as a real-life laboratory, in which the transition from the introductory work of the first two years to the more specialized material of the last two years takes place. Moreover, students begin to "understand the methods and resources needed to define and solve cross-cultural problems" (p. 4) while studying abroad. The study abroad program consists of the following components: 8 credits of Area Studies, 4 credits of English language study, and 4 credits of Independent Study. The study abroad handbook describes the Independent Study course as one in which the student's attention is focused on an "important human issue or problem" (p. 5). Thus, the handbook outlines the expectations of what students are to accomplish for their Independent Study during the semester abroad, but it does not provide details about how the work is to be done.
Development
Over the 1995 winter break at the onset of MIC's second year of operation, the Study Abroad Director brought together several interested faculty members and charged us with the development of an Independent Study (IS) course. Our completion deadline was mid-July.
Meanwhile, the director continued to assist the students in matching their academic and personal goals to one of 11 study abroad sites in the U.S, Canada, Australia, or England. In addition to the standard criteria of location, safety, ESL program quality, and cost, these sites had to meet two additional requirements for inclusion as a MIC study abroad site. First, the English language program had to be part of, or somehow connected, to a 4-year university. The director's experience with study abroad programs indicated that language programs on university campuses usually provide more opportunities for socializing, more extensive facilities, and increased possibilities for the students to attend university classes. Second, students had to have individual e-mail accounts and access to computers from the first day of enrollment at the study abroad site.
The framework for the IS course grew out of our direct experiences with the students, both in and out of class. Some of us had been experimenting successfully with the use of projects in our classes and we argued that a project would provide the structure needed while at the same time allow flexibility (see Henry, 1994). The group then agreed that a small-scale community-based research project with social as well as academic objectives would best meet the broad goals of the study abroad program in general and the IS course in particular.
The social objectives were defined as follows: Students would become involved in the host community, gain exposure to host-country nationals, acquire greater confidence in interacting with others, increase their understanding of other cultures, and reflect upon personal growth. We expected students to accomplish these objectives while they were engaged in project tasks which incorporated the academic objectives of choosing and focusing the project, conducting research using human and non-human resources, summarizing and reacting to resources, and writing up the project and its findings.
Once the objectives and broad tasks were delineated, the design group began to think about the management of the IS course in terms of a distance education course. In established distance education courses, the learners complete and send their assignments to an instructor whose primary task is to assess and provide feedback on the work. Traditionally, the learner sends work and receives assessment through a postal system (Jones, Kirkup & Kirkwood, 1993). The development team believed that providing more direct and immediate feedback through the use of e-mail would vastly improve the distance education model. Since students in distance education courses learn primarily through the course materials rather than through classroom sessions (Henry, 1994, p.99, 112), the development team decided to write a project guide for the students that would outline the social and academic goals of the project. In addition to detailed worksheets that would guide the students in their writing, the guide would also provide a description and grading criteria for each assignment.
Even after producing this detailed guide, however, the development team was still concerned that students who experienced difficulties in adjusting to a new environment or in coping with the high degree of personal responsibility a project demands would need more guidance and assistance in carrying out a community-based research project. The group struggled with how they could provide more support to the students at the host campus, yet keep the implementation and management locus of the course with MIC. The solution was to "shelter" (Brinton et al., 1989, p. 16) the course according to the ability of participating students in much the same way content classes at many universities are sheltered for defined student populations, such as ESL students. In conventional sheltered university courses, the instructors might develop and write their own materials rather than use course books intended for native speakers. Lectures might be shorter or more visual, and incorporate frequent comprehension checks. However, given that the IS project required library research and oral interviews as the primary means for the students to gather information, these options were not possible. Instead, the developers chose to modify the distance education component of the separation of the learner and the instructor by creating an intermediary position, the site instructor, within the framework of the course. The site instructor would have a clearly defined role that would be distinct from, yet complementary to, that of the MIC instructor.
The site instructor was to be responsible for a number of areas in which the MIC instructor simply could not provide help. For example, the site instructor was to train the students on the host campus computer system. Site instructors were also to orient students to the host campus library (all sites had substantially larger collections, especially of periodicals, than the budding MIC library). They were to provide an entry into the local community, helping students make contacts with people who could assist them with their projects. They were to plan and deliver mini-workshops on skill areas the students would need to complete some of the assignments successfully, such as interviewing skills. And most importantly, they were to provide detailed feedback on the students' initial drafting efforts, the kind of feedback almost impossible to give effectively via e-mail. In essence, they would become "gatekeepers" of the student work, deciding whether it was ready to send on to MIC for comments and grading.
Satisfied that a site instructor would provide the extra guidance, assurance and support needed by the students, the development team quickly completed writing the Independent Study Guide (see Appendix 1 for excerpts) incorporating the agreed-upon academic and social objectives into a project-based course that could be completed in 10 weeks. (Each study abroad site had its own timeline. Ten weeks was the shortest session possible; however, eight sites offered 16-week programs.) They created a community-based research project consisting of the following tasks:
- Deciding and focusing on a topic with local community impact. The development team believed that to achieve significant cultural or linguistic progress while on study abroad, students would have to go beyond the university environment and become integrated into the local community. Localization of the project encouraged students to do this. Students would decide on a topic and a focus within the first 2 to 3 weeks of the semester abroad.
- Finding and summarizing periodical resources that provided more information on the topic and its focus. The team wanted the students to gather current information and to gain more experience with a fully-functioning periodical department. Students were to locate and summarize four articles.
- Arranging, conducting and writing up interviews with people in the community who could provide insight on the topic. The development team thought it was important that the students become aware of the value of people as resources. Students were to interview three people.
- Writing guided journal entries. The team wanted to monitor student adjustment to the new environment and thought that several guided journal prompts focusing on personal expression and reflection might supply this information. There were four journal prompts over the semester.
- Writing a final report. The team hoped that in this report the students would synthesize the information they had learned from the interviews and the library research, while at the same time articulating and analyzing their own personal and academic development over the semester. The developers were no less interested in the process that the students were going through than they were in the product. Students were to complete the final report in the final weeks of the study abroad semester.
- Maintaining a portfolio of work. The team believed that portfolios containing each student's work from throughout the semester would help determine how the IS course goals and objectives had been met by the students. Additionally, it would provide a starting point for course revisions. Students were to keep drafts and graded copies of their work in the portfolio. The site instructor was to collect the portfolio at the end of the semester and mail it to MIC, where it would be reviewed and globally assessed.
After completing any revisions prompted by the site instructor's initial feedback, the students were to e-mail each assignment to the MIC instructor for comments and grades. Depending on the MIC instructor's comments, further refinement might be needed. These revisions and rewrites were to make up the bulk of the portfolios. Both the MIC instructor and the site instructor were to grade student work according to the grading criteria in the Independent Study Guide.
Outcome
By August, all the pieces of the Independent Study course were in place: the project guide had been prepared and distributed to all the participants, the site instructors had been hired and briefed, computer access and e-mail capability had been guaranteed at each of the eleven sites in four different countries, and the fifty students had left Japan. As one of two members of the development team who had agreed to be project instructors, I awaited the arrival of the first e-mailed assignments.
What started as a trickle quickly became a deluge as we received and responded to hundreds, if not thousands, of e-mail messages from August to December. These messages contained everything from personal notes and journal writing to assignments and formal papers (see Appendix 2 for an assignment example). We were able to assess the course design based on this rich resource. As 49 students out of 50 completed the project within the allotted time span, we concluded that the IS course, or more specifically the project approach, was feasible .
As anticipated, students did experience hardships in completing the IS course. Most notably, students complained about the course workload, the difficulty of locating library resources that were related to their project topic and were simple to read, and the problems of finding appropriate interviewees within the limited time frame of the course. In most cases, we were able to support the students in their efforts and help them over the rough patches through quick e-mail intervention. Moreover, the study abroad director visited and met personally with the students, site instructors, and administrators at each site during the semester and was able to troubleshoot many potential problems.
Students achieved the social objectives of the course with varying degrees of success. The students did, in fact, become involved in the host community. The following excerpt is from a student living in England who, through her research on the handicapped, volunteered at a school for the blind:
I could learn about a lot of things which I haven't experienced before. For example, I understood about disabled people such as how we should treat them, and what they feel about society, able-bodied people and themselves.1
Students gained exposure to host-country nationals and were amazed that "regular" people would actually talk to them. They even spoke to experts as exemplified in this excerpt from a student who interviewed the head of Greenpeace Australia which was researching development on the Australian Gold Coast:
The most interesting statement was that she is pessimistic about the future for the fauna on the Gold Coast. Why I think it is interesting is that I was predicting positive answer, however her answer was negative. The environment on the Gold Coast now looks good to the uninitiated eye, but she is a professional and looks the fact in the face. So, she can't have any hope in the future for the fauna.
Students indicated that the interviews were the most exciting, rewarding and motivating part of the project:
What I learned from this interview is that I can ask interviewee what I want to know, and I can ask to explain what I couldn't understand. When I read books, I can't ask questions to the authors, and I can't tell them my opinion. So, I think that interview is very effective to get many information.
They gained confidence through their interactions with members of the community:
I was very nervous before I met her [the interviewee], because I didn't have any confidence in my speaking. Moreover, I am not good at talking with strangers even if they are Japanese. So, I really didn't want to talk with her. However, my mind was changed during the interview. She was very kind and friendly. She explained her idea so clearly that I could understand what she said. I was very relaxed before I knew.
In many cases, the interviews caused the students to reflect on how their own country handled the issue they were investigating; students were beginning to understand their roles in the world as a whole:
After I came here, I came to realise that I am a Japanese. Also, I became to be proud that I am a Japanese. The reason must be that I am surrounded by many non-Japanese people every day. However, it is difficult for me to open myself up to them. The reason might be that there are some differences between Japanese and non-Japanese people, including language and culture. On the other hand, I am able to learn many things from them.
Another student researching the local government at her study abroad site states, "I learned that it's important for us to know about our local government and we have to know more about it. I have noticed that I don't know about my local government [in Japan] . . ."
Through e-mail, students became more aware of the critical role of the audience. MIC instructors often forwarded interesting writing to other faculty, who in turn responded directly to the student about it. A temporary World Wide Web page was created to showcase the students' work. Thus, computers made the audience real for the students. As MIC instructors, we suspect we were observing computer-mediated communication firsthand (see Mason, R. & Kaye, A., 1989). We hope to follow up on the impact of computers on how people communicate using the rich corpus of e-mail exchanges from the students and the site instructors collected in the first year. We believe we have participated in cutting-edge instructional design in which the electronic university is a reality. Plans for the implementation of video and audio conferencing by computer are being discussed for next year's program.
In conclusion, we at MIC believe that, despite the inherent complexity in setting up and managing a distance education course, the results far outweigh any of the difficulties. As more groups of students participate in study abroad, the IS course will continue to evolve and improve, but a basic, flexible framework, which can be adjusted according to the needs and ablilities of the participating students, is in place.
References
- Brinton, D., Snow, M. A., & Wesche, M. B. (1989). Content-based second language instruction. Boston, MA: Heinle & Heinle Publishers.
- Henry, J. (1994). Teaching through projects. London: Kogan Page.
- Jones, A., Kirkup, G., Kirkwood, A. (1993). Personal computers for distance education. New York: St. Martin's Press.
- Mason, R & Kaye, A. (1989). Mindweave: Communication, computers and distance education. Oxford: Pergamon Press.
- MIC study abroad: Handbook of policies and procedures.(1993). Miyazaki, Japan: Miyazaki International College.
- Otsubo, H. (1995). Japan's higher education and Miyazaki International College. Comparative Culture, 1, 1-9. Appendix 1: Project guide excerpts
Appendix 1: THE TOPIC AND FOCUS STATEMENT REQUIREMENT
You must write a topic and focus statement before you actually begin to do the library research. A topic and focus statement gives you a place to begin your search for resources in the library. The topic and focus statement should be a paragraph or two that answer these questions:
- What is your topic? What is your focus?
- Why are you interested in this topic and focus?
- What questions do you have about your topic and focus?
- In addition, you should begin to think about your audience and the feasibility of your project in order to write an effective topic and focus statement.
Prepare to write your topic and focus statement: Before you begin to write your topic and focus statement, ask yourself the following questions:
- What is the general issue or topic that I am interested in?
- Why is this topic important to me?
- What is the most interesting aspect of this topic that I would like to learn more about?
- What are some questions I have about this topic?
- Is my focus too broad? too narrow?
- Write the first draft of your topic and focus statement: After you have answered these questions, write a draft which includes the ideas from your answers. Use the Topic and Focus Statement Format.
- Refine your topic and focus statement: Your site instructor will give you feedback on your draft. Keep this feedback in mind as you refine your topic and focus statement.
- Refer to your topic and focus statement often during your library research: You may want to make minor changes to your topic and focus statement as you learn more about your topic.
Appendix 2: THE TOPIC AND FOCUS STATEMENT FORMAT
Use the following form to help you focus on the essential pieces of information which must be included in your final topic and focus statement.
My research topic is:
The aspect(s) of this topic I want to study is/are:
I feel that this study is important because:
My purpose (motivation) in researching this topic is to answer the following questions:
THE TOPIC AND FOCUS STATEMENT GRADING CRITERIA
The finished topic and focus statement is worth 10 points.
Name: ____________________________ Total: _____
______Research Topic and Focus (3 points)
Did you clearly state your topic and its focus?
______Importance (2 points)
Did you clearly state why this topic is important?
______Research Questions (3 points)
Did you clearly state questions you have about this topic?
______Organization (2 point)
Is your writing well organized? Appendix 2: An example of a student/MIC instructor e-mail exchange
Summary of responses
OCTALS has organized in 1986 as one research laboratory of Oxford Brookes University for researching the situation of Oxford in tourism view. They had already completed their research that was done in 1990-1991 and published as "Oxford Visitor Study". This book is quite useful for students who taking tourism class. Then the role is a supporter to develop the tourism both in academic and in practical ways. They are trying to cover the lacking part which neither city councils nor tourist board can do by researching details.
Mr. Mattews said, "There is no serious problems in Oxford comparing to other tourist destinations". People cannot develop this city for tourists because of the University that have been building in the city center with narrow roads. Also people do not need to change present situation for tourists. Oxford is attractive by itself with the old buildings. Moreover, though the pollution from tourists, such as noise, manner are often reported by Media, they are not so large problems. The results of OCTALS research show the evidence. Twenty-two percents of citizen have complain about the pollution; however, over 75 percents of people do not care about it. The manager said to satisfied all citizen is not their purpose. If the number of people who are satisfied with today's situation increase, it said, their activities are going well.
While, the number of the owned car is big issue, because of the narrow roads in Oxford. They intend to stop that tourists also make this situation worse by recommending to use public transportation ways.
Finally, he said that every tourist destination has to find the way to manage tourist in geographically and seasonally, if they intend to lengthen the lives of the place as tourists destinations. This is very interesting idea for me.
My personal reaction
This is my first experience, so I became really nervous. However, Mr. Mattews tried to my situation and my English, and he answered slowly and repeatedly. -As I said before, the idea of managing people in the tourist destination is the new one. -I was not sure what is the OCTALS. I could ask about this Organization and I realized what is it. -Actually I could not afford to think about my interview skills to give better interview during interview. I think if I can be relax, it will become much better than this time. Anyway It was good experience.
Dear Ikuko,
I hope this helps you. I think overall your interview was good. I would like you to expand on the personal reaction section. Will this interview help you in your research? How will it help you? What did you learn from this interview? Also it seemed that all the interviewee's responses were very positive indicating that tourism is good and that there are no negative effects from tourism, but is this true?
For your next interview, please try to ask follow-up questions. When the interviewee makes a statement, ask him/her to explain it in more details. Ask for examples. This is a legitimate interview strategy.
My personal reaction
It was my first experience that interviewing person whom I have never met in English. So I become really nervous, but Mr. Mattews tried to understand my situation and my English , and he answered slowly and repeatedly. In this interview, I had expecter to get inforemation especially about the environmental impact in Oxford from tourism industory. However, his answers were that they do not realize so bad influence from their research. He answered my questions as a manager of the public organization according to the numbers which OCTAL got, not answered as an individual. He would be neutral between official organization and citizens. I think it is dangerous to believe all of what he said, because I think there are some problems.
On the other hand, he gave me an interest idea. As I said before, it is the idea of managing people in the tourist destination. This idea will become or has already been common not only in Oxford but also in all over the world. I feel it is need to know about this idea well, so I intend to ask next interviewee again.
Actually I could not afford to think about my interview skill to give better interview during interview. I think if I can be relax, it will become better than this time. Anyway it was good experience.
Katharine Isbell is a lecturer in Comparative Culture at Miyazaki International College and she has been involved with the study abroad program since its inception. She is a member of the Independent Studies development team and is an Independent Studies instructor. She is interested in computer-mediated communication.