CIEE believes that students learn most effectively abroad when they pursue specific learning goals, reflect on their own learning, and develop the skills to communicate effectively and appropriately in a culture different from their own. We also understand that students are much more likely to learn in these ways when CIEE resident staff proactively support and encourage their learning.
The Student Learning Program is designed to provide resident staff with the updated knowledge and tools they need to help students—as the CIEE mission statement puts it—“to gain understanding, acquire knowledge, and develop skills for living in a globally diverse world.” The project trains staff in the design and delivery of programs that allow them to intervene strategically in student learning across a semester, thus significantly increasing the likelihood that students will learn in ways that are meaningful to them, their home institutions, and CIEE. The multi-phase project includes several initiatives, including the following:
Program Learning Goals
All of our Resident Directors have identified goals in several learning domains, including second language learning, academic/intellectual learning, intercultural learning, and developing local and global awareness. Each goal responds to the question, “What do we want our students to know, understand and be able to do that they didn’t know, didn’t understand, or couldn’t do before the program started?” The answers focus on observable, measurable learning outcomes.
Online Pre-Departure Orientation
By end of the 2009-2010 school year we anticipate that all CIEE programs will offer a live online meeting, where students can get to know each other and their resident staff. The purpose of the OPDO is to set the tone for a semester of serious academic, cultural, and personal learning.
Seminar on Living and Learning Abroad
This learner-centered course, currently offered on over 40 programs, offers students a structured means to developing knowledge and skills for more effective intercultural relations. It is expected that all Study Centers will be involved in this project by the end of the 2011 - 2012 academic year. Students who successfully complete the Seminar on Living and Learning Abroad receive the CIEE Certificate of Achievement in Intercultural Education.
Assessing Student Learning
During the final phase of the Student Learning Program Pilot, Resident Directors will implement an assessment plan for student learning developed with the assistance of the Academic Affairs office and other home office staff.
The CIEE Student Learning Program provides professional development, curricular and pedagogical support, and a philosophy of intervention by design to support student learning abroad.
For more information, please contact Mick Vande Berg at mvandeberg@ciee.org.