Historically, education abroad has been designed to provide students a full immersion experience by way of semester or year-long study at a foreign university. However, this traditional format has been redefined to include a variety of non-traditional international experiences, such as international service learning projects, internships, and short-term international experiences. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to develop a deep understanding of the lived experiences of agricultural education undergraduate students participating in a short-term international experience. The overarching question that guided the study was: What were the lived experiences of agricultural education undergraduate students during a short-term international experience? As a result of the short-term international experience, students did not progress fully through all levels of development needed to be considered proficient in cultural competence. However, students demonstrated significant gains in cultural awareness and some gains in cultural understanding and cultural sensitivity. Finally, participating students verified some progress toward building cultural communication competencies as a result of their experience.
The study’s purpose was to understand Louisiana State University freshman agriculture students’ projected motivations to study abroad. To achieve this, we used a Q methodological approach. When viewed through the lens of the expectancy-value model of achievement motivation, findings suggested students’ motivations could be interpreted through three typologies: (1) Goal-Oriented Students, (2) Social-Oriented Students, and (3) Learning-Oriented Students. In particular, the Goal-Oriented Students expressed they were motivated to enroll in a study abroad course because they perceived it could enhance their educational and careerrelated ambitions through personal growth. Meanwhile, Social-Oriented Students articulated that the social dimensions of study abroad courses, i.e., networking, relationship building, and opportunities to experience a new culture, served as their primary motivation. Finally, the Learning-Oriented Students reported their desire to gain more agricultural knowledge, experience an alternative method of instruction, and learn to work with diverse populations provided intrinsic value and encouraged them to study abroad in the future. As a consequence, this study’s findings not only broaden the study abroad literature but also provide implications for university administrators and faculty to better accommodate students through recruitment and programming tailored to their motivational needs.
Keywords: motivation; Q methodology; study abroad; university agriculture students
This descriptive and comparative study was conducted to explain agriculture teaching faculty involvement in and perceptions of study abroad. Further, faculty involvement and perceptions were compared based on the personal and professional characteristics of faculty. Faculty involvement in this study included a set of activities in which faculty may be involved in addition to leading a study abroad program. Findings revealed that faculty were somewhat involved in study abroad activities and perceived study abroad outcomes as important. However, faculty were slightly less convinced that studying abroad actually produces those outcomes among students. While faculty perceived increasing study abroad participation as a priority at the institutional and college levels, they agreed less with increasing study abroad participation as being a priority among administrators and colleagues in their department. Analysis of differences between groups yielded few significant findings, with the exception of the prior international experience acquired by faculty. Recommendations for future research include replication of this study with faculty from additional universities, as well as qualitative or mixed method approaches to further investigate inconclusive findings of this study.
The COVID-19 pandemic brought grave financial concerns for families in the United States as they attempted to navigate the multifaceted impacts of the pandemic. The present descriptive study examined Florida families' employment characteristics, credit card debt, savings characteristics, use of savings based on employment and income variables, and patterns of use of the first 2020 economic impact payment during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic. Responses to an online questionnaire were collected from 526 Florida residents, age 18 or older, who were parents of minor children during the time the study was conducted. Findings are indicative of varying financial impacts on families based on gender, marital status, income level, and employment status related to COVID-19. Implications are presented for employers, educators, researchers, policymakers, and families.
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