Culture, Confidence, and Crêpes Sucrées: Exploring Teacher Candidate Perceptions of Francophone Homestay Community Leadership Experiences

Abstract

This study examines the perceptions of two groups of teacher candidates (TCs) who had participated in a 2-week, French immersion homestay Community Leadership Experience (CLE) in rural Trois-Pistoles, Quebec, Canada. Based on individual participant interviews, the co-authors, who also each served as a Faculty Facilitator for several of these CLE trips (2015-2020), present thematic findings surrounding the five components (homestay, school placements, community volunteering, cultural workshops/events, and Quebec City trip), and perceived benefits of the program including accessibility, language acquisition and improvement, cultural awareness, self-confidence, career planning re-assessment (division/program), and future employability advantages.

Using The Prism Model as A Framework for Preparing Educators on Study Abroad

“…All of these refer directly to components that were strategically incorporated into the program as described under "Program Context and Design," referring specifically to the 4week Spanish course at the host university, the education and culture course, integration into the society through the Mapping for Integration assignment, host family stay, field experience at the bilingual school, and, to a lesser extent, the excursions and cultural activities. These findings are consistent with Back et al (2022), Diao et al (2011), He et al (2017), Jarvis and Mady (2021), Nero (2018), Trent (2011, Wernicke (2010), andZhao et al (2009), who also found positive perceptions among their participants. Clearly, more than just the presence of the students in the location, these well-structured inherent components of the program that obligate the students to make maximum use of the opportunity are hugely beneficial.…”