It is no doubt that foreign languages and cultures students gain many valuable strengths and abilities that they can take outside of the classroom into practical use. It is also important to note, however, that many of these strong traits come from different places. What does one learn in an American foreign language classroom? This question is easy to answer, since critical thinking, the ability to analyze evidence, reasoning and communication skills are all beneficial for academic, preprofessional and personal purposes. What one can take outside of the classroom, however, is a question more difficult to tackle. Although one gains helpful experiences in language classes in America, it is often difficult to experience a new culture and practice language since the accepted American language is predominantly English. With this in mind, study abroad experiences come into play.

Natural born American citizens are often spoiled by their upbringing. Regardless of where one lives in the United States, everyone is more than likely to speak the same language and practice similar cultural practices. For this reason, and many others, studying a foreign language and culture in America can be incredibly beneficial since it exposes one to identities and backgrounds that are not one’s own. However, studying a foreign language and culture is vastly different from experiencing that foreign culture.

This summer I am looking forward to traveling to Vienna with Emory’s German Studies department through the “Emory in Vienna” program and I expect it to be extraordinary. One of my goals for this study abroad experience is for my language skills to vastly improve. Although I have been studying German for close to eight years, I have never had an experience where I was truly immersed in the German-speaking world. Since I will have to communicate in German for the most basic of functions and tasks, I expect my conversational skills to improve drastically. These vital conversational abilities, although sometimes the most basic of sorts, are also sometimes the most difficult to teach in a classroom setting. I am also looking forward to the culture shock that comes with living on a new continent among new peers. After learning about the German culture throughout many European countries from an outsider’s perspective, I am thrilled to finally be getting an insider’s view into life in a country that does not prioritize English. I am excited to immerse myself in the culture, whether that is related to the arts, nightlife, traditions, or public transportation in Vienna. I have never experienced anything like it before, and I could not be more excited.

Having a study abroad experience under one’s belt also sets them apart when putting themselves into the job search market. The experience of studying abroad tells an employer that one is willing to challenge themselves, with positive outcomes resulting from that challenge. Studying abroad is surely no walk in the park, for one must feel comfortable placing themselves in an unfamiliar environment with little-to-no people or resources with whom they are familiar. Studying abroad also tells an employer that one is adaptable and can acclimate themselves easily to an unfamiliar environment. Although it seems abstract, these are skills that one obtains through studying abroad are what many employers are seeking.

Every student studying a foreign language or culture should study abroad given the opportunity, and Emory students, in particular, are fortunate to attend an institution that supports and encourages students to explore the world beyond its campus.

Seaira Lett

The city of Granada

Studying abroad had a big impact on what I decided I wanted to do after graduating Emory, but not in the way you might expect. Before I went to Spain, I dreamed of living in a Spanish-speaking country and teaching English. However, after spending 6 weeks abroad, I realized that I personally am more interested in making a change through language education back home in the US. I want to help ESL students here that have a more urgent need to learn English, and I also want to advocate for Hispanic culture as a Spanish teacher to Anglo-Americans. I definitely learned a lot about who I am on my trip to Spain, and this realization was a crucial moment in my academic trajectory.

Furthermore, studying abroad is an amazing opportunity to become independent. After my program was over, I decided to stay in Madrid for a few days. I learned that it is very possible to navigate a new country and travel alone, which I now feel comfortable doing in the future. When I arrived in Spain, I didn’t want to take any chances with the metro because I was afraid of getting lost or worse, getting robbed, so I took a taxi from the airport to my hotel, which costed around 50 euros. On my last day, I felt much more capable of figuring things out by myself, so I did the research, dragged my luggage up a few hills, and took a train to the airport, which only costed about 10 euros. It ended up being a lot easier than I had originally imagined, and I felt empowered to be able to save money and get around on my own.

Churros con chocolate, the classic Spanish dessert

Studying abroad took me out of my comfort zone in ways other than forcing me to become more independent. I took a research methods class in which I had to survey Spanish people in the street, an embarrassing and frustrating task for a timid, 20-year-old girl from the US. Many people refused to participate, and a few took the politically-charged questions I had to ask as an attack on their country. Though not everyone was like this; my research gave me the unique opportunity to learn about Spain’s current situation through a primary source, and it was ultimately a positive experience. I’m even finding that I’m now more outgoing around people that I don’t know.

A mind-blowing art show projected onto Salamanca’s old architecture

I haven’t forgotten about one super important aspect of studying abroad: learning about another culture. I made it a goal of mine to fit in when I was in Spain, which of course didn’t happen on the first day. I assumed that my skills in Spanish would be sufficient to survive without using English during my trip, but I was faced with an obstacle: I was not familiar with any of the common ingredients or dishes eaten in Spain, so I couldn’t understand restaurant menus. There are so many words to describe ham that I had no idea existed! This resulted in me being given the English menu my first few trips to restaurants. However, during my 7 weeks in Spain, I picked up on these words, as well as more subtle Spanish mannerisms such as how to hold silverware, how to interact with retail workers, and how to dress, and in my last week, no one spoke to me in English.

I could go on and on about all of the incredible experiences I had on my trip to Spain, but my point is that there is so much you can learn while abroad, and a lot of it has nothing to do with where you go.

When I began self-studying Korean in high school, I was thrilled to use my broken language skills to connect with people in local Korean communities. Though I enjoyed the opportunity to speak with members of the Korean community, our conversations were comfortably padded by English. All of the Korean people I met in the US could speak English with far higher proficiency than I could speak Korean. However, when I arrived in South Korea to study abroad for a year and live with a Korean host family, learning Korean took on an entirely new meaning in my life. In Seoul, the majority of the people I met did not speak any English like the Koreans I met in the US. I had no English cushion to lean on. Korean was no longer a hobby which allowed me to better understand my favorite TV dramas; rather, learning and speaking Korean became an essential aspect of my daily life and survival in the totally new environment of Seoul. 

When I first came to Seoul, everything seemed unfamiliar and foreign. The signs appeared to be scribbles of lines and circles, the streets were filled with indistinguishable chattering in a language I did not understand. Food menus and subway maps were not only incomprehensible, but also inspired dread as I had to quickly figure out what to tell the waiter or which direction to go on the train. However, over the following months, I learned to read those circles and lines. I first learned to sound-out those scribbles and then learned what each of those words meant. Little-by-little, I started to make out what the man on the subway was complaining to his wife about and what the teenagers standing by the door were laughing about. The most difficult part of going to a restaurant shifted from understanding the menu to choosing from all of the delicious food it contained, and the subway became my most cherished tool for exploring Seoul and beyond. 

My friends from class at my Korean high school!

Studying abroad forced me to become comfortable with being uncomfortable. Before I could learn Korean and integrate into Seoul society, I needed to learn to navigate discomfort and unfamiliar terrain with patience, persistence, and good humor. Studying abroad did not just advance my language skills; it allowed me to use my language skills to connect with Korean people and better understand my host culture as I was immersed in it. I left Seoul not just a better Korean speaker, but as a more culturally-aware global citizen who feels confident in my ability to solve problems, connect with others, and navigate unfamiliar terrain. Finally, studying Korean in Korea transformed a place and people from the alien to the familiar, giving me a second home which I would have never previously expected.

My Korean family!

Studying abroad is highly recommended for students studying foreign languages and cultures; in fact, depending on their major, some students are required by their department to study abroad. Unfortunately, people often have misconceptions about academic trips to foreign countries. Many parents tend to believe that studying abroad is a student’s excuse for exploring the world. Professors frequently assume that education is not as sophisticated abroad, and therefore foreign classes should not be accepted for credit. The academic value of these trips is frequently downplayed. Even students themselves can have false ideas about studying abroad; it is sometimes assumed that the experience will be about partying, traveling Europe (or another continent), and messing around with friends. While having fun on the trip is certainly possible (and encouraged!), the academic work is rigorous and requires just as much dedication as any other class. Apart from written work, however, there are many chances to have unique cultural encounters that are not possible to obtain when staying in one’s home country. These experiences are invaluable and extremely beneficial to a foreign languages and cultures education. If given the opportunity, any student studying a foreign language/culture should study abroad.

Perhaps the most obvious reason to study abroad is the benefit that complete immersion has to offer. Surrounding oneself with a target language every day (and all day) immediately opens the door to a more genuine and natural form of learning. While total immersion sounds a little intimidating, the effect that it has on increasing one’s verbal and auditory fluency is invaluable. When studying abroad, students often find the first one to two weeks to be frustrating, as the locals there may speak at a different pace or with a different accent than what they are used to hearing in their language classes. The mind adapts extremely quickly, however, and all of a sudden they realize that they are able to understand most of what is being said to them; their ability to comprehend others as well as their ability to respond increases exponentially. The personal conversations and interactions that they take part in abroad will be more realistic than the conversations they have purely in an academic setting; while this helps tremendously with learning the language itself, it also gives students exposure to real life situations that are useful when learning how to apply foreign language in the context of a professional setting.

The cultural exposure that one has when studying abroad is incomparable to anything that is taught in the classroom.  Of course, students studying a foreign language learn a lot about the culture of the countries in which their target language is spoken, but learning a culture and living it are two very different things. Much of the day to day quirks and slang that exist abroad are not addressed in a classroom setting; adapting local phrases and gestures into one’s vocabulary makes conversing more sincere and relatable. Language and culture go hand in hand; the more cultural knowledge one acquires, the better able they are to understand why certain words came about and the meaning behind certain phrases and dialogues. In this sort of setting, open-mindedness is valued and students often return feeling less culturally biased and more understanding.

Overall, studying abroad plays an important role in the academic trajectory of a foreign languages and cultures student because it prepares them in both an educational and applicational manner; it challenges them to dig deeper than they would in a normal university class and truly become a part of the culture that they are studying. Their newfound knowledge will be taken with them not only back to their university, but into their eventual workplaces as well (wherever in the world that workplace may be).

Portugal Summer Study Abroad 2019- Palácio Nacional da Pena

Learning a new language has been a hot subject for research in the recent years. Of the many benefits that have been identified, research has correlated higher academic achievements with learning a new language. This heightened performance includes higher standardized test scores and better reading abilities. Research has also found improved cognitive abilities with learning a new language and correlated higher intelligence with bilingualism. Not only that, but research suggests that language learners develop a more positive attitude toward the target language or the speakers of that language. All of these findings support the claim that learning foreign languages shapes an intelligent, empathetic citizen of the world.

The benefits of learning a new language, however, come with a great cost; learning a new language requires major time allocation and dedication. Even then, learning a new language can be very difficult because it requires our brains to construct a new cognitive framework. Research from MIT suggests that the reason it is so much harder for adults to learn a new language than kids is because adults tend to over-analyze hindering their ability to pick up a foreign language’s subtle nuances.

While learning a new language is not by any means an easy process – nothing truly worthwhile is – it is definitely enjoyable and rewarding. While our brains will never be as plastic as kids’ brains, we can be as curious as them. In order to achieve that level of curiosity, one has to be immersed in a foreign environment. This unique exposure forces our brains to become adept at constructing new cognitive framework which is optimal for the facilitation of learning a new language. Going on a study abroad program combines language learning with travel and cultural immersion making it the ideal method for effectively learning a foreign language.

While studying abroad is ideal for learning a new language, like any other experience, the fruits cannot be reaped by simply going through the program; they are reaped through stepping out of one’s comfort zone and making peace with being unfamiliar with the culture and language. With the right mindset and commitment, one can further optimize the benefits of the study abroad program by practicing certain methods and making good use of helpful tips.  The main and most important method is setting clear and realistic goals and following through with them. The goal could be as simple as having at least one complete conversation everyday with someone other than the host family, which is a good prompt to try to talk to new people and say something more than just your food order or ask how much something costs. Another very useful method to make the best out of the program meeting with language partners through local universities allowing students to immerse further into the culture.

There are many other methods such as getting involved in the community and volunteering. However, the most important factor of it all is having a positive attitude and being willing to make mistakes. After all, the long-term goal of mastering the foreign language is what matters; it takes commitment and overcoming failure or embarrassment.

Works Cited

Peal, E., & Lambert, W. E. (1962). The relation of bilingualism to intelligence. Psychological Monographs, 76(27, Whole No. 546), 23. from PsycINFO database.

Armstrong, P. W., & Rogers, J. D. (1997). Basic skills revisited: The effects of foreign language instruction on reading, math, and language arts. Learning Languages, 2(3), 20-31.

Bamford, K. W., & Mizokawa, D. T. (1989). Cognitive and attitudinal outcomes of an additive-bilingual program. U.S.; Washington:  ED305826

Kessler, C., & Quinn, M. E. (1980). Positive effects of bilingualism on Science problem-solving abilities. In J. Alatis (Ed.), Georgetown  Universityround table on languages and linguistics (pp. 295-308). Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press, from Linguistics and Language Behavior Abstracts database.

The last time I went to Korea, I was around seven years old, and everyone around me thought I was some sort of child genius. I say this with a grain of salt – they likely didn’t think I was a genius, per se, but they definitely thought I had some level of precocity.

The root of this belief was the fact that I spoke fluent English. In Korea, English is taught in schools to older students, so seeing a seven-year-old with perfect pronunciation and grammar and fluency was something of a spectacle.

Me, as a screaming child in Korea

Of course, what they didn’t know was that I spoke English because I didn’t know much Korean.

Being in Korea shoved me out of my comfort zone – only my older sister spoke English fluently, but I couldn’t just talk to only her for the entire duration of my visit. My mom knew some English from living in America for so long, but not even she could accurately translate everything I said. Thus, I was given no choice but to learn Korean. I knew enough basics to hold a brief conversation but not enough to really interact with my cousins, aunts, and uncle. At that time, I saw learning Korean as a survival mechanism – to be able to get around the foreign area, I needed to learn to read the street signs and ask strangers in their language for help.

Whenever I think of that summer, I liken the experience to what I imagine study abroad to be like. I am essentially displaced into a foreign country, with little to no knowledge of the language and culture of the region. This prospect makes me, as someone who is extremely introverted and socially anxious, uncomfortable. But I firmly believe this to be a necessary discomfort. I need to learn to step out of familiar territory and be able to dive into uncharted waters in order to grow.

I started these steps in high school, when I forced myself out of my box at a Spanish immersion camp. It was taxing – both physically and mentally – for me to struggle with communication because I didn’t know enough Spanish to thoroughly express myself. In the end, though, I could tangibly experience how my communication skills were improving because I could nonchalantly make a joke or easily follow and participate in a conversation that wasn’t about my hobbies or favorite food. I also returned home with a deepened appreciation of the culture because I experienced the closest thing to what culture immersion during a study abroad would be like while I was at camp.

At the immersion camp, learning popular Spanish songs

Another important aspect of study abroad is that you will never be able to experience anything more authentic or raw or in its truest form unless you live and experience the country for yourself. At camp, my breath was taken away by the beautiful traditional dances or the delicious foods from each Spanish-speaking country (meals were themed by country) or the fun events of popular holidays. But I know that that experience wouldn’t even begin to compare with what study abroad would be like. After all, despite a professor’s best efforts, everything taught in class is still just 2D, or text on a page, or a video shown on a screen.

The role study abroad plays in the academic trajectory of a foreign languages student is a role that is so inseparable and intertwined it seems that one cannot exist without the other. While I believe that the two are linked, I do not believe they are so codependent on one another as universities, students, and even faculty may have one believe. I believe that as academics, we should allow the two subjects to interact, certainly, but it is also our duty to ensure that we can separate the two topics into their own distinct areas. 

The purpose of a liberal arts education is to provide a sort of well-roundedness to a student’s education. To say that studying abroad is expected, or even required, to succeed in learning a foreign language, contradicts the foundational beliefs of a liberal arts education, which is that students should be allowed to choose their own path in a variety of studies. There is nothing wrong with studying abroad in practice, but there is something wrong with the way we talk about it, in academic and non-academic circles. There is a stigma attached to studying abroad, be it a summer, semester, or even a year abroad. That stigma is that studying abroad is viewed as being nearly hedonistic, as it is associated with wealth and affluence, which also leads it to being viewed as a glorified vacation. If we create this culture around studying abroad that presents it as elite, something only wealthy students can afford to do, why do we present it as a requirement to complete a foreign language degree? This stigma creates unnecessary pressure on the foreign language student, especially the low-income student and the role of study abroad in a foreign language student’s studies becomes a burden rather than something that should be enriching and educational, and yes, even fun. 

The accessibility of study abroad (to all students, studying foreign languages or not) is by and large perceived as a challenge to students who don’t fit a certain mold. In American university culture, and by extension, American culture, the only students who study abroad are affluent, white, and focus more on the “abroad” portion of study abroad. These students are stereotyped as aloof and with a total disregard of their studies. 

In order to transform the role of study abroad from an imposing academic stronghold where only the elite are admitted, the conversation around it must change, and it is our job as foreign language and cultures students to change it.  

As a low-income student, I find study abroad and university in general to be extremely elite and inaccessible. While this may seem ironic, as I am at an elite university writing about study abroad, I can attest that everything leading up to this moment was nothing short of a long, intimidating, inaccessible process. I will also not say that I speak for all foreign language students, and I most certainly don’t speak for all low-income students. This is not to say that I am ungrateful. I am extremely lucky to be in my current position, but that does not mean that I cannot address the injustices from the inside. The call is most definitely coming from inside the house, and I don’t plan on hanging up anytime soon.

Imagine the smell of chocolate and coffee wafting through the cobblestone streets with people laughing and talking in some language you’ve had 10 years of experience, but never like this. The orange glow of street lamps give the space a cozy vibe and makes you fully aware of the fact that you’re in the dark in foreign place. Yet you strangely feel comfortable. This was my experience in Paris with my AP french class. 

The eight of us students have been together since the fourth grade, taking French and swapping sarcastic jokes amongst ourselves for 6 years. Every year at my high school, the AP French class traveled to Paris for spring break. I saved up for this trip since the fourth grade, as soon as I knew it was possible for me to go. I helped plan the trip with my friends and my beloved French teacher, who was born and raised in Paris. 

When we got there, we attempted to speak French all the time (we weren’t as successful as we hoped but we tried). Everything we did we did as a group. We made meals together in the kitchens of our hotel rooms  right in Saint-Germain. We walked through the streets and people watched. We visited the classic stops on any Paris trip, like Notre Dame or the Louvre as well as hidden away parks, small churches, and hole-in-the-wall restaurants. We visited a Parisian high school on our first day and attended class as well as explored the campus. I held full length conversations in French, something that concerned me due to the fact I did not have a lot of experience speaking outside of school. I liked getting to know the students and what their lives were like. 

One of the most bizarre locations we visited was the Catacombs.My friends and I had to practically beg to get our teacher to take us there and we fortunately convinced her to take us.  I wandered where Robbespierre is buried and millions of others. Even through the cramped walkways and damp musty air, I tread along the old paths, enamoured by the craziness of it all. Underground and surrounded by bones did creep me out a little at first but after awhile, I grew more comfortable and could enjoy reading the Latin and French stone signs adorning the walls, barely separated from the bones themselves. 

Towards the end of our trip we hiked our way over to Le Sacre-Coeur and Montmartre.  We walked past several art vendors and small shops. At the end of the evening, I decided to stop into a small ceramic store. A blue and orange ceramic chicken caught my eye. I had to purchase this incredible clay fowl. I named her “courgette”.It seemed fitting. I carefully wrapped her in my coat and placed her on my hotel nightstand for the rest of our time there. 

Besides the cultural exposure, I gained some skills and experiences that will influence the rest of my life. My years of planning and dedication to this trip allowed me the opportunity to create budget and look ahead instead of just living moment by moment. I also got the chance to become closer with my classmates and my teachers. I spent three hours in the park with one of my best friends and it was absolutely incredible. Exploring the park with her was a highlight of my trip and a special memory I will cherish forever. I know that I will be back to France again. When is the real question. But I have many other places to check out, too. 

When I packed for college a little over a year ago, I rummaged through my possessions trying to decide what was most important for me to bring to school (besides the essentials, of course). I looked at my dresser and saw Courgette and knew what to do. Whenever I had a rough day during my first year, I just touched my ceramic chicken and remembered the hard work and the wonderful experiences that lead me to Emory. 

It’s 8:00am on August 22^nd 2019. I’m taking the tram to the RER B train, direction Massy Palaiseau, to meet up with three friends at the station La Croix de Berny. We then take bus 379 and walk for a few minutes until we finally arrive at our destination.

Le metro parisien

            Our destination is a computer systems firm that has a unit concentrated on automatic translation systems. This unit, which is composed primarily of applied linguists, utilizes generative grammar rules to create its translation systems. During my day-long visit to the firm, I listened to a presentation on the system’s theoretical framework, practiced drawing syntactic tree structures in the same manner as the firm, and saw the application of these structures in demonstrated translations. This visit confirmed my interest in pursuing studies in Applied Linguistics and taught me much about natural language processing technology.

This incredible experience would never have happened if I had not studied abroad last fall. While in Paris through Emory’s EDUCO program, I took Linguistics courses at Université de Paris VII Diderot. In my classes, I was delighted to meet students from all over the world who share my passion for the discipline and are doing a myriad of interesting research projects to further knowledge in Linguistics. I became close friends with my classmates Mélissa, Eric, and Chinatsu, who are from Laos, France, and Japan, respectively. Even after my program ended in December, we stayed in touch and kept each other up to date about interesting Linguistics research and classes in which we have been involved. When I returned to Paris in August, they were kind enough to invite me to this incredibly enriching visit to the computer systems firm.

The academic growth that I achieved through study abroad also allowed me to return to Paris in August. In the fall, I conducted a study on methods for assessing spoken proficiency in French as a second language. This research founded the proposal that I submitted for my application to the Halle Center for Global Research and the Fox Center for Humanistic Inquiry’s undergraduate research fellowship. I fortunately received the fellowship and spent August in the city of light collecting data for my honors thesis. As I had used many of Paris’ resources for Linguistics research in the fall, I had no trouble planning which libraries and resource centers I would visit in August. My French proficiency also greatly improved during my semester-long stay, which greatly assisted me in streamlining my research process over the summer.

While my story is rather particular to my academic interests, I believe that study abroad can provide a formative academic experience for students in any major. I know a student studying public health who was able to shadow health professionals in clinics on three different continents while completing the SIT IHP: Health and Community: Globalization, Culture, and Care program. These opportunities allowed her to form a unique, global perspective about healthcare, which served as an asset to her application when she was hired for a competitive consulting position. I know another student studying Economics and International Studies who studied for a semester at Sciences Politiques in Paris. The interdisciplinary knowledge and multilingual repertoire that she honed abroad led her to work for the French headquarters of a UK-based business in the summer after her semester at Sciences Po. These examples demonstrate that the skills students develop while studying abroad can considerably assist them in accomplishing their academic and professional goals.