Schedule & Sessions

Conversation is a ubiquitous dimension of human experience; it is also fundamental to learning and well-being. As international educators work resume programs, we continue to examine our capacities and practices, which can facilitate whole person learning and engagement among students and educators with diverse lived experiences. How is a focus on the work of conversation integral to our growth, resilience and effectiveness as advisors, collaborators, educators, and mentors? How does an intentional focus on conversation, particularly “learning conversations,” offer practitioners tools to respond to the complexity of global education contexts, resource constraints and learner needs?

Many education abroad programs claim to foster mutually beneficial outcomes for learners and receiving communities. Too often, community voices are not included in either program planning, instructional planning, or assessment efforts, raising questions of the implicit and explicit messages learners take away about receiving communities. When do our programs reinforce stereotypes rather than challenge them? When do they weaken local community capacity rather than enhance it? What are the benefits and challenges of working with receiving community groups and what models and tools are available to address power differentials in these relationships?

Just, equitable, sustainable education abroad puts an end to replication of colonial and settler-colonial thoughts and patterns in present-day programming. It also works to challenge historical hegemonies and redesign programs to model and encourage decolonial approaches to intercultural interactions and knowledge exchange for students. Join colleagues with extensive experience in education abroad on-site for a frank discussion about how to bring balance to long-time power inequities between individuals and institutions engaging in education abroad.