The Future of Education

Promoting global learning in students is a priority for higher education institutions. Education abroad is one avenue to provide students with an experience to expand their views. According to the Open Doors 2017 report “although the total number [of students] is at an all-time high, it is still the case that only about 10 percent of all U.S. undergraduate students (including community college students) will study abroad by the time they graduate” (Institute of International Education, para.13). The need to promote global learning through study abroad is also present in online courses. The paper shares our experience of introducing an innovative curriculum design and inclusion of a two-weeks study abroad experience in Trento, Italy, in a fully online six-weeks course in early childhood education for the past three years. The presentation will expand on the existing literature on study abroad by providing a different program design and addressed the need to make study abroad experiences more accessible to all higher education students- including online students. The paper discusses the topics:

1. The need to innovate in study abroad program
2. The design of the study abroad program
3. Students’ perspectives on the study abroad program

Keywords: Study Abroad, Online Learning, Global Competences, Curriculum Development.