Students’ learning in “Overseas Fieldwork”(A case study in Kwansei Gakuin University)

Abstract

The impact of an overseas experience on student’s personal growth is significant. Teachers and staffs often wander what programs, methods and materials can be adopted in order to prepare young undergraduates to be more “globally-minded”. The purpose of this paper is to clarify the students’ learning in an overseas fieldwork program held in Kwansei Gakuin University, Center for International Education and Cooperation. Analysis was performed on reflections questionnaires filled out by the students who participated in fieldwork over the course of eleven days. Students who participated were from a diverse range of academic backgrounds. As a result, students learnt how to accept and respect other cultures and developed their interests and concerns through the process of getting in touch with both Japanese and local students. By introducing two different theoretical concepts; “Group Dynamics” and Allport’s “Contact Hypothesis”, the authors examine how learning through fieldwork influences students.