ebook img

Undergraduate Students' Perceptions of Study Abroad and Their Level of Achievement of Global ... PDF

186 Pages·2016·0.59 MB·English
by  
Save to my drive
Quick download
Download
Most books are stored in the elastic cloud where traffic is expensive. For this reason, we have a limit on daily download.

Preview Undergraduate Students' Perceptions of Study Abroad and Their Level of Achievement of Global ...

Florida International University FIU Digital Commons FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations University Graduate School 3-18-2015 Undergraduate Students’ Perceptions of Study Abroad and Their Level of Achievement of Global Learning Outcomes Claudia Grigorescu Florida International University, [email protected] DOI:10.25148/etd.FI15050201 Follow this and additional works at:https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd Part of theCurriculum and Instruction Commons Recommended Citation Grigorescu, Claudia, "Undergraduate Students’ Perceptions of Study Abroad and Their Level of Achievement of Global Learning Outcomes" (2015).FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 1842. https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd/1842 This work is brought to you for free and open access by the University Graduate School at FIU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of FIU Digital Commons. For more information, please [email protected]. FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY Miami, Florida UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS’ PERCEPTIONS OF STUDY ABROAD AND THEIR LEVEL OF ACHIEVEMENT OF GLOBAL LEARNING OUTCOMES A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF EDUCATION in CURRICULUM AND INSTRUCTION by Claudia Grigorescu 2015 To: Dean Delia C. Garcia College of Education This dissertation, written by Claudia Grigorescu, and entitled Undergraduate Students’ Perceptions of Study Abroad and Their Level of Achievement of Global Learning Outcomes, having been approved in respect to style and intellectual content, is referred to you for judgment. We have read this dissertation and recommend that it be approved. _______________________________________ Eric Dwyer _______________________________________ Susan P. Himburg _______________________________________ Teresa Lucas _______________________________________ Hilary Landorf, Major Professor Date of Defense: March 18, 2015 The dissertation of Claudia Grigorescu is approved. _______________________________________ Dean Delia C. Garcia College of Education _______________________________________ Dean Lakshmi N. Reddi University Graduate School Florida International University, 2015 ii © Copyright 2015 by Claudia Grigorescu All rights reserved. iii DEDICATION I lovingly dedicate this dissertation to Heidi, Rosie, Susan, Kathy and Maritza. You all believed in me and you all taught me about unconditional love. iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS FIU taught me a valuable lesson: that ubuntu is very much alive. The journey to get to this point was anything but easy. On quite a number of occasions I genuinely wanted to give up. I have been countless times in the hospital, undergone six surgeries, nearly died a few times, and have more debt than I care for at this point. In essence, it was not by my doing that I made it thus far. For one, the grace and mercy of a loving God can take anybody anywhere. He made sure I finished, by providing, comforting, and placing wonderful people in my path who not only cared, but took it upon themselves to help me along the way. I have many people to acknowledge and thank. I came back to Miami to take care of the family who so lovingly adopted me many moons ago and brought me into their home despite the odds. Unfortunately, they both passed away while I was doing my masters and doctorate in FIU. I sure wish they were here to have witnessed miracle after miracle. You both taught me to have faith, excellent work ethic, to be honest, persevere, and be humble. Thank you for giving a kid like me a chance in life, for the stories, and for the love. I will always pay it forward. A dissertation can only happen with a committee that backs it up and takes you to higher places with it. Dr. Landorf, you are not just my chair, but a good friend and mentor. My sincerest thank you for all the support and love you have given me over the years. Dr. Dwyer, you are my partner in crime as they say. Your passion, dedication and support for your students will always remind me to be humble in academia and to continue the legacy you so very richly taught me. I will always be indebted to you for the night my mom passed away and I didn’t have a soul in the world to lean on. You knocked on my door and when I opened it, there you were, with food in one hand and a big hug to v give. It meant the world! Dr. Lucas, you have been so patient, supportive and loving through it all. It has been a genuine pleasure having you on my committee! Dr. Himburg, you inspire me in countless ways. When I say I have never met anyone like you, it is an understatement. God placed you in my life for such a season. There are not enough words, paragraphs or pages to tell you how much I appreciate and love you for all you have done in my life. You are by far an incredible person with a heart for students, faculty and administrators alike. It is my sincerest desire to continue the legacy you leave me with, that I may soon enough pay it forward as well. I will forever remember: “All is well”…and “Because I am happy!” Furthermore, I would like to thank FIU’s Office of Study Abroad for their invaluable help, patience, cooperation, and support. One of the most difficult things to do is to cram the innumerable friends who made the journey so much easier to undertake. No gesture is too small. Heidi, you have taught me courage and endurance. My sweet friend, you are a beautiful, loving and incredible person. I could not have asked for a better friend. Here is for a lifetime friendship! Thank you for all the help you gave me during this journey! Rosie, you came into my life for a reason and I have found more than a friend with you. You are my sister in Christ. Thank you for everything you have done and the mentorship in a time when I needed it the most! I love and cherish you. Maritza, you have been my surrogate mom. You have known me my whole life and you have never given up on me. You have taught me that the love of God will take you all the way, no matter what. You have provided, listened, comforted, prayed, loved and given me massages. I just want to thank you for so many years. vi Joan, Fernanda, Kathy, Tamika, Irene, Esther, Kerry, Quelo, Jackie, Olivia, Simone, Masha, Yalda, Maryam, Ronit, Shirin Posner, and Hélène Bullen: How do I thank you all profusely?! You not only prayed for me, but have also provided, taken me to the hospital on so many occasions, helped me with my dissertation, and stayed with me through thick and thin. I love each and every one of you for the laughs, the memories, and the self-less love! Noni, you were there when they said I would not live. It was a decisive moment in my life…but so was the day I was taken away to live with a new family. You have always made me feel special and you have reminded me that my past does not define who I am, and yet to still remember my roots. Well, you are a part of my roots and I will always be grateful for not giving up on me when 10 doctors did! I love you. Cathy Wadley, you made my dream come true. Thank you for giving me peace of mind and for the amazing gesture of love. Noemi, siempre estuvo pendiente de mi, aún cuando yo no podía dar. Gracias por haberme cuidado y a mi mamá como lo hizo, y por tantos años de cariños! Last but not least, I want to extend my deepest gratitude to the College of Education, Office of Academic Planning and Accountability, University Graduate School, Central Bible, and Granada Presbyterian Church. You always believed in me and supported me in ways that boggle the mind. A special thanks to Dr. Delia Garcia, Drs. Leonard and Linda Bliss, Dr. Reio, Dr. Ryan, Caprila, Mercedes, Mariabelen, Bridgette, Carolina, Betty, and my pastors. May you be blessed abundantly for everything you have done for me! God bless everybody on this list and any and all who I was unable to include here. vii ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS’ PERCEPTIONS OF STUDY ABROAD AND THEIR LEVEL OF ACHIEVEMENT OF GLOBAL LEARNING OUTCOMES by Claudia Grigorescu Florida International University, 2015 Miami, Florida Professor Hilary Landorf, Major Professor This study expanded on current research on study abroad and global learning, using the Global Perspective Inventory (GPI), and conducted at Florida International University (FIU) in Miami, FL. The GPI assesses the holistic development of a global perspective in higher education within three domains and their respective FIU-determined equivalents: cognitive (global awareness), intrapersonal (global perspective), and interpersonal (global engagement). The main purpose of this study was to assess FIU’s undergraduate students’ perceptions of study abroad on their level of achievement of global awareness, global perspective, and global engagement. The secondary purpose was to determine how the students described their study abroad experience and achievement of global learning. The research design for this study consisted of parallel mixed methods. The quantitative component was an ex post facto with hypothesis design, using a pretest/posttest nonequivalent group methodology. FIU undergraduates (N=147) who studied abroad for one semester or more completed the GPI pre- and post-tests. Descriptive statistics and paired t-tests were conducted to compare the means. The viii interviews included 10 students, and were analyzed through Structural coding, Saldaña’s In Vivo coding, and Value coding. Quantitative analyses indicated positive changes in the students’ global awareness and global perspective. These analyses also showed that the FIU students achieved higher post-test means on all the domains of the GPI compared to other studies. Qualitative analyses showed that the students’ experiences incorporated all three global learning outcomes, most notably global awareness and perspective. ix

Description:
I lovingly dedicate this dissertation to Heidi, Rosie, Susan, Kathy and Maritza. FIU taught me a valuable lesson: that ubuntu is very much alive. Farrell, 2007; IIE, 2012; Mapp, McFarland, & Newell, 2007; Serrano, Tragant,
See more

The list of books you might like

Most books are stored in the elastic cloud where traffic is expensive. For this reason, we have a limit on daily download.