ERIC Number: EJ1329143
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2021-Sep
Pages: 20
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0018-2133
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Preparing for Study Abroad: A Task-Based Needs Analysis
Camus, Pablo; Advani, Mehak
Hispania, v104 n3 p375-394 Sep 2021
Study abroad (SA) provides a space and place for second language (L2) learners to be challenged in terms of their target language skills and intercultural awareness. In order to appropriately equip learners, a task-based approach seems ideal to identify learners' specific needs (Long 2015). The present study reports a multiphase needs analysis carried out to design a university Spanish course, geared toward students preparing to study abroad in the following semester. In phase 1, qualitative interviews were conducted by contacting resident directors and students who had returned from their study abroad programs. These interviews generated a list of 37 tasks. In phase 2, 40 students, who had completed their study abroad semester, rated the frequency and difficulty of each task on a 37-item Likert-type questionnaire. Finally, in phase 3, researchers analyzed and categorized target tasks identified in the needs assessment into five major target task types. Altogether, results suggest that learner needs in this particular institution center predominantly around tasks that involve the use of colloquial and academic speech in environments in which students need to adapt to unfamiliar situations. These reports then informed course objectives and classroom tasks.
Descriptors: Study Abroad, Second Language Learning, Student Needs, Spanish, College Students, Multicultural Education, Second Language Instruction, Curriculum Design, Barriers, Foreign Countries, College Second Language Programs
American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese, Inc. 900 Ladd Road, Walled Lake, MI 48390. Tel: 248-960-2180; Fax: 248-960-9570; e-mail: AATSPoffice@aatsp.org; Web site: http://www.aatsp.org
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research; Tests/Questionnaires
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: California; Argentina; Chile; Costa Rica; Dominican Republic; Ecuador; Mexico; Spain
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A