Researching the Benefits of Residence Abroad for Students of Modern Foreign Languages

Abstract

This chapter highlights the growing body of international research into the benefits of residence abroad for foreign language students, surveying studies from the past 35 years originating in both the U.S.A. and the U.K. It examines some of the problematic issues confronting researchers in this area and shows how these issues have contributed to a paucity of studies in the area and led to a diversity in research design. It reports on longitudinal study, the first of its kind in the U.K., which examined the linguistic benefits of residence abroad for a cohort of modern language students from a leading university. This 4-year study used repeated measures proficiency testing, involving a C-test, a grammar test and a range of qualitative measures, to chart the progress made by students on 6- and 12-month study placements in Germany. Findings confirm substantial proficiency gains on both of the main measures but fail to confirm gender and length of residence abroad as predictors of progress. Results also reveal strong differential individual performance during residence abroad. The chapter concludes with recommendations for future research aimed at exploring this key finding further.

Citation

Rees, J. and Klapper, J. (2005), "Researching the Benefits of Residence Abroad for Students of Modern Foreign Languages", Tight, M. (Ed.) International Relations (International Perspectives on Higher Education Research, Vol. 3), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 67-97. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1479-3628(05)03004-2