Copyright by Tatiana Borisovna Segura 2008 - The University of ...

chose to stay at home. Moreover, study abroad students are, in general, satisfied with the
outcomes of their trips and plan to use the acquired knowledge in their future career (16-
17). They reveal a high level of interest in other countries and have a more positive
attitude towards other cultures and their representatives (14-15).
Approaches to classifications of study abroad programs.
There exist multiple classifications of study abroad programs currently available
to American college students. Most of these classifications are based on the structure of a
program. Vande Berg proposes to substitute conventional classifications of study abroad
programs that are based on structure with classifications that take into account the extent
to which programs provide students with opportunities to integrate culturally. This new
approach to program classifications takes into consideration the following seven program
characteristics: 1) length of stay; 2) entry foreign language competence; 3) extent to
which target language is used in coursework on site; 4) context of academic work; 5)
housing; 6) cultural/experimental learning; and 7) on-site mentoring that helps to reflect
on learning (2). All these seven elements have a substantial impact on student learning
abroad.
Goodwin and Nacht, in their turn, argue for a classification that is based on the
programs’ goals and purposes. They distinguish between educational/social goals and
administrative/institutional ones (9). In the middle of the 1980s, Goodwin and Nacht
conducted a large-scale study on various study abroad programs offered by over forty
universities and colleges in the states of California, Illinois, Massachusetts, and Texas.
They came to the conclusion that programs that are not goal-oriented are doomed to
failure (9). Among the primary educational program goals mentioned by Goodwin and
Nacht are: mastering a foreign language, becoming truly multicultural individuals, and
11