All Roads Leave from Florence? Exploring What Priority Students in a Florentine STSA Place on Academics?
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.36366/frontiers.v36i3.919Keywords:
In-depth interviews, Italy, perception, short-term study abroad, surveyAbstract
This study, a survey of participants of a summer STSA in Italy, now the most common study abroad programs in the most popular geographical area, complemented with five in-depth interviews, sought to understand how students see their experiences and most specifically the importance of out-of-class traveling every weekend. Data revealed that students mainly intended to study abroad to travel to other European cities and use Florence as a home base independently of how many times students had previously traveled abroad. The main motivation to select the program had been to be to visit other places rather than focusing on course credits and worry about academics.
Abstract in FrenchCette étude présente les conclusions de l'évaluation d’un programme académique de courte durée basé en Italie, pays désormais le plus prisé pour les études internationales. Une étude d’opinion complémentée par des entretiens avec des élèves a servi à comprendre comment les étudiants perçoivent leur expériences, et surtout quelle importance ils donnent aux voyages qu’ils peuvent faire les weekends. Les résultats ont révélé que les étudiants souhaitent étudier à l’etranger pour pouvoir voyager dans d’autres villes européennes et ainsi utiliser Florence comme leur base principale. Leur principale motivation de choisir le programme académique en question fut de visiter d’autres lieux plutôt que de se concentrer sur les demandes académiques et de s'inquiéter pour leur progrès.
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