From Immersion to Impact: Transforming Teacher Preparation Through Global Dialogue
SCURS Disciplines
Education
Document Type
General Presentation (Oral)
Invited Presentation Choice
Fulbright — Oral
Abstract
How can international partnerships meaningfully shape inclusive teaching at home? In this engaging and reflective panel, education students, in-service teachers, and university mentors will share how a cross-cultural exchange in Costa Rica reshaped their approaches to multilingualism, cultural identity, and equity in South Carolina classrooms. Drawing from firsthand experiences, panelists will describe how collaboration with Central American educators created opportunities to rethink assumptions about language, power, and knowledge systems in both local and global contexts.
Panelists will highlight the professional learning that emerged from sustained collaboration with Central American educators, with particular attention to languages, and knowledge systems. Presenters will discuss how immersive language study, classroom visits, and structured critical reflection challenged assumptions about dialects, deficit perspectives, and culturally responsive practice. They will share concrete examples of how these insights translated into ready-to-implement lesson plans, culturally sustaining pedagogies, and strategies for supporting multilingual learners.
Audience members will gain insight into the role of guided reflection, reciprocal virtual exchanges with international partners, and collaborative curriculum design in deepening teachers’ awareness of bias and systemic inequities. Panelists will also examine measurable shifts in participants’ dispositions, confidence in supporting multilingual learners, and instructional decision-making, offering practical models for embedding global experiential learning within teacher preparation and professional development programs.
The session will conclude with an interactive dialogue inviting attendees to consider how similar partnerships, potentially expanding to other global contexts, can strengthen commitments to social justice in their own institutions. Participants will leave with actionable ideas for transforming global experiences into sustained local impact.
Keywords
study abroad, education, teacher preparation, multilingual learners
Start Date
10-4-2026 3:30 PM
Location
TLC 298A
End Date
10-4-2026 4:30 PM
From Immersion to Impact: Transforming Teacher Preparation Through Global Dialogue
TLC 298A
How can international partnerships meaningfully shape inclusive teaching at home? In this engaging and reflective panel, education students, in-service teachers, and university mentors will share how a cross-cultural exchange in Costa Rica reshaped their approaches to multilingualism, cultural identity, and equity in South Carolina classrooms. Drawing from firsthand experiences, panelists will describe how collaboration with Central American educators created opportunities to rethink assumptions about language, power, and knowledge systems in both local and global contexts.
Panelists will highlight the professional learning that emerged from sustained collaboration with Central American educators, with particular attention to languages, and knowledge systems. Presenters will discuss how immersive language study, classroom visits, and structured critical reflection challenged assumptions about dialects, deficit perspectives, and culturally responsive practice. They will share concrete examples of how these insights translated into ready-to-implement lesson plans, culturally sustaining pedagogies, and strategies for supporting multilingual learners.
Audience members will gain insight into the role of guided reflection, reciprocal virtual exchanges with international partners, and collaborative curriculum design in deepening teachers’ awareness of bias and systemic inequities. Panelists will also examine measurable shifts in participants’ dispositions, confidence in supporting multilingual learners, and instructional decision-making, offering practical models for embedding global experiential learning within teacher preparation and professional development programs.
The session will conclude with an interactive dialogue inviting attendees to consider how similar partnerships, potentially expanding to other global contexts, can strengthen commitments to social justice in their own institutions. Participants will leave with actionable ideas for transforming global experiences into sustained local impact.