Chapter 19: Promise and Perils of Study Abroad: White Privilege Revival

Universities in the United States and elsewhere are offering study abroad programs for students in order to meet the requirement that graduates have an international perspective in their discipline. Teacher education students are increasingly provided with study abroad opportunities to receive credit for course work and field experiences. The promise of the programs lies in the belief that as students experience a diverse environment and a language other than English and work with students unlike themselves, they will be better prepared to work with historically underserved students in the future. The Esperanza School (pseudonym) has been the setting for this Midwestern university’s Honduran study abroad program for 5 years. Predeparture orientations are offered, followed by immersion in a field experience in the school and visits to rural schools and cultural sites, in addition to course meetings, readings, and assignments. Research has been conducted on the program for 4 years. A case study approach was used to examine preservice teachers’ perceptions of the program and its implications for their self-conceptions as future teachers. The results indicate that preservice teachers collectively view the program as an opportunity to grow academically and socially. The research also demonstrated potential perils of the program as participants’ feelings of White privilege were reinforced rather than questioned. This reinforcement was revealed in the emergent themes found: comfort zones, externalizing poverty out of the United States, and blessedness.