Unpacking City Narratives: Inclusive City as Text for Study Abroad

Learning Objectives:

• Describe the City as Text (CAT) pedagogical approach. Participants will learn about CAT's core principles, including using the urban environment as a primary source of learning, encouraging experiential learning, and fostering critical thinking. They'll be able to list and describe key components like city explorations, observation exercises, and reflection sessions, and how CAT transforms cities into dynamic classrooms to help students engage with local cultures, develop a deeper understanding of urban complexities, and connect theoretical concepts to real-world contexts.
• Apply CAT methodologies to study abroad programs. Attendees will gain practical knowledge on integrating City as Text approaches into their faculty-led study abroad programs to enhance student engagement and learning outcomes. They'll learn how to design and facilitate city explorations, observation exercises, and reflection sessions that align with course objectives, incorporate local perspectives, and use and apply the host city's unique cultural and historical context. By applying CAT methodologies, attendees will be able to increase student participation, promote deeper cultural understanding, and develop more effective assessment strategies for their study abroad programs.
• Analyze and discuss the significance and outcomes of CAT in study abroad. Participants will examine the effectiveness of City as Text in enhancing student learning, cultural immersion, and personal growth in study abroad programs. They'll discuss benefits like increased student engagement, improved critical thinking, and deeper cultural understanding, as well as challenges such as logistical complexities, language barriers, and cultural sensitivities. Participants will also explore assessment strategies to measure CAT's impact, including reflective journals, group discussions, and pre/post-program surveys, to understand how CAT influences students' academic, personal, and professional development, and how to optimize its implementation for future programs.
• Design effective experiential learning experiences in urban environments. Through the Quito, Ecuador case study, participants will learn to craft immersive, city-based learning experiences that foster cultural competency, critical thinking, and student engagement. They'll discuss ways to decode the urban landscape by identifying learning opportunities in historic sites, markets, and community spaces. Participants will develop skills to design and facilitate activities like city scavenger hunts, cultural interviews, and reflective walks, using the city's authentic texts – architecture, art, food, and traditions – to create meaningful, interactive learning experiences that extend beyond the classroom and become embedded in the city’s cultural and historical context.