University Of Alabama At Birmingham Designs First Intentional Virtual Study Abroad Program
Mary Ann Bodine Al-Sharif, Ph.D., assistant professor of higher education at the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Education, created an intentional virtual study abroad program to create an affordable, sustainable, timely-feasible and effective avenue for graduate school students to have a study abroad experience.
UAB partnered with the Donegal-based Institute of Study Abroad Ireland to create the first intentional virtual study abroad program that provided students at home in the United States with an Ireland and Northern Ireland experience, incorporating an important conversation about the role and need for social justice in higher education.
“Over 50 percent of my students represent a minoritized or marginalized identity, and many work full time, have family responsibilities and cannot take time off for a study abroad opportunity because it is cost-prohibitive,” Bodine Al-Sharif said. “My goal with this course was to create a space for them to have an international experience, which is possible through intentional virtual study abroad opportunities. This is the first one at UAB that is not a product of COVID-19.”
Bodine Al-Sharif is passionate about providing global higher-education perspectives to her students, as well as providing them with a better understanding of the international student experience and how to create global partnerships. During the 2021-22 academic year, she became a faculty fellow in Education Abroad, through which she partnered with the Institute of Study Abroad Ireland and offset the cost of the program for her students.
The course kicked off in fall 2022 with students engaging in an Irish virtual classroom. Students completed modules over a nine-week period with Niamh Hamill, Ph.D., academic director of the Institute of Study Abroad Ireland, engaging in Ireland’s history, cultural identity, folklore and traditions. Students also discussed advocacy, activism, civil rights, colonization, the Northern Ireland peace process, education, the global economy, and Ireland’s global networks and allies.
“As part of this series, students learned about Ireland’s civil rights and social justice movements, and the role of other countries to support Ireland during civil unrest,” Bodine Al-Sharif said. “They compared American and Irish culture, gaining global insights and perspectives.”
During her trip, she learned more about COIL — Collaborative Online International Learning, which connects institutions of higher education in other countries for interactive and collaborative learning opportunities. According to her, this may be another space for future international educational opportunities in UAB’s Higher Education Administration Program.
“I learned about higher education from a global perspective, COIL and differing ways to help people connect globally,” Bodine Al-Sharif said. “I engaged in conversations about social justice and gained insight into ways we can make connections virtually in different countries to create an international knowledge space for our students in the United States.”