Proficiency to Study Abroad Outcomes and Inputs

Foreign language proficiency and learning are crucial parts of many study abroad programs; especially those whose host culture language is different than that of the native language of students electing to study in them. Indeed, how a program organizes itself regarding pre-departure language proficiency requirements, on site language learning, and access to academic coursework in the host culture language may impact the intensity of student immersion and the overall quality of the program (Engle & Engle, 2003). However, there is some debate about the actual impact of foreign language proficiency on student intercultural competence (Deardorff, 2008; Norris & Steinberg, 2008). Although experts in the study abroad field could not agree on the necessity of foreign language knowledge as a prerequisite for intercultural competence, they did agree on the value of “sociolinguistic awareness--of how one uses language within a societal and social context ” (Deardorff, 2008 p38). This distinction seems to differentiate between structural and functional language proficiency. A longitudinal study of U.S. study abroad students showed little or no difference i