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Faculty-led international programs are widely considered to be a highly engaging and effective means to enhance students’ learning in geography. While international programs hold great opportunity for students’ academic and personal growth, actualizing their potential calls for balancing the logistics with a purposefully constructed curriculum. This article presents a curricular framework which applies the straightforward, time-tested learning model originally delineated by Bloom and subsequently updated and adapted by others, into the naturally occurring phases of a faculty-led international program. The framework, while simple in design, provides a clear means to encourage impactful learning within a short-term course.

This paper presents the results of an online survey administered to chairs of American departments of geography to ascertain current trends and perceived value of international faculty-led field courses within their departments. The majority of reporting chairs indicated increased field course offerings over the past decade most often resulting from increased faculty interest in teaching these courses. Chairs attached a high value to such courses in enhancing students’ academic and personal growth. Despite the value placed on these courses, few departments require them for a geography degree or have an instrument to assess course learning outcomes.