Encouraging Global Citizenship amongst Kinesiology Students in Higher Education: A Canadian Perspective

While 83% of Canadian universities identify global citizenship education as a top five priority and 97% provide opportunities for their students to participate in study abroad, only 3% of students take advantage in any given year. Faculty-led study abroad courses that are for-credit, short in duration, focused in a student's disciplinary area of study, peer based, well supervised, and based on pre-established partnerships and relationships with local stakeholders can be effective in providing global citizenship education. This paper explores the facilitation of faculty-led international study abroad for those studying in kinesiology and related fields. We make eight recommendations based on having led hundreds of students in for-credit kinesiology courses in international settings over the past 20 years. These recommendations are: (1) engaging students in faculty research; (2) group dynamics; (3) preparation; (4) local partnerships; (5) decision-making and communication; (6) teachable moments; (7) preparing to return home; and (8) assessment as learning. These recommendations, while not exhaustive, are meant to provide colleagues with "insider information" based upon our collective experience.