Exploring leadership skills: Indigenous students and study abroad – how universities can improve study abroad for Indigenous students
Date
2025-01-22
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
ORCID
0009-0006-6323-9395
Type
Thesis
Degree Level
Doctoral
Abstract
Indigenization and internationalization have been at the forefront of post-secondary education for the last decade. As an inherent intersection, Indigenous student participation in study abroad offers opportunity to meld the two priorities. However, Indigenous student participation in study abroad has been significantly less than non-Indigenous student participants. One element that would have significant influence on increasing student engagement and success in this fundamental area is an effective and inclusive Indigenous student study abroad success framework. The purpose of this dissertation was to collect narratives from Indigenous student participants in study abroad to contribute to the development of an Indigenous student study abroad success framework through a lens of leadership. Questions that guided this study concentrated on understandings of leadership gained through study abroad and how to improve the practices that support study abroad for Indigenous students. An Indigenous research approach guided semi-structured interviews with 5 Indigenous University of Saskatchewan students who have participated in a study abroad experience within the last four years (48 months) and 2 professionals working in the realm of study abroad. Inductive coding enabled themes to emerge from the data and honored the contributions and experiences of participants. Three main themes emerged from the narratives shared: support, program structure, and leadership. With intuitive intersections, the themes highlighted the experiences of students and potential for strengthening study abroad programming for Indigenous student participants. The findings from this research will contribute to improving support for study abroad for Indigenous students at the institution, nationally, and internationally. Furthermore, the goals of this research are to enhance the immense intercultural learnings experienced through study abroad for Indigenous students as future leaders and contribute to a significant gap in literature on the subject. The implications of this research extend to improving practice in educational leadership by equipping professionals with a framework and understanding to better support Indigenous students in study abroad with the potential for positive impact reaching beyond professionals and student participants to communities and inspire inter-generational change.
Description
Keywords
Indigenous, international, study abroad, leadership, student success
Citation
Degree
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
Department
Educational Administration
Program
Educational Administration