When a pandemic and no-travel order shut down an international trip for marketing students, Michele Bunn taught her students a home-grown lesson in resilience.What do you do when you’re supposed to study abroad in a country that has become a hotbed for an international pandemic? You improvise.
Assistant Professor Michele Bunn, Ph.D., faced this challenge teaching her course “Innovation and Entrepreneurship in a Global Environment” in the Collat School of Business. The study-abroad class, which spent two months examining Italian business and innovation, was to conclude with an eight-day study tour of Italy. At least that was the plan in January.
Lessons from a pandemicUAB faculty are devising new paths to advance education and professional development for students in spite of remote learning — and because of it. |
Like her students, Bunn was shocked to watch COVID-19 spread across northern Italy — then heartbroken to know she wouldn’t be able to take the students there. The university suspended all UAB Education Abroad programs early in March and no-travel advisories from the U.S. Department of State soon followed.
Bunn, who has taught the course each spring for the past four years, typically takes students to visit innovation centers, exotic car factories, olive oil manufacturers and more during their Italian travels. Without that option in 2020, Bunn had to pivot quickly and create new experiences.
Change of travel plans
Pandemic aside, obstacles are a staple of life; overcoming them is both a challenge and triumph that can be its own reward. When the opportunity arises, it’s a lesson worth teaching — and learning.
“At that point, students may have well said, ‘Well I didn’t get to go to Italy so tell me what I have to do to finish this course and get it over?’” Bunn said. “But then I asked, ‘How do we make something positive come of this?’”
She started by evaluating her personal experience during COVID-19 “to explore the fundamental lessons for study-abroad students.
So how does one apply that to study abroad?
“That is, fundamental transferrable lessons: no matter where you go or what you do, these lessons stick with you. These include things like cultural knowledge and respect, situational and personal awareness, reflective thought, growth and self-confidence. Of course, I thought I knew that, but never from a strange and uninvited perspective such as the coronavirus,” she said.
“Students may have well said, ‘Well I didn’t get to go to Italy so tell me what I have to do to finish this course and get it over?’ But then I asked, ‘How do we make something positive come of this?’” |
Bunn had the answer. “The lessons learned from study-abroad take place in a hands-on environment that is exciting, exhausting and transformative,” she said. “There is no way to substitute for the real thing. But that led me to focus more on how fundamental lessons are learned through study-abroad. And following that, how do we teach — or facilitate — those fundamental transferrable lessons?
Bunn turned to several organizations for help providing new experiential activities that complement the course.
First, she reached out to Gerriann Fagan, organizational development manager in the Office of Human Resources, who leads professional development workshops for UAB employees. Fagan led a class session on emotional intelligence (EQ), a workshop they chose to teach students to be resilient when life disappoints.
“Students completed a self-assessment to discover personal strengths and weaknesses,” Bunn said. “Then they learned strategies and tools to increase their EQ and better deal with emotional challenges brought on by the pandemic, such as the disappointment of the Italy cancellation or other challenges in their lives.”
During the second interactive session, students met Rosemary Lanzi, president of the Italian American Society of Birmingham, and Darlene Negrotto, president and CEO of Vulcan Park and Museum. Using Zoom, Lanzi spoke with students about Birmingham’s rich Italian history, and Negrotto shared a closer look at Italian sculptor Giuseppe Moretti, who created Vulcan, the iconic iron man overlooking Birmingham.
The students also connected with Italian pen pals of similar age and interests through Global Pen Friends, an online site that connects pen pals throughout the world. Many students said the experience was so enriching that they plan to continue writing their pen pals after the semester ends.
Finally, Bunn invited students to join her for an Italian dinner cook-along in place of the farewell dinner she hosts for the students each year. This time, of course, it was over Zoom. Bunn posted a list of ingredients and supplies, and students joined her online as she and her husband walked them through creating a classic — spaghetti with marinara sauce.
“I really got a chuckle from seeing all the students in Zoom scurrying around in their kitchens with a random family member or friend passing by to say hello,” Bunn said. “You could smell the sauce, and you could feel the resilience simmering.”
In this case, the lessons were not limited to the students. The teacher says she also learned a few things.
“The pandemic actually shed light on students who may never have the opportunity to study abroad. I want to rethink what we can do for all students especially with the innovative technologies available today.” |
“Everyone has heard the cliché, ‘Travel is a state of mind.’ But it rings true here,” Bunn said. “I learned personally from this experience that you must move the students toward that ‘travel state of mind.’ This means viewing the world differently, solving problems, staying calm when facing challenges and critically reflecting on emotions and actions. What I learned about the travel state of mind is that it is possible to somewhat mimic that through learning activities.
The fruits of these lessons, she said, will not be limited to this instance. “This is difficult, but if you can stay with your own vision and lead by example, the students will come along. With small, but challenging steps you can get them engaged to a point that something is transformed,” Bunn said.
“It’s certain that based on my experience that new remote experiential activities will be integrated into the yearly study-abroad program to Italy. But they will also find a role in other courses,” Bunn said. “This is because — in some ways — the pandemic actually shed light on students who may never have the opportunity to study abroad. I want to rethink what we can do for all students especially with the innovative technologies available today, such as video conferencing, 5G, augmented reality and diverse communication methods, such as email, social media and interactive apps.”
This is adapted from a story written by Jared Jones, communication specialist in the Collat School of Business.
