Vanishing Voices: The Future of Language Learning in Education Abroad

Vanishing Voices: The Future of Language Learning in Education Abroad examines one of the most pressing questions facing international education today: What happens when students study abroad without learning the language of the communities that host them? As foreign language enrollments decline and education abroad increasingly shifts toward English-taught, short-term programming, this volume explores the implications for intercultural learning, student engagement, and global understanding. Drawing on research, professional practice, and lived experience, the contributors examine the historical, institutional, and technological forces reshaping language learning in education abroad. Bringing together leading scholars and practitioners, Vanishing Voices explores the causes and consequences of declining language study, the opportunities and limitations of artificial intelligence, innovative approaches to program design, and the powerful ways language shapes identity, belonging, and intercultural understanding. Grounded in student stories, the volume argues that language remains far more than a tool for communication—it is a gateway to deeper cultural understanding, meaningful engagement, and transformative learning. Essential reading for international educators, faculty, administrators, and researchers, Vanishing Voices challenges readers to reconsider the role of language in preparing students to thrive in an increasingly interconnected world.

Contents: Section One, Historical Foundations (Language Learning in U.S. Higher Education: Trends and Tensions; Language Learning in U.S. Education Abroad: Shifting Realities and Institutional Responses); Section Two, Artificial Intelligence (The Introduction of AI and Its Broader Impact on Higher Education; Harnessing AI to Enhance Language Learning); Section Three, Program Modalities (Integrating Language through Program Design and Curricular Innovation; Redesigning Advising, Orientation and Co-Curricular Learning); Section Four, Language and Identity (Language, Power and the Dynamics of Belonging; Language, Emotion and Vulnerability of Learning Abroad).