An update on the study abroad experience: language choices and social media abroad

摘要

While growing numbers of university students study abroad in different European countries, little is known about the communicative practices facilitated by this exchange situation in an increasing globalised world. The present study aims to describe the language-related practices of 37 Erasmus students in Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain. We used a questionnaire to tap into the students’ routines regarding their use of social media, mass media, resources for study or work, and face-to-face interactions. Specifically, we wanted to find out how often these students used these different forms of communication and which language they used: their native language, Spanish or English. Results show that social media platforms such as Facebook or Skype are used in students’ native language more often than in Spanish or English. WhatsApp, however, is equally used in the three languages, which may point to the creation of an international multilingual community. Traditional sources of input, such as newspapers, TV, and radio, have a reduced presence in any language. Finally, the predominance of English in academic tasks points to the Englishisation of higher education [Coleman, J. A. (2006). English-medium teaching in European higher education. Language Teaching, 39(1), 1-14]. These findings have significant implications for pedagogical interventions and the design of materials for language teaching abroad.