Learning outside of the traditional classroom also comes with the challenge of professors designing a course different from the typical format of lectures, homework, and exams. While this is not to say the workload will be any less than an on-campus course, it was super exciting to study in a new way, and I wanted to share more about one of my primary assignments.
While in Rome, everybody on the trip who was enrolled in an art history course with Dr. Jones was required to keep a journal filled with information about all of the different sites as well as our personal experiences with them. This assignment helped to keep me focused and organized even when it felt like my brain was going into information overload, and now that I am back home, it has also allowed me the chance to reflect on my travels and my feelings about all that I experienced.
I would highly recommend to anyone planning for a study abroad trip to document EVERYTHING.
- Take a million pictures. You might look like a tourist sometimes, but well, you are, and you are going to want to remember your trip in as much detail as possible.
- Keep a journal and write everything from the craziest to the most mundane things you see in it. While I love that mine also holds a lot of the information that I learned, I think keeping a journal would be beneficial regardless of whether it is required for your course. I even collected postcards and tickets between the pages.
- Start a travel Instagram. You don’t have to have a huge following or be an avid social media person. I loved posting at the end of my day and getting to share what I was doing with my friends and family back home. And now I have a whole page of pictures and captions to remind me of my favorite moments abroad. Look up @italiangirlsummer if you need inspo 😉
