Author: Hannah Babin | Major: Communication Sciences and Disorders

Hello! My name is Hannah Babin, and I am a junior in College of Education and Health Professions at the U of A. I am majoring in communication sciences and disorders with the hopes to go to graduate school for speech-language pathology, and I have completed a minor in human development and family sciences. I participated in the U of A Faculty-Led: Education in Ireland-The Art of Teaching Study Abroad Program in the summer of 2022. I visited Limerick, Galway, and Dublin, Ireland during my trip abroad. I chose this amazing program because I planned to use the trip as part of my honors project. My project is titled “Interprofessionals in Ireland: What Can We Learn?” and the goal of this project is to examine how paraprofessionals function in a school-based setting, and how this might affect the role of a Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP) in Ireland versus the United States. This project has been/will be completed in school-based settings in the United States and in Ireland. In both settings, data will be documented in a journal to compare the school-based settings.

Although I primarily went abroad to complete my research, I ended up getting so much out of this program that will forever enhance my career as an SLP. From an academic standpoint, I feel so prepared to take on new situations after my experience. At the schools, we were asked to provide a lesson for the students. Since I am not an education major, teaching a lesson was very new to me, and I was worried that I would not succeed in this setting. The first day at the schools in Limerick, my mind was quickly put at ease when I presented the lesson with my partner and instantly connected with the kids. I feel confident that I can take on the rigor of graduate school, where I will constantly be put in situations (like therapy sessions) that I am not 100% confident in, after my experience in Ireland. From a professional standpoint, I have always wanted to participate in programs abroad in my future career. I feel that this goal is more attainable now that I have been to Ireland and had this immersive time in Irish classrooms.

Furthermore, our classes were incredible abroad. Dr. Calleja and Dr. Kern perfectly balanced our class work and free time so that we had so much fun while consistently learning during our trip. Adding to that, Dr. Calleja and Dr. Kern are so passionate about this program, and they were the best professors to travel with and learn from. Our classes differed from those at the U of A because they were experience-based. The only time we listened to a “lecture” while abroad was in the beginning to give us an overview of what the Irish school system was like. Other than that lecture, the rest of our classes consisted of hands-on experiences with the students. All our assignments were reflections on our experiences in the schools and our cultural experiences outside of class. We discussed what we learned in the schools and how they compare to schools in the United States as well toward the end of our trip.

There are many experiences that I would love to talk about from Ireland, but I have narrowed it down to a couple of my favorite experiences. My first experience was the Milk Market in Limerick. The Milk Market was like the farmers market in Fayetteville, and had lots of jewelry, produce, bakery items, and cheeses that were made locally. I thought it was amazing to see an event in Ireland and help family businesses. Next, the Cliffs of Moher had a breathtaking view of the Atlantic Ocean. The cliffs themselves were beautiful and we could see how the weather and ocean had carved them over time. We got to hike along the cliffs (from a safe distance) and see a portion of 8-kilometer-long rock formations.

I would 100% recommend this program to education and communication sciences and disorders students. I think this experience can help shape how you approach your teaching/speech-language pathology career. The opportunity to work with Irish students gave our group a new outlook on education, and we will be stronger professionals because of this experience. One thing I wish I knew beforehand was how great this experience was for speech-language pathology students. I would have told my friends to apply too! Even if these students weren’t doing research, being on the education side of the program let me know how much I love working with kids, and I had the opportunity to learn about how speech and language disorders are handled in the schools in Ireland. Now that I am home, I plan to remember what I learned in Ireland and apply it in my future career as an SLP. There was so much to bring back to our school system in the United States including how they provided accommodations for their students and their welcoming nature. Who knows, maybe I will end up working as a school based SLP!