Extending the Contextual Model of Learning by Unfolding Perceived Cognitive Changes Occur in a Foreign Study Tour to China

Study tours have become a burgeoning business in the tourism market as well as in education. Although much has been canvassed on this topic, few studies examine how study tours actually transform participants’ cognitive frameworks, and under what contextual conditions such transformations could occur during the course of a study tour. Such a research angle is particularly important because if the ultimate goal of undertaking a study tour is to facilitate students’ growth of their cognitive understanding, then to reveal how the change is shaped and reshaped during the process would be as important as previous studies that focus on pre-trip perceptions, motivations, post-trip students’ evaluation, and satisfaction. This study, based on the Contextual Model of Learning, aims to understand the contextual factors that shape students’ perceived cognitive changes that occur through participation and how students’ perceptions evolve over time.