Evaluating Prospective Homestay Families in the U.S. and New Approaches to Further Enrich the Exchange Student’s Opinion of America

Determining the level of effectiveness in exchange programs has become increasingly more important to evaluators. Likewise, bilateral connectivity between the host country’s people & institutions and the exchange student have benefitted from recent recommendations of comprehensive evaluations. However, the homestay family factor of the exchange experience lags in this area. In that regard, exchange programs could improve significantly from a broader and deeper understanding of the homestay experience, as seen from the host’s perspective. In fact, citizen diplomacy is alive and active in the host’s homes. People to people contact in these intimate settings can form attitudes, sentiments, and emotional attachments that should be measured as a mode to improve citizen diplomacy practices. From the aptitude of the host family to their level of community engagement, several elements are key to an ambiance where the exchange student can better adapt, learn, interact, feel, think, express ideas, learn about customs and community, familiarize with the language, and overall enhance their experience, hence their opinion about their host country.