Abstract
‘Internationalisation’ is a pervasive but contested concept in contemporary higher education (HE), and poses both critical challenges and development opportunities for universities. Recent research suggests that while many HE institutions (HEIs) have an internationalisation strategy, there are limitations to the ways in which institutions approach internationalisation (Spencer-Oatey & Dauber, 2015). Attention is often paid predominantly to recruitment of international students and staff, and to mobility, with targets for the number of students and staff engaged in international programmes or research. Increasingly universities that seek to be truly internationalised are thinking beyond these structural factors, to more comprehensive approaches (Hudzik, 2011) that will enable all students and staff to have an ‘internationalised’ experience. This opinion piece addresses a key dimension of a more comprehensive approach to internationalisation, the internationalisation of the curriculum (IoC) as a means to develop global mindsets, skills and understandings.
Highlights
ABSTRACT ‘Internationalisation’ is a pervasive but contested concept in contemporary higher education (HE), and poses both critical challenges and development opportunities for universities
The emphasis placed on the various dimensions of internationalisation of the curriculum (IoC) will reflect how the institution, the discipline and individual academics and policy makers conceptualise internationalisation (Clifford, 2013)
Perhaps too often IoC focuses on inputs rather than outcomes, when the institutional motive for internationalisation is to attract students to programmes (Leask, 2014)
Summary
IoC has been much debated and variously defined as: the incorporation of an international or intercultural dimension into the content of the curriculum, teaching and learning arrangements, and support services of a programme of study (Leask, 2009; Leask & Bridge, 2013); providing students with different cultural perspectives and developing their intercultural skills and sensitivity (Zhou & Smith, 2014); a response to the changing needs and expectations of students, to enhance their university experience and to prepare them for the world of work (Mak & Kennedy, 2012); and preparation for socially responsible citizenship (Clifford & Montgomery, 2014; Reid & Spencer-Oatey, 2013). The content and structure of the curriculum, and the teaching and assessment methods employed will influence the intended international and intercultural learning outcomes
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