Operationalising Internationalisation in the Teaching & Learning Environment of Irish Higher Education Institutes. Learnings from the Lecturer’s Perspective

Author(s):

Deirdre Ryan(presenting / submitting)

Conference:

ECER 2017

Network:

22. Research in Higher Education

Format:

Paper

Session Information

22 SES 05 A,

Paper Session

Time:

2017-08-23

13:30-15:00

Room:

K5.04

Chair:

Sue Robson

Contribution

Although internationalisation has been the subject of discussion at institution and programme levels for many years in higher education, academics are still challenged by the prospect of internationalising their teaching and learning methodology and programme content (Dewey & Duff, 2009; Clifford, 2009; Clifford & Montgomery, 2011; Beelan & Jones, 2015; Green & Whitsted, 2015; Hudzik, 2011, 2015; Proctor, 2015).

Difficulties arise because institutions have tended to be focussed on mobility and the associated economic gains arising from internationalisation with less attention being given to the implications for teaching and learning (Dewey & Duff, 2009; Montgomery, 2010; Clifford, 2013). For any curriculum related initiative, academics are the key proponents to realise the change (Green & Whitsed, 2015; Hudzik, 2015). Similarly with Internationalisation of the Curriculum (IoC), academics’ engagement is central to its success (Clifford & Montgomery, 2005; Leask, 2005; Leask & Beelen, 2009; Kahn & Agnew, 2015; Hudzik, 2015). Academics largely decide what to include in the curriculum and on the knowledge, skills and qualities which need to be developed, therefore, it is essential for them to define internationalisation within the context of their individual disciplines (Leask 2009 cited in Agnew & Kahn, 2015). This can be a complex challenge for academics. Internationalisation needs to be relevant to both professional and disciplinary objectives and it is not merely about focussing on international case studies. It entails an overall analysis of global perspectives, skills and attitudes which have to be aligned with specific academic and global requirements (Agnew & Kahn, 2015). While there has been work performed using a ‘contribution’ approach to internationalisation in various case studies, the overall transformative approach, which requires staff to engage in paradigmatic change, remains to be developed (Clifford & Montgomery,2005; Leask & Beelen, 2009). It is also still unclear from the research why academics are not engaging with the concept in spite of an increased emphasis on internationalisation strategies for HEIs and an increased number of practical guides specifically related to the curriculum. Leask & Beelan (2009) state for internationalisation to be successfully implemented, differing methods must be explored to ensure the active participation of staff in its enactment. This research examines how a collaborative, support group might impact on the level of engagement between academics and IoC and what type of changes might result from such an intervention. The research context is the teaching and learning environments of three Irish Higher Education Institutes (HEIs) that are in the process of merging for Technological University (TU) status.

Method

The researcher adopts an action research approach to further understand the implementation gap between the theory and practice surrounding internationalisation and the inherent lack of engagement between academics and this concept in their teaching & learning environments. Furthermore action research provides the researcher with the framework needed to conduct an analysis of the engagement and to support and motivate academics to internationalise their curricula. More specifically the action research modality used by the research is organisation development through action research as this resonates mostly with the task which is to change the teaching and learning environment through engaging academics with concepts relating to internationalisation and in turn changing their pedagogical approaches to meet the needs of a more diverse student cohort who need to develop as global citizens. It involves the researcher collaborating with the client, in this case the academics, on intervening in the organisation, in this case the teaching and environment of a HEI to explore the issue of academic engagement with IoC and generate data on the development of IoC strategies (Coghlan & Brannick, 2015). The study views the research through the pragmatic philosophical lens and so adopts a practical theoretical orientation. Furthermore the researcher drew on socio-cultural educational theories and theories surrounding organisational change management to reflect the nature of the project and provide a construction for conversations about IoC. The methodology involves a mixed method approach in which quantitative and qualitative data are gathered from academics at each stage of the action research cycle. The first stage of the data collection involved conducting a questionnaire with all academic staff to determine the current level of familiarity with concepts relating to IoC. Following this an action research group comprising of academics from across the four main discipline areas and the three merging institutes was established to support and motivate academics to incorporate internationalisation into their curricula. Through semi-structured interviews, observations and reflections data is gathered to observe the process of engagement and to identify discipline-specific strategies to internationalise the curriculum.

Expected Outcomes

Through establishing an action research group comprising academics from across disciplines and institutes, the action research process should reveal theory-driven, evidence-based research to understand the level of engagement with IoC and why it is as it is. Furthermore it should reveal academics’ understanding and implementation of IoC to date and how it emerged based on their particular professional, institutional or disciplinary contexts. This type of intervention should expose what the level of knowledge and openness to IoC was before and after a support group and to what extent a support group helped academics to implement changes and what changes these may be. It should also reveal the researcher’s reflections on the challenges associated with engaging in insider action research and how collaborative group work can enhance engagement with pedagogic innovations. The action research process aims to generate new actionable knowledge and theory about IoC in academics own disciplinary and institutional contexts from learnings from the intended and unintended outcomes that result from the action research cycles. The researcher hypothesises that a collaborative, cooperative group from across disciplines and institutes should foster a culture of support for IoC and hence enhance the level of engagement.

References

Beelen, J and Jones, E (2015) Redefining internationalisation at home.Bucharest, Romania, Bologna Researchers Conference. Clifford, V (2009) Engaging the disciplines in internationalising the curriculum. International Journal for Academic Development, 14(2), 133-143 [Online]. Available at http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/13601440902970122?needAccess=true [ Accessed 20 March 2015]. Clifford, V and Montgomery, C (2011) Ch 1 Introduction: internationalizing the curriculum for global citizenship in higher education. In Clifford, V and Montgomery, C (Eds) Moving towards Internationalisation of the Curriculum for Global Citizenship in Higher Education, Oxford, UK: OCSLD, Oxford Brookes University Clifford, V (2013). The Elusive Concept of Internationalisation of the Curriculum. [Online]. Available at https://www.brookes.ac.uk/services/cci/definitions.html [ Accessed 15 November 2015]. Coghlan, D and Brannick, T (2014) Doing Action Research in Your Own Organization, Sage Publications Dewey, P and Duff, S (2009). Reason before Passion: Faculty Views on Internationalization in Higher Education. Higher Education, 58 (4), 491-504 [Online]. Available at http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10734-009-9207-z/fulltext.html [Accessed 4 April 2015]. Green, W and Whitsed, C (2015) Introducing Critical Perspectives on Internationalising the Curriculum. In Green, W and Whitsed, C (Eds) Critical Perspectives on Internationalising the Curriculum in Disciplines, Sense Publishers, The Netherlands. Hudzik, J. K ( 2011) Comprehensive Internationalisation From Concept to Action [Online] Available at http://www.d.umn.edu/vcaa/intz/2011_Comprehen_Internationalization.pdf [ Accessed 23 February 2015]. Hudzik, J K (2015) Strategic Institutional Partnerships and Comprehensive Internationalisation In Jooste, N, De Wit, H & Heleto , S (Eds) Higher Education Partnerships for the Future. Available: http://www.highered-research.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Higher-Education-Partnerships-for-the-Future-Book-WEB.pdf#page=23 [ Accessed 10 January 2016]. Kahn, H E and Agnew , M (2015). Considerations for Teaching, Learning and the Internationalization of Higher Education. Journal of Studies in International Education, 21 (1), 52-64 [Online] Available at http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/1028315315622022 [ Accessed 3 March 2015]. Montgomery, C (2010) Universities into the 21st Century Understanding the International Student Experience, Palgrave Macmillan, UK. Leask, B and Beelen, J (2009) Enhancing the engagement of academic staff in international education. Paper presented at the Advancing Europe-Australia cooperation in international education: Symposium background papers, Melbourne, Australia Leask, B (2005) Internationalisation of the curriculum and intercultural engagement- a variety of perspectives and possibilities [Online]. Available: http://aiec.idp.com/uploads/pdf/Leask,%20Betty.pdf [Accessed 15 March 2015]. Proctor, D (2015) Faculty and International Engagement: Has Internationalization Changed Academic Work in International Higher Education Special Edition 2015, number 83, 15-17.

Author Information

Deirdre Ryan (presenting / submitting)

Dublin Institute of Technology, Ireland

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