Internationalisation and Equality and Diversity in Higher Education: Merging Identities

Summary This project arises out of Eade and Peacock’s (2009) scoping report, commissioned by Equality Challenge Unit (ECU) entitled Internationalising equality and equalising internationalisation: The intersection between internationalisation and Equality and Diversity in higher education. The principal aim of the current study is to identify the advantages of building on the intersection of Internationalisation and E and D agendas, through an exploration of the effective mechanisms for linking E and D and internationalisation policies, structures and activities within a small sample of heterogenous HE institutions located in Australia, England and Wales. Reflecting a multi-level and mixed-method approach this report provides an in-depth account of awareness, commitment, understanding and involvement of domestic and international staff and students, and other key players, in Internationalisation and Equality and Diversity. This account is supported by examples of good practice and synergy and consideration of areas of potential improvement in the two fields. The mixed-method approach involves desk research to consider the influence of geographical location, profile and size on rationales for internationalisation and commitment to Equality and Diversity, complemented by interviews of key personnel to provide insights regarding performance, accessibility etc. Data regarding staff and student awareness, perceptions and dispositions is captured via online survey and focus groups. Finally a review of the literature supports data interpretation by suggesting emergent key themes. Institutional challenges are identified within the context of what may be learned from other organisational forms. A central focus is the student learning experience, with discussions embracing key issues such as competing perspectives on learner support models, the association between inclusive curricula and multicultural education and attendant barriers and tensions. Extensive and systematic analysis of institutional policy in Internationalisation and Equality and Diversity within specific local contexts provides substantial evidence of how current and future direction is shaped by the socio-economic and cultural make-up of surrounding communities, tempered by institutional aspirations in the global arena. The insights of senior managers provide the personal accounts and deep insights into the ongoing strategic initiatives and perceived challenges which determine the practice which emerges from the rhetoric of policy statements. The in-depth exploration of awareness, perceptions and dispositions of staff and students serves to highlight a striking continuity of perspective across the range of stakeholders, within different institutions which approach Internationalisation and Equality and Diversity from widely contrasting positions vis-à-vis locality, status, market position and relative size. Seemingly, any shortcomings of policy to practice transfer are not the outcome of a lack of will on the part of those who have engaged in this research, but rather reflect the complexity of finding the most appropriate way, whether senior manager, teacher, support and development professional, student or other stakeholder. The challenges of internationalisation and Equality and Diversity simply manifest themselves in different ways at different levels within different institutional contexts and key messages from this research include for example: • The need to manage structural diversity within the framework of a broadly-based business-case approach in order to maintain internal cohesion and external credibility. Such an approach should acknowledge diversity of mission which derives from the nature of the global-local interface, profile, status etc. • Broad awareness of the potential synergies between Internationalisation and E and D within a framework of inclusive practice • Broad consensus surrounding the merits of inclusion embodying both local and global dimensions. At this level, diversity of mission, location, status etc. becomes irrelevant. Universities with different cultures can learn much from each other since inclusion should be the response of all institutions recruiting international and/or students from a diversity of cultural, ethnic, religious, socio-economic etc. backgrounds • Awareness of tensions at policy and practice levels, which might be eased by appropriate organisational structures and processes designed specifically to embed synergy across institutions • Acknowledgement of the need to embed the concept of synergy at three levels of diversity: structural (demographic mix); classroom (curriculum and pedagogies) and interactional (informal and social settings) • The significance of readily accessible research-informed and evidence-based practice to raise awareness, build confidence, promote engagement and inform future direction within cross-disciplinary and cross-institutional context

Developing an Online Collaborative Approach to Global Education in Vocational Contexts

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Technology, open education and a resilient higher education

The place of technology in the development of coherent educational responses to environmental and socio-economic= disruption is here placed under scrutiny. One emerging area of interest is the role of technology in addressing more complex learning futures, and more especially in facilitating individual and social resilience, or the ability to manage and overcome disruption. However, the extent to which higher education practitioners can utilise technology to this end is framed by their approaches to the curriculum, and the socio-cultural practices within which they are located. This paper discusses how open education might enable learners to engage with uncertainty through social action within a form of higher education that is more resilient to economic, environmental and energy-related disruption. It asks whether open higher education can be (re)claimed by users and communities within specific contexts and curricula, in order to engage with an uncertain world

Tourist guides and free tours: A controversial relationship

Like other tourism subsectors, guided tours have been affected by the emergence of the sharing economy. Although this subsector of tourism is not as well known, it constitutes an interesting scenario for studying these new business models and it is also generating debate. This article analyses the uniqueness of the tourist guide services provided through online platforms under the name of free tours. The study includes a bibliographical revision and it is carried out from a qualitative methodology based on a survey conducted among tourist guide professionals and in-depth interviews. The study analyses the point of view of professionals in the guiding sector from 11 European cities subject to common regulations. It aims to determine how they are affected by the free tours as well as to assess their relationship with this new activity, a complex relationship with many controversial elements in terms of labour, tax and organisation. It will be shown that the free tours respond to the trends of contemporary society but are not an expression of the collaborative consumption among equals, but rather an effective marketing strategy.‘Transformations of the historical urban landscape induced by tourism: contradictions and controversies, government and local governance’ (CSO2016-75470-R), which forms part of the National Programme for Research, Development and Innovation aimed at the Challenges of Society. Ministry of the Economy, Industry and Competitiveness. PR: Manuel de la Calle and María Velasco. Period of execution: 2017–2020 and ‘Analysis of planning processes applied to smart cities and tourist destinations. Balance and methodological proposal for tourist spaces: Smart Tourism Planning’ (CSO2017-82592-R), which forms part of the National Programme for Research, Development and Innovation aimed at the Challenges of Society. Ministry of the Economy, Industry and Competitiveness. PR: Josep Ivars and Fernando Vera. Period of execution: 2018–2020

The relationships between technology and open education in the development of a resilient higher education

The place of technology in the development of coherent educational responses to environmental and socio-economic disruption is here placed under scrutiny. One emerging area of interest is the role of technology in addressing more complex learning futures, and more especially in facilitating individual and social resilience, or the ability to manage and overcome disruption. However, the extent to which higher education practitioners can utilise technology to this end is framed by their approaches to the curriculum, and the socio-cultural practices within which they are located. This paper discusses how open education might enable learners to engage with uncertainty through social action within a form of higher education that is more resilient to economic, environmental and energy-related disruption. It asks whether open higher education can be (re)claimed by users and communities within specific contexts and curricula, in order to engage with an uncertain world

Social Vulnerability and Touristification of Historic Centers

Historic centers have su ered di erent processes of neglect, occupation, segregation, gentrification, and touristification as a result of changes in demand and policies. Currently, they are going through a homogenization process motivated by tourist pressure, which is causing the expulsion of the local population; this is a common topic of interest for media and political agendas, which requires scientific analysis. This research aims at identifying the winning and the losing tourist groups in the historic center of Seville. It is structured in two parts: a conceptual one based on the bibliographic review with which one wants to know how the current society responds to tourist pressure through defining and characterizing the processes of substitution of uses and inhabitants, and another empirical one in which the analysis of statistical indicators (demographic, economic, and residential) treated with Geographic Information System (GIS) allows us to measure the degree of existing vulnerability and analyze social and spatial e ects caused by the tourism in Sevill