Theorizing black (African) transnational masculinities

Just as masculinity is crucial in the construction of nationhood, masculinity is also significant in the making and unmaking of transnational communities. This article focuses on how black African men negotiate and perform respectable masculinity in transnational settings such as the workplace, community and family. Moving away from conceptualizations of black transnational forms of masculinities as in perpetual crisis and drawing on qualitative data collected from members of the new African diaspora in London, the article explores the diverse ways notions of masculinity and gender identities are being challenged, re-affirmed and reconfigured. The article argues that men experience a loss of status as breadwinners and a rupture of their sense of masculine identity in the reconstruction of life in the diaspora. Conditions in the hostland, in particular, women's breadwinner status and the changing gender relations, threaten men’s ‘hegemonic masculinity’ and consequently force men to negotiate respectable forms of masculinity

International students and further education colleges in England: The context, policy tensions, and some aspects of practice

This chapter sets out the context of publicly funded further education colleges in England, outlining the position and development of these complex institutions within the broader educational structure. This is followed by discussion of some tensions and contradictions which arise from government policies partially driven by anxieties derived from debates surrounding levels of immigration together with recognition of the imperatives and opportunities arising from globalisation. The benefits of the internationalisation of education have been expounded whilst simultaneously enforcing visa regulations which impede the efforts of colleges to make inroads in the international student market. In particular, disparities between the treatment of the further and higher education sectors are highlighted. The paper also provides an account of practices which have emerged in a single FE college in England over a decade of working with international students following an access to HE course. The chapter indicates some of the many benefits which have been brought to FE by international students as well as the ways in which a college has developed its practices in response to their needs

The virtual simulation of child sexual abuse: Online gameworld users’ views, understanding and responses to sexual ageplay.

This paper explores cultural understandings of virtual sexual ageplay in the online world of Second Life. Online sexual ageplay is the virtual simulation of child abuse by consensual adults operating in-world with child computer characters (avatars). Second Life is primarily governed by Community Standards which rely on residents (the users of Second Life) to recognise sexual ageplay and report it, which requires an appreciation of how residents view, understand and construct sexual ageplay. The research presented drew on 12 months of resident blog posts referring to sexual ageplay: 263 total, with 91 residents. The analysis of this talk explores the cultural understandings of this banned behaviour and beliefs about the nature of Second Life which underpin residents’ likelihood to report sexual ageplay and so comply with the Community Standards. In considering these issues the paper is able to highlight issues regarding the unique cultural position of abuse against children and key concerns which underpin the reporting behaviour of residents. Key considerations relate to defining online sexual activity, child avatars; the moral status of ‘reporters’, and sexual ageplay as a form of edgeplay; belief in the harmfulness of sexual ageplay and its relationship to real world behaviours

Competing Meanings of the Diaspora: The Case of Zimbabweans in Britain

The diaspora literature has tended to narrow itself to the marking out and placing of boundaries at the conceptual level. While still contributing to the elaboration of the concept of diaspora, this article seeks to answer two questions. What meanings do Zimbabweans in Britain give to their diasporic condition and experience? How do such meanings influence and shape attitudes towards return to the homeland or feelings of belonging to the hostland? The article is based on multi-sited ethnography, comprising 33 in-depth interviews and participant observation in four research sites, and draws upon concepts of diaspora and transnationalism as theoretical frameworks. It examines the process by which Zimbabweans in Britain negotiate boundaries, assert meanings, interpret their own pasts, and define themselves in relation to others in the hostland. The findings suggest that, whereas the concept of diaspora typically emphasises group cohesion, Zimbabweans in Britain describe their experience in complex ways. Some depict the diaspora as reverse colonisation; some see it in terms of Babylon and Egypt metaphors; and others talk of the diaspora as wenela, an acronym referring to a labour recruitment system

Internationalization with VET character: key emerging issues

This volume has highlighted the complexities of offering vocational education and training across national borders, the nature and forms of internationalization of VET in different contexts and the impacts of mobility on educational work in the distinctive context of VET. In this chapter, we summarize the key issues as addressed by the authors in this volume and we note areas for further study and research. Emerging issues include the lack of comparable, system-wide and timelydata on VET systems and students; the limited research on VET systems and the apparent lower status of VET for researchers and indeed for families seeking educational opportunities; the conjunction of withdrawal of funding for higher education in developed countries with the need for rapid training of technical and vocational workers in developing nations. Finally, authors in this volume consider the hegemonic aspects of English as the preferred language of training across many countries. The chapter also highlights the need for further research on the practices, trends, tensions and innovation in international VET and on the motivations of thestudents who undertake it and the teachers who provide the training

Teacher professional development under the impact of internationalization in VET

This chapter addresses the professional learning needs of teachers in the vocational education and training (VET) sector under the changed circumstances of internationalization and international student mobility. International education is Australia’s largest service export, contributing over $16 billion to the national economy annually. Australian VET teachers are facing significant professional challenges to engage with pedagogical issues in teaching international students. However, there has been a lack of research on how teachers are equipped to effectively cater for international students and respond to the demands of internationalization in VET through professional development. Drawing on empirical research and positioning theory, this chapter analyzes the impact of the presence of international students on VET teachers’ professional learning needs and practices. The findings suggest the need to systemically and explicitly support substantive professional learning with regard to approaches to engaging and teaching international students. The findings in particular show teachers’ aspiration for deep and responsive capacity building and professional learning concerning three primary areas including understandings of international students’ backgrounds and motives for undertaking Australian VET, currency with research on international students, and capacity to develop pedagogies responsive to this cohort. Professional learning centered on these areas is essential to foster conditions for the generation of a more truly student-centered and international student-responsive practices among teachers