Internationalising the curriculum: student learning in the global experience program

Outcomes include critical analyses of student teacher learning from teaching practicum in Vanuatu; the intercultural sensitivity and competence; the notion of professional learning in the light of internationalisation of the curriculum, and the potentials and limitations of the GEP for achieving the goals of internationalisation of the curriculu

Space, place and race: Ethics in practice for educational research in ethnically diverse rural Australia

Research in Australia’s ethnically diverse rural and regional communities requires an approach that is informed by notions of space, place and culture, and which recognises race as a relational social construct mediated by social and political discourse and context, and prone to change overtime. This critical review examines how teacher education researchers connect culturally competent research and rural ethics with the view to improving education systems, addressing rural teacher workforce issues, informing the preparation of pre-service teachers, and, most importantly, ensuring that rural students have access to educational opportunities that are engaging and meet their needs. It focuses specifically on researcher positionality on the insider-outsider continuum and how this informs ethical research in diverse rural communities, particularly those in which visible new migrants reside. Peer-reviewed journal articles that discuss how education researchers negotiate working in rural space are examined and considered in relation to discourse about ethics in practice and the insider/outsider continuum. Scholarship reflected in the literature spanned the fields of rural/research ethics, inclusive education, education research methodology and research with new migrants, minority and marginalised groups

Inequalities and Agencies in Workplace Learning Experiences: International Student Perspectives

The final publication is available at Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12186-016-9167-2National systems of vocational education and training around the globe are facing reform driven by quality, international mobility, and equity. Evidence suggests that there are qualitatively distinctive challenges in providing and sustaining workplace learning experiences to international students. However, despite growing conceptual and empirical work, there is little evidence of the experiences of these students undertaking workplace learning opportunities as part of vocational education courses. This paper draws on a four-year study funded by the Australian Research Council that involved 105 in depth interviews with international students undertaking work integrated learning placements as part of vocational education courses in Australia. The results indicate that international students can experience different forms of discrimination and deskilling, and that these were legitimised by students in relation to their understanding of themselves as being an ‘international student’ (with fewer rights). However, the results also demonstrated the ways in which international students exercised their agency towards navigating or even disrupting these circumstances, which often included developing their social and cultural capital. This study, therefore, calls for more proactively inclusive induction and support practices that promote reciprocal understandings and navigational capacities for all involved in the provision of work integrated learning. This, it is argued, would not only expand and enrich the learning opportunities for international students, their tutors, employers, and employees involved in the provision of workplace learning opportunities, but it could also be a catalyst to promote greater mutual appreciation of diversity in the workplace

Using mixed-methods to investigate student teacher learning outcomes

The Deakin University Faculty of Arts and Education’s Global Experience Program (GEP) aims to “develop the knowledge, cultural sensitivity and skills needed to address diversity within the educational environment” among student teachers (Deakin, 2009). This research aims to investigate the short term student teacher learning outcomes from their participation in the program through their perceptions and real-life international teaching experiences. The data are collected using mixed-methods to get breadth and in-depth insights on learning outcomes. The survey was conducted to investigate student teacher perceptions on their professional and cultural learning using a Likert scale, while an ethnographic case study was intended to reveal the real-life student teachers learning outcomes from their participation in the GEP in Vanuatu

Internationalisation of Indonesian higher education : a study from the periphery

Globalisation as a global phenomenon has been influencing Indonesian Higher Education like other education systems in the world. Internationalisation in response to globalisation is a common feature in majority universities. It is also a feature of Indonesian Higher Education institutions, yet so far it seems that the way in which Indonesian higher education is responding to globalisation with internationalisation of its universities is not well reported. This paper aims to address this gap by examining relevant government papers, policies, research, reports and other documents available on line as well as at web sites of universities and other related web sites depicting how internationalisation has been conducted in Indonesian higher education. The paper attempts to reveal the perceived challenges of globalisation for Indonesian higher education and to what extent and in what form internationalisation has been achieved. Particularly, it will analyse the relation between policies and practices and identify barriers to internationalisation. However, it should be noted that this article is selective rather than comprehensive in reflecting on the internationalisation process in Indonesian higher education. Findings show that globalisation is perceived as a challenge requiring a response rather than as a threat to be dealt with. Many sources reflect that the government has been initiating and facilitating various programs to support internationalisation within the system. It appears that lack of capability at the institution level slows down the process. Under-representation of institutions reflected in the under-developed websites results in opacity of the real capacity of institutions. It seems that improving the basic factors shaping internationalisation such as capacities in English and ICT (Marginson, 2007) would trigger further the development of internationalisation in Indonesian higher education

Strategies to embed intercultural competence as a soft skill in university curriculum

Intercultural competence (IC) has become significantly important as we interact and function in the global workplace and multicultural societies. To be effective in operating within a diverse multicultural society, understanding, negotiating and managing the differences is crucial. Additionally, the rich diversity should be celebrated in order to have a safe, sustainable and harmony global community. Specifically, internationalization in higher education has led to a significant increase in the importance of IC for students and staff. For international students, &ldquo;learning shock&rdquo; and different expectations of teaching styles require them to develop IC in order to be able to interact and facilitate their learning in different cultures. For local students, the increasing numbers of international students and new immigrant students result in the necessity to develop IC. For educators, IC enables them to be responsive to the diverse multicultural student body in order to deliver quality teaching and learning.In this paper, based on the literature review, we attempt to suggest ways to embed intercultural competence as the soft skill in the university curriculum. Two complementary strategies will be discussed. The first approach focuses on embedding IC in the university curriculum. Considering IC is an abstract skill and difficult to measure, an outcome-based approach will be proposed to map students&rsquo; development of IC. The second is through international experience program that provides cross-cultural experience for students. This strategy describes how teaching practicum in other culture appears to be compatible with the principles to develop intercultural competence.<br /

‘Get foot in the door’: International students\u27 perceptions of work integrated learning

Work-integrated learning (WIL) is regarded as an important vehicle to assist students&rsquo; development of relevant professional skills, knowledge and attributes that can enhance their employability. WIL arrangement for international students is a challenging issue for institutions, international students themselves as well as other related stakeholders. While there is an emerging body of literature that examines WIL for international students, how the value of WIL is perceived by this cohort is little known. This paper responds to this dearth of the literature by exploring the different meanings that international students in the vocational education and training sector attach to WIL. Using Bourdieu&rsquo;s thinking tools of capitals and habitus to interpret interview data from 105 international students, this paper shows that WIL is seen to not only add value to student learning, career aspiration and employability but also transform and enhance their symbolic and social capitals. The paper underscores the instrumental, symbolic and developmental meanings that international students associate with WIL. In particular, it highlights the reciprocal relationship between students&rsquo; development of vocational &lsquo;being&rsquo; and personal &lsquo;being&rsquo; through WIL