Current philosophy within tertiary pedagogy views internationalisation of curriculums as imperative for universities and many Australian universities have been working towards the goal of internationalisation of higher education (Harman, 2004)..

Archer, C.

Wolf, K.

English

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ANZCA	  2013,	  Fremantle,	  Western	  Australia,	  3-­‐5	  July	   144	  Internationalisation	  of	  the	  Public	  Relations	  Curriculum:	  The	  Challenges	  of	  Learning	  Using	  Global	  Networks	  	  Catherine	  Archer	  and	  Katharina	  Wolf	  Curtin	  University,	  Western	  Australia	  Catherine.archer@cbs.curtin.edu,au	  K.Wolf@curtin.edu.au	  	  Current	  philosophy	  within	  tertiary	  pedagogy	  views	  internationalisation	  of	  curriculums	  as	  imperative	  for	  universities	  and	  many	  Australian	  universities	  have	  been	  working	  towards	  the	  goal	  of	  internationalisation	  of	  higher	  education	  (Harman,	  2004).	  However,	  although	  many	  universities	  agree	  that	  internationalisation	  is	  an	  important	  factor	  in	  curriculums,	  there	  is	  no	  widely	  accepted	  definition	  of	  internationalisation	  (Peel	  and	  Frank,	  2008),	  even	  though	  it	  is	  “one	  of	  the	  most	  significant	  drivers	  of	  change	  facing	  the	  modern	  university”	  (Taylor,	  2004,	  168).	  	  At	  the	  same	  time,	  the	  public	  relations	  profession	  has	  become	  a	  global	  industry	  with	  public	  relations	  education	  “playing	  catch	  up”	  (Sriramesh	  and	  Vercic,	  2001,	  p.101).	  It	  has	  been	  argued	  that	  perhaps	  the	  most	  important	  development	  in	  public	  relations	  education	  and	  practice	  is	  that	  US	  dominance	  in	  research	  and	  theory	  is	  fading.	  	  	  ANZCA	  2013,	  Fremantle,	  Western	  Australia,	  3-­‐5	  July	   145	  The	  rapid	  internationalization	  of	  our	  theoretic	  work	  and	  practice	  is	  critical	  to	  the	  future	  of	  the	  [public	  relations]	  field	  because	  it	  brings	  new	  cultural	  insights,	  political	  perspectives	  and	  histories	  to	  bear.	  (Botan	  and	  Hazleton,	  2006,	  p.	  11)	  	  In	  a	  number	  of	  institutions,	  cross-­‐cultural	  communication	  and	  international	  perspectives	  are	  listed	  as	  intended	  outcomes	  for	  graduating	  students	  (Leask,	  2004).	  Indeed,	  the	  authors’	  own	  institution	  lists	  two	  graduate	  attributes	  as	  “an	  international	  perspective”	  and	  “cultural	  understanding”.	  The	  body	  of	  knowledge	  in	  higher	  education	  related	  to	  internationalisation	  is	  extensive	  (Harman	  2005),	  with	  Australian	  scholars	  contributing	  significantly.	  However,	  much	  of	  this	  scholarship	  is	  conceptual.	  This	  paper	  addresses	  this	  gap	  with	  a	  case	  study	  of	  a	  real	  public	  relations	  project	  conducted	  at	  universities	  in	  12	  countries	  across	  the	  globe.	  This	  paper	  offers	  new	  insights	  into	  the	  reality	  of	  ‘internationalisation’	  for	  public	  relations	  education	  at	  curriculum	  level.	  	  The	  following	  research	  questions	  are	  asked:	  1. What	  are	  public	  relations	  students’	  views	  of	  an	  internationalised	  university	  experience?	  2. What	  are	  the	  main	  challenges	  associated	  with	  internationalising	  a	  curriculum?	  3. What	  are	  the	  main	  learning	  outcomes	  of	  an	  internationalised	  unit?	  	  	  The	  Global	  Communications	  (GlobCom)	  Project	  As	  has	  been	  discussed,	  many	  universities	  strive	  to	  have	  ‘internationalisation’	  as	  part	  of	  their	  curriculum	  and	  philosophy.	  For	  disciplines	  as	  diverse	  as	  marketing,	  geography	  or	  social	  work,	  at	  a	  practical	  level	  internationalisation	  has	  vast	  reaching	  implications	  for	  undergraduate	  courses	  (Johnson,	  2004;	  Jackson,	  2003).	  The	  pinnacle	  –	  or	  ultimate	  –	  way	  to	  internationalise,	  it	  appears,	  is	  for	  students	  to	  participate	  in	  ‘international	  learning	  communities’	  using	  technology	  to	  communicate	  and	  work	  with	  students	  from	  other	  universities	  across	  the	  globe	  (Leask,	  2004;	  Taylor,	  2001).	  While	  universities	  are	  striving	  for	  internationalisation,	  industry	  is	  demanding	  graduates	  equipped	  with	  skills	  for	  global	  mobility.	  A	  recent	  Ernst	  &	  Young	  report	  (Bokor,	  2012),	  highlighted	  global	  mobility,	  digital	  technology	  and	  integration	  with	  industry	  as	  key	  drivers	  of	  change	  for	  universities.	  Developments	  in	  education	  mirror	  an	  increasingly	  global	  work	  environment	  (Bokor,	  2012)	  and	  globalisation	  has	  not	  only	  increased	  the	  importance	  of	  global	  public	  relations	  it	  has	  also	  provided	  an	  opportunity	  for	  introspection	  about	  practice	  and	  scholarship	  (Sriramesh,	  2009).	  	  This	  paper	  looks	  in-­‐depth	  at	  a	  global	  communications	  project,	  involving	  international	  learning	  communities	  across	  5	  continents.	  The	  project	  was	  undertaken	  by	  communications,	  public	  relations	  and	  marketing	  students	  at	  12	  different	  universities	  in	  12	  countries	  (Australia,	  England,	  Germany,	  India,	  Italy,	  New	  Zealand,	  Portugal,	  Russia,	  South	  Africa,	  Spain,	  United	  Arab	  Emirates	  and	  the	  USA)	  across	  5	  continents.	  The	  authors’	  own	  university,	  Curtin	  University,	  the	  only	  Australian	  University	  to	  be	  involved,	  began	  in	  2009.	  The	  aim	  of	  the	  project	  was	  for	  students	  to	  compete	  in	  global	  virtual	  teams	  to	  produce	  a	  public	  relations	  “pitch”	  document.	  For	  the	  GlobCom	  project,	  the	  students	  of	  the	  universities	  study	  public	  relations	  or	  communications	  at	  least	  in	  the	  third	  semester.	  	  There	  were	  nine	  international	  student	  e-­‐teams	  formed	  with	  all	  countries	  represented	  in	  each	  team.	  Each	  international	  e-­‐team	  received	  the	  same	  PR	  brief	  and	  had	  to	  develop	  and	  submit	  a	  PR	  solution	  as	  a	  ppt-­‐presentation	  like	  in	  a	  real	  pitch.	  The	  students	  of	  the	  e-­‐teams	  communicated	  and	  co-­‐operated	  with	  each	  other	  through	  various	  social	  media	  outlets,	  by	  e-­‐mail	  and	  Skype.	  	  Methodology	  This	  paper	  explores	  qualitative	  and	  quantitative	  data	  gathered	  shortly	  after	  the	  culmination	  of	  the	  2012	  GlobCom	  Project	  at	  the	  symposium	  and	  finals	  in	  Abu	  Dhabi	  in	  the	  United	  Arab	  Emirates.	  Participants	  across	  all	  twelve	  universities	  were	  invited	  to	  participate	  in	  an	  18	  question	  online	  survey	  that	  was	  designed	  with	  the	  aid	  of	  Qualtrics	  Online	  Survey	  Software.	  ANZCA	  2013,	  Fremantle,	  Western	  Australia,	  3-­‐5	  July	   146	  For	  the	  purpose	  of	  this	  paper	  we	  were	  particularly	  interested	  in	  the	  open	  ended	  sections	  that	  encouraged	  students	  to	  reflect	  on	  the	  learning	  outcomes	  and	  perceived	  challenges	  of	  their	  GlobCom	  experience.	  	  A	  total	  of	  62	  valid	  responses	  were	  received	  from	  eleven	  of	  the	  twelve	  participating	  countries.	  	  	  Results	  &	  discussion	  A	  total	  of	  91%	  of	  survey	  respondents	  were	  somewhat	  to	  very	  satisfied	  with	  GlobCom	  experience,	  despite	  94%	  stating	  that	  they	  had	  perceived	  the	  experience	  to	  be	  somewhat	  to	  extremely	  challenging.	  However,	  only	  66%	  of	  the	  same	  sample	  group	  believed	  that	  the	  experience	  had	  increased	  their	  understanding	  of	  international	  public	  relations.	  Instead,	  they	  emphasised	  the	  accumulation	  of	  generic	  business	  and	  ‘life	  skills’.	  	  	  This	  paper	  is	  believed	  to	  be	  the	  first	  in	  Australia	  to	  reveal	  students’	  experience	  of	  an	  internationalised	  public	  relations	  programme.	  It	  addresses	  a	  major	  gap	  in	  the	  public	  relations	  literature	  which	  has	  so	  far	  only	  called	  for	  more	  internationalised	  education	  (Sriramesh,	  2002)	  and	  offered	  a	  “how	  to”	  for	  PR	  educators	  (Taylor,	  2001).	  The	  paper	  is	  intended	  as	  a	  basis	  for	  discussion	  on	  issues	  surrounding	  internationalisation.	  It	  also	  intends	  to	  generate	  questions	  on	  the	  trend	  for	  universities	  to	  pay	  considerable	  attention	  to	  student	  “satisfaction”	  rather	  than	  student	  learning	  and	  outcomes.	  Further	  research	  would	  be	  useful	  to	  ascertain	  students’	  reflection	  on	  such	  a	  project	  as	  GlobCom	  once	  students	  have	  graduated	  and	  actually	  worked	  on	  international	  public	  relations	  projects	  within	  their	  workplace.	  The	  authors	  conclude	  that	  an	  internationalised	  learning	  opportunity	  like	  this	  real	  life	  client	  project	  may	  not	  necessarily	  be	  popular	  amongst	  the	  wider	  student	  cohort.	  However,	  internationalised	  projects	  provide	  a	  number	  of	  benefits,	  in	  particular	  in	  the	  context	  of	  capstone	  units	  that	  set	  out	  to	  prepare	  business	  students	  for	  a	  diverse	  career	  in	  an	  increasingly	  global,	  multicultural	  and	  complex	  field.	  	  	  Bokor,	  J.	  (2012).	  Ernst	  and	  Young	  Report:	  University	  of	  the	  future	  A	  thousand	  year	  old	  industry	  on	  the	  cusp	  of	  profound	  change.	  Ernst	  &	  Young.	  Botan,	  C.	  H.,	  &	  Hazleton,	  V.	  (2006).	  Public	  Relations	  Theory	  II.	  Mahwah,	  New	  Jersey:	  Lawrence	  Erbaum	  Associates	  Inc.	  De	  Jong,	  H.,	  and	  Teekens.	  H.	  (2003).	  The	  case	  of	  the	  University	  of	  Twente:	  internationalisation	  as	  education	  policy.	  Journal	  of	  Studies	  in	  International	  Education.	  7,	  41-­‐51.	  Harman,	  G.	  (2005).	  Internationalization	  of	  Australian	  higher	  education:	  A	  critical	  view	  of	  literature	  and	  research.	  In	  P.	 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Internationalisation of the public relations curriculum: The challenges of learning using global networks

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Internationalisation of the public relations curriculum: The challenges of learning using global networks

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