Global: Internationalization of Higher Education: Nine Misconceptions
Internationalization in European higher education has developed over the last 20 years, from a marginal point of interest to a central factor—also called mainstreaming of internationalization. Indisputably, globalization of our societies and economies has
- PDF / 138,910 Bytes
- 4 Pages / 612 x 792 pts (letter) Page_size
- 117 Downloads / 248 Views
2. GLOBAL: INTERNATIONALIZATION OF HIGHER EDUCATION: NINE MISCONCEPTIONS International Higher Education, Summer 2011, Number 64
Internationalization in European higher education has developed over the last 20 years, from a marginal point of interest to a central factor—also called mainstreaming of internationalization. Indisputably, globalization of our societies and economies has expanded the influence of competition and market processes on the manner in which internationalization is implemented. Internationalization distinguishes many motives and approaches. The mainstreaming of internationalization assumes a more integral process-based approach, aimed at a better quality of higher education and competencies of staff and students. Reality is less promising, however, although the international dimension takes an increasingly central role in higher education. Still, there is a predominantly activity-oriented or even instrumental approach toward internationalization, which leads to major misconceptions about the nature of this development. Nine misconceptions will be described (two of them coinciding with a myth as described in IHE by Jane Knight in “Five Myths About Internationalization”, no. 62, winter 2011), whereby internationalization is regarded as synonymous with a specific programmatic or organizational strategy to promote internationalization— in other words, where the means appear to have become the goal. EDUCATION ON THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE
The influence of the English language as a medium of communication in research has been dominant for a long period of time. Also, over the past 20 years the tendency in higher education has been to teach in English, as an alternative for teaching in one’s mother tongue. There are several unintended negative effects. Increasingly, education offered in the English language is regarded as the equivalent of internationalization, which results in a decreasing focus on other foreign languages; in an insufficient focus on the quality of the English spoken by students and teachers for whom English is not their native language; and thus, leading to a decline in the quality of education.
G. Mihut et al. (Eds.), Understanding Higher Education Internationalization, 9–12. © 2017 Sense Publishers. All rights reserved.
H. DE WIT
STUDYING OR STAYING ABROAD
A study or internship abroad as part of your home studies is often regarded as the equivalent of internationalization. In particular, the European Commission’s policy to stimulate this manner of mobility has contributed to that instrumental approach over the last 25 years. It is questionable, however, whether the imbalanced and oversimplified approach to mobility matches internationalization. As well, it can be said that mobility is merely an instrument for promoting internationalization and not a goal in itself. Mobility needs to be finely embedded in the internationalization of education. It should be determined whether these added values are developed among students; and more innovative reflection is required on alternative w
Data Loading...
