Critical perspectives on Internationalising the curriculum in disciplines: Reflective narrative accounts from business, education and health

Abstract

In the last decade institutions of higher education, national governments and (inter) national organisations have become more pro-active, comprehensive, diverse and innovative in their approaches to internationalisation. The importance of knowledge in the global economy, unmet demand for higher education in many parts of the world and increasing competition for talent in others, have resulted in an increasing focus on internationalisation in higher education across and within the regions of the world. This has resulted in the emergence of national and global for-profit higher education conglomerates, the development of franchise operations, articulation programmes, branch campuses and educational hubs. There has also been an increased focus on distance education, blended learning and Massive Online Open Courseware (MOOCS). Simultaneously with these developments there has been a continuing focus at an institutional and program of study level on isolated and marginal activities for a minority of students, such as study abroad, exchange, area studies and international student recruitment. Critical reflection on the outcomes of such activities, and in particular their impact on student learning, combined with increasing concern with the state of the world has resulted in a search for approaches to internationalisation that have deeper meaning and greater impact.