Yolande R. Mc Nicoll, Sue Burney & Anthony R. Luff EAIR August 2008

1. Yolande R. Mc Nicoll, Sue Burney & Anthony R. LuffEAIR August 2008 Enhancing Faculty Culture to Meet Student Needs: Internationalising the Curriculum

2. University and Faculty statistics • MNHS has 8,723 of Monash’s 58,000 students • One of the largest faculties in Australia’s largest, most international university • Present on 6 of 7 campuses & 3 of 4 continents • Faculty: 18% international students (32% university-wide) largely from Malaysia, Hong Kong, China, Singapore, India • Monash students speak >100 languages • But many are monolingual and untravelled

3. Policy environment • Internationalisation of the Curriculum policy (2005) commits faculties to • Implementation … throughout new course development, for new course delivery at offshore sites, and in a gradual and progressive manner through course revision for local and offshore programs

4. Definitions • Internationalisation of the curriculum • Internationalisation at home • International education • Monash • “Curricula, pedagogies and assessments that foster global understanding of national and global perspectives, and of how these intersect and interact with personal perspectives” (Monash 2005) • Solutions • student exchange <<< >>> classroom intervention • Place of languages

5. Public debate - July 2008 • Sensational newspaper coverage • “Cultural divide”, “ghettos” • “Disengaged” students: local and international • Social tensions outside the university • Legitimate concerns • “Patchy” English support • Economic drivers: government, university, students • Stereotypes disguise opportunity to develop “enrichment, tolerance and globalisation”

6. The project • 2007-8: Began implementation of Draft Strategic Plan for Internationalisation of the Curriculum (IoC) • Funded by national Learning & Teaching Performance Fund earnings • Continued work begun in 2005 • Personnel = the authors

7. ‘Problem’ definition and rationale • A “sophisticated” (Monash University, 1999) and equitable approach to IoC is required to: • Offer a relevant education to our evolving student community • Address the changing skills required for success in the modern world • Maintain the university’s commitment to the highest standards of teaching, informed by the best research • Address student satisfaction • Meet student needs • Compete effectively in the marketplace

8. Issues • Access to content • Access to teaching delivery • Assessment access • Relationship development: • Recruitment, exchanges • Admin and process issues and needs: • Systems, curriculum change tracking • Student credit for exchange

9. A phased model of curriculum internationalisation • International students study alongside home students • Systematic curriculum development for Internationalisation • Transnational operations and Internationalisation of the Curriculum • Normalising Internationalisation of the Curriculum (Webb, 2005)

10. Aims • To align with the University’s Graduate Attributes, that • “graduates will exhibit oral and written communication skills in a broad range of settings and domains [including] communicative competence across cultures and genres” • generally, and in the discipline in which they graduate • To make the curriculum transparent to international students • To normalise curriculum internationalisation across all course offerings

11. Strategies • Pursue IoC through teaching and learning • Ensure all local students receive an international experience (Nilsson, 2000) and • Link teaching to the best international research • Promote our aspirations for our students by addressing the commitment to: • incorporate international and intercultural perspectives and inclusive pedagogy into … courses in order to prepare students to perform capably, ethically and sensitively in international and multicultural professional and social contexts (Monash University, 2005) => • For equity, all students will be offered an international experience within their course of study

12. Method • Inform and support academics to • Enhance the content of curriculum • Enhance the form of teaching • By consciousness-raising for academic leaders • By developing infrastructure • professional development for academics • an offshore teaching guide • a website repository for materials

13. Information sessions • Sponsored appearances at key committees • Covering policy, benefits, resourcing • Addressing misconceptions: • Exclusive to international students • The sciences are already international • My students can’t afford exchange programs! • But not ‘standardising the curriculum’ • Considerable acceptance across diverse academic staff

14. Professional development workshops • Enthusiastic expert input • Voluntary attendance • Two different campuses • Teaching focus: • Facilitating learning • Basic intercultural competence • Limited ability to address content • Generally positive feedback

15. Guide for offshore teachers • ‘Just in time’ induction handbook • Specific teaching issues • Cross-cultural communication • Relevant HR and travel policies • Destination briefing • Collaborative development: EDeL • Theoretical introduction to teaching • Limited intercultural content

16. Website • Repository for resources • Information session • Professional development • Offshore guide • Lasting reference for academic staff • Progressive addition of material • Staging issues

17. Why did we do it this way? • We are reliant on the capacity of our staff to respond to this challenge • Geographic isolation must influence our strategy

18. What we learned • Acceptance vs resistance • Project management and expert input • Webb’s (2005) model

19. Acceptability • Educationally appropriate • Address issues that face the culturally and geographically diverse population of the FMNHS • Aligned with the University policy and Graduate attributes => • Endorsement of academic leaders

20. Webb’s Phases model (2005) • Useful prompt, but flexible • Progress towards normalisation • International students study alongside home students • Systematic curriculum (re)development for internationalisation • “Gradual and progressive … course revision for local and offshore programs” (IoC policy) • Involve transnational programs early

21. Normalising IoC • Cultural change • Co-ordinated effort over many years • Generational? • One challenge: • To achieve our aims while maintaining university commitment to • The highest standards of teaching • Informed by the best research

22. Next steps To ensure the project’s continued success • Support sustained cultural change • More conscious–raising • Further professional development • Curriculum exemplars • A Director, IoC to co-ordinate and support implementation