Concepts and Definitions

Internationalisation

Internationalisation has been a much debated and diversely interpreted concept for many years. Yet, from a management perspective the definition from Jane Knight (1994, 2008) is still the most widely used and accepted: “a process ofintegrating an international and cultural dimension into the teaching, research and service functions of the institution”.

Internationalisation of curriculum

Related to teaching, studies of Internationalization of the Curriculum (IoC) in higher education are still scarce, certainly across disciplines and institutions. A positive exception is the work done by Leask and Bridge in Australia (2011-2013). Leask (2012) takes a broad conceptualization of IoC:

"the incorporation of an international and intercultural dimension into the content of the curriculum as well as the teaching and learning arrangements and support services of a program of study. Curriculum relates to: formal, informal and hidden, everything that shapes the students’ learning experience”.

What is an International Classroom?

Key characteristics at the University of Groningen (RUG):

• A group of students from diverse backgrounds (in culture, education, experience, etc.)
• Starting from a vision/rationale on internationalisation
• Working effectively with student and staff diversity through purposeful interaction
• Including the overall learning environment (formal, informal and hidden curriculum)
• With appropriate support for staff and students in a multicultural and multilingual environment

Based on international research, and results from pilot case studies in three different faculties (2013-2014).