International Higher Education: Knowledge, Culture and Public Diplomacy
A special issue of Education Sciences (ISSN 2227-7102). This special issue belongs to the section "Higher Education".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 15 December 2024 | Viewed by 658
Special Issue Editors
Interests: comparative education; higher education; education policy and management
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Higher education has increasingly been positioned as a strategic sector for promoting national status, economic competitiveness, and even cultural influence on the international stage. A wide range of initiatives and schemes have been launched by Western societies and other emerging donors with the aim of strengthening their diplomatic relations with foreign audiences through networking higher education institutions. As engines of knowledge production and scientific innovation, universities hold significant power in reshaping the dynamics of technological advancement on a global scale. Certainly, the mobility and circulation of students, researchers, and professionals across national boundaries also have significant cultural implications from the perspective of public diplomacy. It is widely believed that exchange programs tend to create positive cultural impressions due to affinity, interaction, and mutual understanding at the individual level. However, despite these assumed relationships, the diplomatic roles and positions of higher education are still subject to the complexities of domestic and international contexts in various countries. Changing geopolitics, economic competition, and national security concerns among major countries also alter the interactive patterns of the higher education sector. These new political and economic forces bring about dramatic transformations in public diplomacy within the context of higher education. It is within these broader contexts that this Special Issue aims to address the following themes:- How and why are governmental policies in higher education formulated and crafted to address their diplomatic purposes at the international level?
- How do governments, non-state actors, and higher education institutions network to foster diplomatic relationships?
- What are the changing roles and strategies of universities in coping with intensified geopolitical competition and national conflicts at the institutional level?
- What are the effects and impacts of particular schemes and initiatives in higher education on foreign countries in terms of soft power?
- How can innovative conceptual or theoretical frameworks in international relations or political sciences empirically interpret these new developments?
- How are the identities, feelings, and values of individual actors restructured within the arena of public policy in higher education?
Prof. Dr. Sheng-Ju Chan
Prof. Dr. Cheng-Cheng Yang
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- higher education
- public policy
- soft power
- knowledge/education/culture diplomacy
- international relation
- institutional cooperation
Planned Papers
The below list represents only planned manuscripts. Some of these manuscripts have not been received by the Editorial Office yet. Papers submitted to MDPI journals are subject to peer-review.
Title: How are the identities, feelings, and values of individual actors restructured within the arena of public policy in higher education
Title: The Many Challenges of Internationalizing Higher Education in a VUCA Era: Transcending Shallow Internationalization, Best Practices for Attaining Excellence in International Higher Education
Abstract: The context for this study is the volatile, turbulent, and disruptive environment that affects higher education everywhere. A plethora of key problems facing higher education are identified. Among these are escalating costs and declining public support for higher education. This means that international education must compete with other possible priorities such as strengthening the disciplines or making campuses more attractive to prospective students.
The basic aim of this paper is to develop a set of best practices to promote excellence and rigor in international higher education. In that sense this could be called action research. And this also could be considered the story of how to develop excellence in international higher education.
The major methodology for this study is multiple case studies research and mixed methods research. Another method is reflective participant experience based on the author’s seven decades of engagement with the internationalization of higher education. Both value premises and positionality which might influence the research are openly shared.
In terms of results, key genres of internationalization are identified and described such as critical, comparative, and comprehensive internationalization. Then in the next quantitative section of the paper, eight statistical tables are shared which show the current status of international higher education, primarily in the U.S., but also including a table showing the most international universities in the world.
Then in the next qualitative part of the study 11 exemplary cases are presented such as CAMPUS Asia, Volunteers in Asia (VIA), and the International Cooperative Learning Project. These projects involve a total of about 20 countries. Criteria for selection were factors such as depth, sustainability, and impactful, transformative learning.
The paper concludes with an articulation of the best practices to achieve excellence in international education and the principle that true liberal education is inherently international and intercultural.
