Internationalisation of the Curriculum

Internationalisation is a key theme of the University’s Learning and Teaching Enhancement Strategy and staff are encouraged to consider it in all aspects of their teaching. It should be noted that LTES key themes are used as criteria when considering University teaching awards and funding.

This session will provide an opportunity to investigate definitions and understanding of internationalisation and explore the ways in which curricula at UG and PG level can be internationalised. In the second half, in a workshop session, participants will be invited to take part in various scenarios in which some of the challenges learning and teaching in an intercultural environment will be explored.

After the session participants should have:

  • Learned about what internationalisation might mean in the context of learning and teaching
  • Seen examples of good practice from across the university in internationalising the curriculum
  • Developed their awareness of some of the challenges that internationalisation poses for learning and teaching

Level 2: for any teaching staff including postgraduate research student supervisors.

Presented by: Bill Brooks

Resources and Links

Internationalising the Curriculum (PowerPoint)

LATEU - Support for International Students 
Details of institutional activities plus guidelines for teaching staff and useful links

Two Scenarios

In each case please think how you would respond to the situation.  There is no ‘right’ answer but there may be more or less effective ways of handling the situation.  All these scenarios are based on actual incidents either at the University of Southampton or other universities in South-East England.

Scenario 1

Two UK students come and ask to be moved out of the project group they have been put into as it contains international students who they feel have poor English.  They feel this means they ‘have to do all the work’ and support these students and this is slowing down their own learning.  They say ‘this is not what we paid all these fees to get’.

Scenario 2

A group of four international students of different nationalities comes to you to complain that you clearly do not care about international students as none of them has achieved higher than a 60 in any work they submitted last semester.  They also say you are difficult to understand in class.