Fiona Henderson

On joint‐programs in China – development, challenges and suggestions

Purpose – Since the 1980s, and especially after Chinas entry into the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 1991, international educational collaborations have developed in China. Spurred by economic, cultural and educational factors, joint programs have become an essential supplement to Chinese education. Despite the obvious and diverse benefits brought about by joint programs, various challenges arise. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the benefits and challenges generally and then in a more targeted way through the lens of one Sino‐Australian partnership.Design/methodology/approach – This paper uses a case study of one joint Australia‐China program to explore the development, benefits and challenges of joint programs in China and suggest how to improve the overall quality of the joint programs which will further international collaboration of educational institutions in China.Findings – Joint programs are a strategic component of the expansion and globalization objectives of the Chinese government....

Equivalent or not?: Beyond measuring teaching and learning standards in a transnational education environment

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine issues academics at importing institutions face while delivering Australian degrees in Malaysia. Transnational higher education (TNE) has been widely researched. However, less widely researched is the area of understanding what academics at the offshore locations need to uphold the required academic standards of their partnered exporting universities. This area warrants close attention if Australian and other transnational education universities are to sustain their growth through a partnership model with offshore academics delivering a portion (often a substantial portion) of the teaching. Design/methodology/approach Two focus groups were conducted with a mix of long standing and newly recruited Malaysian lecturers who taught into an Australian degree through a partnership arrangement. The semi-structured questions which were used were derived from a preliminary literature review and previous internal institutional reports. Findings The findings from the focus groups indicate that TNE is largely “Australian-centric” when addressing the standard of academic quality and integrity. The findings pointed not so much to any sustained internationalisation of curriculum or administration or personnel but more as internationalisation as deemed required by the local academic. Originality/value To a greater extent, the findings highlighted that equivalent student outcomes do not necessarily equate to equivalent learning experiences or teaching workload. In fact, the frustration of the interviewees on the tension to fulfil the home institution curriculum and helping students to “comprehend” an Australian-centric curriculum translates to “additional and unrecognised workload” for the interviewees.