A view towards internationalisation at the University of Iceland: Lessons learned from the International Studies in Education Programme.

• Published in: Netla
• Main Authors: Halldórsdóttir, Brynja Elísabeth, Gollifer, Susan E.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Menntavísindasvið Háskóla Íslands 2019
• Subjects: International studies in education; Internationalisation; Internationalisation at home; Higher Education; (im)migrant students; alþjóðlegt nám í menntunarfræðum; alþjóðavæðing; alþjóðavæðing heima fyrir; háskólamenntun; innflytjendur í háskólum; Iceland
• Online Access: https://ojs.hi.is/netla/article/view/2925; https://doi.org/10.24270/netla.2018.13

The International Studies in Education Programme (ISEP) at the University of Iceland is in its tenth year. Since its inception in 2008 it has aimed to provide educational opportunities for a diverse student population in the Icelandic higher educational context. As a social justice response to the varied and growing (im)migrant population, the programme offers an interdisciplinary and international view of education for students interested in working in diverse educational settings. We conduct a concept analysis of strategic policies of the University of Iceland (UI) and its aims at internationalisation in relation to changing demographics within the student population. We suggest that internationalisation at the UI in its current form does not attend sufficiently to these changes. We suggest that internationalisation at the UI in its current form pays insufficient attention to changing demographics in Iceland given the underrepresentation of (im)migrant students. We propose a broader definition of internationalisation to ref lect and respond to all international students in order to better serve the (im)migrant student population. We further argue for increased recognition of the programme’s contribution to the university’s internationalisation policy in the context of global demands for increased diversity in higher education. Our intention is to contribute to the dialogue on what constitutes quality international higher education at local, national and global levels. Alþjóðlegt nám í menntunarfræðum á Menntavísindasviði er nú á tíunda ári. Námið var fyrst í boði árið 2008 og var ætlað að koma til móts við fjölmenningarlegt samfélag á Íslandi. Tekið var inn í námið 2008, 2009 og 2010, en eftir hrun var samdráttur í Háskóla Íslands og ein ráðstöfunin var að ekki var tekið á móti nýjum nemendum í námið fyrr en haustið 2013. Síðan þá er búið að taka inn þrjá hópa BA-nema og tvo hópa MA-nema. Tímabært er á tíunda ári að kanna stöðu og gæði námsins og teljum við nauðsynlegt að rýna í ólíka þætti eins og reynslu ...