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Internationalisation of the Curriculum Policy

Please note that this policy has not yet been revised or converted to the new format.

At Monash University Internationalisation of the Curriculum means the provision of curricula, pedagogies and assessments that foster understanding of national and global perspectives, and of how these intersect and interact with personal perspectives. Learning experiences at Monash will develop students’ ability to engage with multiple frameworks, contrasting value-systems, and open-ended situations.

Guiding Principles

  1. Monash University will incorporate international and intercultural perspectives and inclusive pedagogy into its courses in order to prepare students to perform capably, ethically and sensitively in international and multicultural professional and social contexts.
  2. The ethos of internationalising the curriculum must be integrated through the learning and teaching operations of the university. The process will encompass planning, review and reinforcement - the operational elements of which are content, form and structure.
  3. The university acknowledges that the national and cultural diversity of its students and staff brings a world of experience which can be tapped to enhance the quality of learning and teaching. Inclusive curricula, and the inclusion of staff of Monash’s international campuses in developing curricula and appropriate localised assessment, will make use of these rich resources.
  4. Each course (award and non-award) will incorporate international and/or intercultural perspectives, in addition to the diversity of local perspectives appropriate for achieving the academic and/or professional goals and purposes of the award or specialisation.
  5. While all units and teaching should endeavour to be culturally inclusive, it is accepted that the development of an internationalised curriculum by a faculty is best planned and implemented across a course. Not every unit can be assumed to have international content; however, all units should allow for a variety of student backgrounds and understandings.
  6. The university acknowledges that many would regard some types of knowledge as universal in nature, for example in Mathematics and in the Physical and Biological Sciences. However, even in these areas it is appropriate to review cultural perceptions and develop culturally appropriate pedagogies, case studies and examples to assist learning.
  7. In addition to the valuing of cultural diversity, multilingualism is recognised and valued as a good in itself and as a means to facilitate intercultural exploration, acquisition of practical competence in the global economy, and understanding of difference.
  8. Internationalisation of the curriculum will aim to encourage staff and students to be critical, self-reflective practitioners who have:
    • an openness to their own local and indigenous cultures, and cultures of other communities;
    • an openness to intercultural differences;
    • a capacity to engage with language and cultural difference;
    • the ability to live and work harmoniously and effectively with and in different cultures; and
    • the capacity to draw on and engage with the global plurality of sources of knowledge.
  9. The university will include staff development, including staff in partner-supported programs, and support for students’ language and academic skills development, as integral components of internationalisation of curriculum processes.
  10. Staff will be supported in and rewarded for the development of international and intercultural perspectives in their teaching.
  11. Faculties that are operating on more than one campus will facilitate processes for staff on the different campuses to co-develop curricula, pedagogy and assessment.

Purpose and Rationale

Internationalisation of the curriculum at the university is a dynamic response both to external and internal forces. A key objective is to prepare students for a world characterised by diversity, change and uncertainty. The capacity of the university to have an international outlook depends on its willingness to accept the unfamiliar, to move beyond borders, to recognise our inter-connectedness, to embrace cultural and linguistic plurality; by turns leading, responding to and critiquing the external environment. To shape new worlds by striving for a sense of human solidarity is based on an acceptance of shared responsibility. The cultural diversity of both the university and our global community requires that we develop curricula designed to further understanding and to foster intellectual curiosity. Curricula offered by Monash University and its partners must value the different perspectives afforded by different cultures, demonstrating sensitivity to local contexts and environments, and respecting local and indigenous cultures. Intercultural understanding is viewed as a dynamic negotiation between parties which, on a global scale, aims to promote solidarity between nations and further the development of peace in the world.

As university educators, our desire is to nurture in our students the capacity to contribute responsibly and constructively to their disciplines, to their professions and to society. Our role is to assist our students to become productive, creative and responsible citizens, nationally and globally. While all the graduate attributes developed at university are by nature future-directed, the fostering of an international focus is particularly so; and it must infuse all the other attributes. Underlying these objectives is a desire to help shape a future which is equitable, just and environmentally sustainable.

It is essential for the university to be a good international citizen itself, building knowledge by engaging in reciprocal partnerships to further human and social ideals. The university recognises that it has corporate social responsibilities and applies the highest ethical standards to its operations. It invests its energies in relationships that are beneficial to the countries where it operates, fosters an environment to attract high quality staff and students, and models best behaviour in its treatment of them.

Internationalisation of the curriculum is not an isolated activity or an end in itself. It is a process of continuous review, improvement and self-evaluation that builds on an institutional commitment to cultural inclusiveness - supporting intercultural dimensions in teaching, research and service through a wide range of activities.

Scope

Policies will be established at the university level and will be administered through Education Committee and Academic Board. Implementation will occur on a Faculty wide basis through education committees in each faculty. Associate Deans (Teaching) will be responsible for ensuring that policies and procedures are adhered to. Courses will be audited and good practice highlighted to facilitate compliance.

Deans have overall responsibility for internationalising the curriculum in their faculties. Associate Deans (Teaching) and the faculty representatives on the Management and Reference Groups of the Internationalisation of the Curriculum Subcommittee of Education Committee are expected to play a major leadership role in their faculties. The Subcommittee Management Group will oversee and monitor the introduction of policies to each of the faculties.

Definitions

Culture: used to mean the accumulation of knowledge, values and practices within society, and encompasses race, class, ethnicity, gender and sexual preference.

Related Documents

Governing Documents

Responsibilities for Implementation

  • Faculty-wide – Deans, Associate Deans (Teaching)
  • University-wide – Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Education), Director, Learning and Teaching
  • See Appendix A for more detail on implementation process

Date Effective

Implementation is expected throughout new course development, for new course delivery at offshore sites and in a gradual and progressive manner through course revision for local and offshore programs. The process should commence in Semester 2, 2005.

Approval

Academic Board 2/2005, 23 March 2005

Review

Academic Board shall consider this policy for review three years after approval, or earlier if required.

Change to "Responsibilities for Implementation" made by Education Committee Meeting 6/2005, 26 October 2005.

Acknowledgement

The Internationalisation of the Curriculum Subcommittee of Education Committee wishes to acknowledge the generous support of Deakin University in providing its own policy documentation which helped inform the Monash policy development.