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Educational Quality at Universities for Inclusive International Programmes
Start date: Sep 1, 2016, End date: Aug 31, 2019 PROJECT  FINISHED 

Globalization is impacting our economies and societies locally, nationally, regionally and worldwide. This changing environment and context places new demands in terms of education and sets new requirements for university graduates. They need to be able to understand “the nature, scope and consequences of global transformations” (Rivzi 2009: 263) and how to relate to these in geographically, economically, politically and culturally diverse contexts. They also need to be able to conceptualize and behave inside and outside of a local context in culturally sensitive collaboration with the local environment while being mindful of the wider regional or global implications (Gregersen-Hermans, 2016). Because of globalization, internationalization of the curriculum (Leask 2015) has become a necessity for all Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), with the result that HEIs are experiencing an increasing diversity of learners. These trends are facilitated in Europe by an increasing use of English Medium Instruction (EMI) in Higher Education (HE) for bachelor's, master’s and PhD programmes. The present project - Educational Quality at Universities for Inclusive International Programmes (EQUiiP) - will directly address quality issues related to these developments, using frameworks, standards and tools which are theory based, and building on current research into Internationalization of the Curriculum (IoC), EMI, Internationalization at Home (IaH), and Intercultural and Global Competence Development (ICGC). The expertise and experience of the partners will enable the project to support HEIs in building an integrated and evidence-based internationalization strategy. EQUiiP's main objective is to develop a modular set of methods and materials for the use of educational developers (EDs) working in the internationalized curricula of HEIs. EDs are key university staff members who support university teaching staff in the effective delivery of these internationalized curricula in HEIs across Europe. The project will develop five modules for Continuing Professional Development (CPD), which will be related to an internationalized competence profile for EDs working in internationalized curricula. EDs will be able to incorporate this modular CPD programme into their support of university teaching staff. EQUiiP is a partnership of seven European universities that already have proven experience in delivering various dimensions of CPD in the context of internationalized curricula and EMI in HE. All participants in the project are front-runners in internationalization of the curriculum in their respective countries. The size of the partnership means that partners will be able to cooperate intensively in building the materials that comprise the CPD modules through a structured exchange of experiences. Each partner institution brings its own cultural specificity and perspective to the consortium, as well as complementary expertise in the following areas:• Pedagogy and teaching methods with groups of diverse students in the international classroom, facilitating IaH; • The development and embedding of international and intercultural learning outcomes (IILOs) in the HE curriculum; • Assessment, feedback and reflection processes for university teaching staff;• Intercultural and global competence development (IGCD)and facilitation;• The role of languages in the multilingual and multicultural learning environment.The EQUiiP project is innovative because of the combination of input from the literature, existing experience and expertise of the participating HEIs, as well as the insights gained in the transnational piloting activities, short training sessions and (regional) multiplier events. The methodology of the project ensures a rigorous development of a package of CPD modules which can be used separately or as a residential integrated intensive CPD programme (winter/summer school), and which are in line with the related competence profile for EDs. The project will build on relevant literature and locally valid, contextually related examples, resulting in a comprehensive approach to the CPD of university teaching staff, which is currently lacking in the contexts described above. EQUiiP will conclude with national and international events including a final conference, allowing for dissemination of all outcomes, including policy recommendations and research findings, to a wider audience. All outputs will be made available through a dedicated online platform, EQUiiP.eu. The project will promote inclusivity by ensuring that EDs are competent and equipped to support university teaching staff in providing an internationalized learning experience for all students while addressing their diverse learning needs. Thus, EQUiiP will have a strong impact on the internationalization of HEIs throughout the educational process, from classroom level to policy level.
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