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Critical perspectives on internationalization in higher education: commercialization, global citizenship, or postcolonial imperialism?

Bamberger, Annette; Morris, Paul; (2023) Critical perspectives on internationalization in higher education: commercialization, global citizenship, or postcolonial imperialism? Critical Studies in Education 10.1080/17508487.2023.2233572. (In press). Green open access

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Abstract

We explore the literature on internationalization in higher education and distinguish between the mainstream and radical approaches to critical scholarship. We argue that the mainstream approach continues to steer internationalization towards socially progressive and equitable aims, while growing concerns have surfaced especially with regard to its commercialization. We focus on the postcolonial approach and suggest that it has inherent limitations stemming from its roots in a ‘modern global/colonial imaginary’ based on an outdated bipolar or unipolar, rather than multipolar, view of geopolitics. In the analysis of higher education, this perspective fails to recognize contemporary forms of colonialism and, in contrast to other strands of critical scholarship, neglects the shifting nature of geopolitics and the various forms and locations of colonialism. Consequently, we argue that the postcolonial approach becomes myopic, as it tends to be West-centric, selectively critical and denies local agency. Moreover, it falls short in explaining the motives behind internationalization in diverse contexts. Therefore, we argue for a plurality of critical approaches, widely applied, to gain a comprehensive understanding of internationalization on a global scale.

Type: Article
Title: Critical perspectives on internationalization in higher education: commercialization, global citizenship, or postcolonial imperialism?
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1080/17508487.2023.2233572
Publisher version: https://doi.org/10.1080/17508487.2023.2233572
Language: English
Additional information: This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, and is not altered, transformed, or built upon in any way. The terms on which this article has been published allow the posting of the Accepted Manuscript in a repository by the author(s) or with their consent.
Keywords: Internationalization; higher education; globalization;, criticality; postcolonial, critique; Occidentalism
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education > UCL Institute of Education
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education > UCL Institute of Education > IOE - Education, Practice and Society
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10173924
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