Tag: Targets

  • New UK government video targets international students

    New UK government video targets international students

    Secretary of state for education, Bridget Phillipson, addressed students considering studying abroad, highlighting the benefits of a UK education and promoting the country’s post-study work opportunities.

    “In the new academic year, we will welcome thousands of international students who will be starting courses in our universities and I hope to see many more in the future,” Phillipson said in the video shared by the UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA).

    “The UK is a wonderful and safe place to study. Our country is home to some of the very best universities in the world – four of the world’s top 10 can be found right here in the UK.

    “An education from a British university has been the springboard for success for so many global trailblazers, from politics to business, from the arts to the sciences, in fact dozens of current and recent world leaders studied here in the UK and our universities have driven some of the most exciting and valuable research anywhere in the world.

    “You could be part of the next groundbreaking wave of research and join a new generation of inspiring leaders,” she told prospective students.

    Phillipson went on to describe some of the ways in which UK universities support their international students through pastoral support, work experience, scholarships and bursaries.

    “You’ll also get have the chance to join Alumni UK – a global group of people from around the world who have studied here. It’s a fantastic professional network that you can tap into to get great advice and guidance.”

    Phillipson went on to promote the UK’s Graduate Route, describing the opportunity which lets graduates “work, live and contribute” in the UK.

    International students forge international friendships so by studying abroad, you can help build bridges between our countries, and these connections help make the world a better, brighter place.

    Bridget Phillipson, UK secretary of state for education

    “Studying in the UK sets you up for success in your career, but it’s more than that. International students forge international friendships so by studying abroad, you can help build bridges between our countries, and these connections help make the world a better, brighter place.”

    Phillipson previously addressed international students in a video not long after stepping into the role in July 2024.

    On the release of the latest video, Anne Marie Graham, UKCISA chief executive, said she was “encouraged” to see the continuing messages of welcome and support from the UK’s education secretary.

    “Current and prospective students will also welcome the secretary of state’s ongoing support for the graduate visa and her reflections on the mutual benefits of a UK education – not just the contributions that international students make to the UK, but the positive impact on their own careers and ambitions,” she told The PIE.

    “We look forward to continuing to work with the UK government to ensure international students are welcomed and supported, from pre-arrival visas to post-graduation work opportunities, so that all international students have a positive experience studying here.”

    Pedram Bani Asadi, chair of the UKCISA’s Student Advisory Group commented: “I welcome the support from this government for international students’ hopes and dreams, and recognition of all the contributions we make to both UK culture and the economy.

    “Having access to the Graduate Route has been absolutely essential for me to be able to reinforce the skills I learnt in my studies and contribute to the UK. I appreciate all the friends and experiences I’ve had here and look forward to continuing my role as a #WeAreInternational student ambassador, and working with the UK government to support my fellow international students to have a positive experience.”

    Since Labour took came into power, sector stakeholders have noted the government’s more welcoming tone toward international students, a marked contrast to the rhetoric of the previous Conservative government.

    Despite a change in rhetoric, the Labour government has shown no intention of reversing the Conservative’s decision to ban international students on UK taught master’s courses from bringing dependants with them to the UK.

    “While the new government has said many positive things about international students, the focus on immigration remains acute,” said Jamie Arrowsmith, director of Universities UK International in an update to sector earlier this month.

    The UK’s international educations strategy is currently under review, and the rollout of the new approach is set for April.

    Sector leaders gathered at the QS Reimagine Education summit in London late last year to discuss priorities for the UK’s international education sector going forward, giving suggestions for a refreshed strategy, which included improved post-study work rights.

    Source link

  • Fall 2022 Regulatory Agenda Targets Release Dates for DOL’s Overtime Proposal and Final Title IX Rule – CUPA-HR

    Fall 2022 Regulatory Agenda Targets Release Dates for DOL’s Overtime Proposal and Final Title IX Rule – CUPA-HR

    by CUPA-HR | January 10, 2023

    On January 4, 2023, the Biden administration released the anticipated Fall 2022 Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions (Regulatory Agenda), providing the public with a detailed glimpse into the regulatory and deregulatory activities under development across approximately 67 federal departments, agencies and commissions. Agendas are generally released in the fall and spring and set target dates for each agency and sub-agency’s regulatory actions for the coming year.

    After completing a thorough review of the items included in the Regulatory Agenda, CUPA-HR put together the following list of significant proposed actions for members.

    Department of Labor

    Wage and Hour Division — Defining and Delimiting the Exemptions for Executive, Administrative, Professional, Outside Sales and Computer Employees

    According to the Regulatory Agenda, the Department of Labor (DOL)’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) is now planning to release a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to address changes to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)’s overtime pay requirements in May 2023. The WHD first announced their intention to move forward with the NPRM in the Fall 2021 Regulatory Agenda, stating its goal “to update the salary level requirement of the section 13(a)(1) exemption [under the FLSA].”

    As a refresher, changes to overtime pay requirements have been implemented through regulations under both the Obama and Trump administrations. In May 2016, the Obama administration’s DOL issued a final rule increasing the salary threshold from $23,660 to $47,476 per year and imposed automatic updates to the threshold every three years. However, court challenges prevented the rule from taking effect and it was permanently enjoined in September 2017. After the Trump administration started the rulemaking process anew, the DOL issued a new final rule in September 2019 raising the minimum salary level required for exemption from $23,660 annually to $35,568 annually. This final rule went into effect January 1, 2020 and remains in effect today.

    Since the regulation’s reintroduction in the Fall 2021 Regulatory Agenda, CUPA-HR has participated in several DOL listening sessions and has sent letters to the DOL expressing concerns with the timing of the rulemaking. Specifically, our concerns highlight the ongoing challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic and the continued reliance on hybrid and remote work, a historically tight labor market in the U.S. and the effects of inflation on the workforce.

    Wage and Hour Division — Employee or Independent Contractor Classification Under the Fair Labor Standards Act

    In May 2023, the WHD anticipates issuing a final rule to amend the current method for determining independent contractor status for workers.

    On October 13, 2022, the DOL published an NPRM to rescind the current method for determining independent contractor status under the FLSA. The current test finalized by the Trump administration in 2021 has two core factors of control and investment with three additional factors (integration, skill and permanency) that are relevant only if those core factors are in disagreement. The Biden rule proposes a return to a “totality-of-the-circumstances analysis” of multiple factors in an economic reality test, including the following six factors, which are equally weighted with no core provisions:

    • the extent to which the work is integral to the employer’s business;
    • the worker’s opportunity for profit or loss depending on managerial skill;
    • the investments made by the worker and the employer;
    • the worker’s use of skill and initiative;
    • the permanency of the work relationship; and
    • the degree of control exercised or retained by the employer control.

    Employment and Training Administration — Strengthening Wage Protections for the Temporary and Permanent Employment of Certain Aliens in the United States 

    In September 2023, the DOL’s Employment and Training Administration (ETA) plans to issue an NPRM to establish “a new wage methodology for setting prevailing wage levels for H-1B/H-1B1/E-3 and PERM programs consistent with the requirements of the Immigration and Nationality Act.” The proposal will likely amend the Trump administration’s final rule that was scheduled to take effect on November 14, 2022, but was subsequently vacated by a federal court in June 2021. The new proposal will take into consideration the feedback it received in response to a Request for Information (RFI) on data and methods for determining prevailing wage levels “to ensure fair wages and strengthen protections for foreign and U.S. workers.”

    CUPA-HR filed comments in opposition to the Trump administration’s regulations on the issue and in response to the Biden administration’s RFI.

    National Labor Relations Board

    Joint Employer

    In August 2023, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) plans to release its anticipated final rule to amend “the standard for determining whether two employers, as defined under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), are a joint employer under the NLRA.”

    On September 7, 2022, the NLRB issued an NPRM on the joint employer standard. The NPRM establishes joint employer status of two or more employers if they “share or co-determine those matters governing employees’ essential terms and conditions of employment,” such as wages, benefits and other compensation, work and scheduling, hiring and discharge, discipline, workplace health and safety, supervision and assignment and work rules. According to the NLRB’s press release, the Board “proposes to consider both direct evidence of control and evidence of reserved and/or indirect control over these essential terms and conditions of employment when analyzing joint-employer status.”

    Department of Education

    Office for Civil Rights — Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex in Education Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance 

    In May 2023, the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) plans to release its highly anticipated Title IX final rule. The rulemaking would finalize the June 2022 NPRM to rollback and replace the Trump administration’s 2020 regulations, specifically with respect to its grievance procedures, while simultaneously expanding protections against sex-based discrimination to cover sexual orientation, gender identity and pregnancy or related conditions.

    CUPA-HR filed comments in September 2022 in response to the NPRM. In our comments, we tried to bring attention to the possible impact the proposed regulations could have on how higher education institutions address employment discrimination. The Department of Education received over 200,000 comments in response to the NPRM, which they must review prior to issuing a final rule to implement their changes.

    In addition to the Title IX rulemaking, the OCR also announced its intention to issue an NPRM to address Title IX protections as it relates to athletics programs at educational institutions. The Department of Education announced its intention to pursue a separate rulemaking to address transgender students participation in athletic programs at institutions of higher education and such protections afforded to them under Title IX after the topic was frequently discussed in the media and in Congress in 2022. According to the Regulatory Agenda, the NPRM was set to be released in December 2022, but it has not yet been released.

    Department of Homeland Security

    U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement — Optional Alternative to the Physical Examination Associated With Employment Eligibility Verification (Form I-9) 

    According to the Regulatory Agenda, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) plans to issue a final rule in May 2023 that would finalize the agency’s proposed rule aiming to “revise employment eligibility verification regulations to allow the Secretary to authorize alternative document examination procedures in certain circumstances or with respect to certain employers.”

    On August 18, 2022, the DHS published its NPRM on optional alternative examination practices for employers when reviewing an individual’s identity and employment authorization documents required by the Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification. If finalized, the proposed rulemaking would create a framework under which the Secretary of Homeland Security could allow alternative options for verifying those documents, such as reviewing the documents via video, fax, or email rather than directly allowing employers and agents to use such alternative examination options. According to the NPRM, the Secretary would be authorized to implement the alternative examination options in a pilot program if they determine such procedures would offer an equivalent level of security, as a temporary measure to address a public health emergency declared by the Secretary of Health and Human Services, or a national emergency declared by the President.

    CUPA-HR filed comments in response to the DHS NPRM in October 2022. The comments were supportive of the Department moving forward with the NPRM, but cautioned against requiring secondary, in-person review of I-9 documents after virtual inspection and once an employee is in-person on a regular and consistent basis; issuing training for document detection and/or anti-discrimination training that may be offered at a high cost without proper vetting, and requiring institutions to be enrolled in E-Verify to participate in the alternative options.

    U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services — Modernizing H-1B Requirements and Oversight and Providing Flexibility in the F-1 Program

    In October 2023, the DHS’s United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) plans to release an NPRM to “amend its regulations governing H-1B specialty occupation workers and F-1 students who are the beneficiaries of timely filed H-1B cap-subject petitions.” The NPRM will specifically propose to “revise the regulations relating to ‘employer-employee relationship’ and provide flexibility for start-up entrepreneurs; implement new requirements and guidelines for site visits including in connection with petitions filed by H-1B dependent employers whose basic business information cannot be validated through commercially available data; provide flexibility on the employment start date listed on the petition (in limited circumstances); address ‘cap-gap’ issues; bolster the H-1B registration process to reduce the possibility of misuse and fraud in the H-1B registration system, and clarify the requirement that an amended or new petition be filed where there are material changes, including by streamlining notification requirements relating to certain worksite changes, among other provisions.”

    Department of Agriculture

    Agriculture Acquisition Regulation: Internal Policy and Procedural Updates and Technical Changes

    In May 2023, the Department of Agriculture (USDA) plans to re-propose an NPRM that was previously issued in February 2022 and included controversial provisions that would require federal contractors on projects procured by the agency to certify their compliance with dozens of federal and state labor laws and executive orders.

    In the February NPRM, the USDA provided only 32 days for stakeholder comment submissions on the proposal. CUPA-HR filed an extension request with the department asking for an additional 90 days to “evaluate the NPRM’s impact on [members’] research missions and collect the information needed in order to provide thoughtful and accurate input to the USDA,” as well as official comments that were pulled from 2012 comments CUPA-HR submitted with the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM).

    While it is unclear whether the May NPRM will include the blacklisting language again, the abstract of the re-proposal states that “the new proposed rule would be responsive to the comments received on our February 2022 proposal.”



    Source link

  • DOL Targets October 2022 for Release of a New Overtime Proposal – CUPA-HR

    DOL Targets October 2022 for Release of a New Overtime Proposal – CUPA-HR

    by CUPA-HR | June 29, 2022

    On June 21, the Biden administration released the anticipated Spring 2022 Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions (Regulatory Agenda), providing the public with a detailed glimpse into the regulatory and deregulatory activities under development across approximately 67 federal departments, agencies and commissions. Agendas are generally released in the fall and spring and set target dates for each agency and sub-agency’s regulatory actions for the coming year.

    Based on a thorough review of the Regulatory Agenda, CUPA-HR would like to highlight the following proposed actions for members, including an updated target date for the release of a new overtime proposal.

    Department of Labor

    Wage and Hour Division – Defining and Delimiting the Exemptions for Executive, Administrative, Professional, Outside Sales and Computer Employees

    According to the Regulatory Agenda, the Department of Labor (DOL)’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) is now planning to release a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to address changes to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)’s overtime pay requirements in October 2022. In the Fall 2021 Regulatory Agenda, WHD announced their intention to move forward with the NPRM with the goal “to update the salary level requirement of the section 13(a)(1) exemption [under the FLSA].”

    Changes to overtime pay requirements have been implemented through regulations under both the Obama and Trump administrations. In May 2016, the Obama administration’s DOL issued a final rule increasing the salary threshold from $23,660 to $47,476 per year and imposed automatic updates to the threshold every three years. However, court challenges prevented the rule from taking effect and it was permanently enjoined in September 2017. After the Trump administration started the rulemaking process anew, in September 2019, DOL issued a new final rule raising the minimum salary level required for exemption from $23,660 annually to $35,568 annually. This final rule went into effect January 1, 2020, and it remains in effect today.

    From April through June 2022, DOL held several listening sessions for interested stakeholders to discuss any support or concerns they may have with the anticipated rulemaking. CUPA-HR participated in all of the calls, expressing our concerns with the timing of the rulemaking as it relates to the ongoing challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, a historically tight labor market, and increasing inflation.

    Employment and Training Administration – Strengthening Wage Protections for the Temporary and Permanent Employment of Certain Aliens in the United States

    In October 2022, DOL’s Employment and Training Administration (ETA) plans to issue an NPRM to establish “a new wage methodology for setting prevailing wage levels for H-1B/H-1B1/E-3 and PERM programs consistent with the requirements of the Immigration and Nationality Act.” The proposal will likely amend the Trump administration’s final rule that was scheduled to take effect on November 14, 2022, but was subsequently vacated by a federal court in June 2021. The new proposal, which is included in the Department’s Statement of Regulatory Priorities, will take into consideration the feedback it received in response to a Request for Information (RFI) on data and methods for determining prevailing wage levels “to ensure fair wages and strengthen protections for foreign and U.S. workers.”

    CUPA-HR filed comments in opposition to the Trump administration’s regulations on the issue and in response to the Biden administration’s RFI.

    National Labor Relations Board

    Joint Employer

    In July 2022, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is planning to release an NPRM to potentially amend the standard determining when two employers may be considered joint employers under the National Labor Relations Act. The new standard will revise the 2020 Trump Administration’s final rule, which reversed the Obama-era NLRB decision in the 2015 Browning-Ferris Industries case and established that an entity can only be a joint employer if it actually exercises control over the essential terms and conditions of another employer’s employees. While details of the Democratic-majority NLRB’s NPRM on joint employer status are unknown, we would expect them to revise the current standard to reflect the Obama-era decision.

    Department of Homeland Security

    USCIS – Modernizing H-1B Requirements and Oversight and Providing Flexibility in the F-1 Program

    In May 2023, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)’s United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) plans to release an NPRM to “amend its regulations governing H-1B specialty occupation workers and F-1 students who are the beneficiaries of timely filed H-1B cap-subject petitions.” The NPRM will specifically propose to “revise the regulations relating to ‘employer-employee relationship’ and provide flexibility for start-up entrepreneurs; implement new requirements and guidelines for site visits including in connection with petitions filed by H-1B dependent employers whose basic business information cannot be validated through commercially available data; provide flexibility on the employment start date listed on the petition (in limited circumstances); address ‘cap-gap’ issues; bolster the H-1B registration process to reduce the possibility of misuse and fraud in the H-1B registration system; and clarify the requirement that an amended or new petition be filed where there are material changes, including by streamlining notification requirements relating to certain worksite changes, among other provisions.”

    ICE – Optional Alternative to the Physical Examination Associated With Employment Eligibility Verification (Form I-9)

    According to the Regulatory Agenda, DHS plans to issue an NPRM in July 2022 to “revise employment eligibility verification regulations to allow the Secretary to authorize alternative document examination procedures in certain circumstances or with respect to certain employers.”

    DHS has provided temporary flexibility in the Form I-9 verification process since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Specifically, the flexibility guidance allows for remote inspection of Form I-9 documents in situations where employees work exclusively in a remote setting due to COVID-19-related precautions. While that guidance is only temporary, DHS issued a Request for Public Input (RPI) on October 26, 2021, to determine whether those flexibilities should be kept in place permanently. It is possible that DHS will use that feedback to develop and implement this NPRM.

    CUPA-HR has engaged with DHS on the Form I-9 flexibilities through the pandemic. Most recently, DHS announced an additional extension of the Form I-9 flexibility guidance through October 31, 2022. CUPA-HR sent a letter to USCIS Director Ur M. Jaddou asking for this additional extension. Additionally, CUPA-HR submitted comments in response to the RPI based on a recent survey detailing members’ experiences with the Form I-9 verification process flexibilities.

    On June 7, ICE sent its proposal to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA). OIRA is the White House office responsible for reviewing regulations and proposed regulations before they are publicly released and generally takes 30-90 days for this review, indicating ICE is on target to issue their proposal in July.

    Department of Agriculture

    Agriculture Acquisition Regulation: Internal Policy and Procedural Updates and Technical Changes

    In December 2022, the Department of Agriculture (USDA) plans to re-propose an NPRM that was previously issued in February 2022 and included controversial provisions that would require federal contractors on projects procured by the agency to certify their compliance with dozens of federal and state labor laws and executive orders.

    In the February NPRM, USDA provided only 32 days for stakeholder comment submissions on the proposal. CUPA-HR filed an extension request with the department asking for an additional 90 days to “evaluate the NPRM’s impact on [members’] research missions and collect the information needed in order to provide thoughtful and accurate input to the USDA,” as well as official comments that were pulled from 2012 comments CUPA-HR submitted with the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM).

    While it is unclear whether the December NPRM will include the blacklisting language again, the abstract of the re-proposal states that “the new proposed rule would be responsive to the comments received on our February 2022 proposal.”

     



    Source link

  • Re-examining Concept, Targets and Outcome – GlobalHigherEd

    Re-examining Concept, Targets and Outcome – GlobalHigherEd

    Editor’s note: This guest entry, also available on Inside Higher Ed, has been kindly contributed by Professor Dato’ Dr Morshidi Sirat. Morshidi was the former Director-General of Higher Education Malaysia, and is now Director of the Commonwealth Tertiary Education Facility (CTEF) based at Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang. Morshidi is also a Senior Research Fellow at the National Higher Education Research Institute (IPPTN), Universiti Sains Malaysia. Given Morshidi’s expertise and experience in higher education policy, he is often engaged in consultancy work on higher education policy in Malaysia, then Association of Southeast Asian Region (ASEAN) and the South Pacific Island States.

    This entry is based on recent work in ASEAN and South Pacific Island States, specifically to address confusion between international education and the internationalisation of education in many emerging and developing higher education systems. In many systems, these terms are used interchangeably. This entry is an attempt to re-examine international education as a concept and a strategy for both international understanding and economic development as implemented in Malaysia. Arguably, lessons learnt should provide guidance for Malaysia’s international education beyond 2020, especially with respect to the manner in which Malaysia’s citizens “engage with others in this globalised and yet highly divisive world.” Kris Olds

    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

     

    Malaysia’s International Education by 2020 and Beyond:

    Re-examining Concept, Targets and Outcome

    Morshidi Sirat

    Preamble

    It is important to address international education in this era of globalisation and unsettling geopolitical issues, in particular on Malaysia’s response to preparing Malaysians for future global and regional scenarios. Anyone that studies international development dynamics from the ‘people perspective’ as opposed to the ‘economic and neo-liberalism perspective’ will almost immediately agree that we are in dire need of international and intercultural understanding as we try to deal with longstanding and more importantly, emerging geopolitical issues. As such, international education is not merely about the dynamics of flows in terms of the numbers of students, scholars, and/or programs between countries. More importantly, it is about qualitative impact, in particular about the content of international education and related programs. It must be emphasized that “in any educational program, of any educational system, for any educational process and under any educational material”, the aims and objectives of international education must be communicated in order to realise international understanding among nations (Juan Ignacio Martínez de Morentin de Goñi, 2004: 94).

    With this as a preamble and context, we can then proceed to re-examine international education as a concept and as a strategy for both international understanding and economic development as implemented in Malaysia.

    Introduction

    With globalisation, many terms connected with the “international” are loosely defined and liberally adopted in policy circles particularly in the formulation of strategic planning directions on education and higher education. These policy documents and the people behind these policy documents are equally guilty of adopting terms and terminologies without proper definition, contextualisation and correct usage of these terms. Thus, in our attempt to trace and assess the progress of international education in Malaysia to-date it is important at the outset to provide a working definition of ‘international education’. But more importantly, it is pertinent for us to establish whether, at the time of target setting for the so-called international education in 2007 (for the National Higher Education Strategic Plan Phase 1), the Economic Transformation Plan (ETP) and in 2013 (in the case of the Malaysia Education Blueprint), did we conceptualise and operationalise the term ‘international education’ as it should be conceptualised and operationalised? Moving on from issues and questions which I have raised earlier, this entry will begin with a deliberation on the term ‘international education’, detailing the aims and objectives of international education. Subsequently, a working definition is adopted in order to assess where Malaysia is in terms of international education. Following that, the ‘international education’ element in the Malaysia Education Blueprint and the National Higher Education Strategic Plan (NHESP) will be highlighted and the implementation of international education rated. A statement of “where we are” and “where we should be heading” will be offered for further consideration and deliberation based on the Malaysia Education Blueprint, 2015-2025 (Higher Education).

    What is International Education?

    Admittedly, the term ‘international education’ has yet to acquire a single, consistent meaning. The reason for the uncertainty, confusion and disagreement lies partly in the many interpretations of the term ‘international education’. As James (2005:314) notes, further confusion arises because the word ‘international’ itself is equally ambiguous as not all things regarded as international are in essence international. To understand the meaning of international education, we need to explicate the term in terms of aims and objectives.

    Epstein (1994: 918) describes ‘international education’ as fostering “an international orientation in knowledge and attitudes and, among other initiatives, brings together students, teachers, and scholars from different nations to learn about and from each other. In other words, “All educative efforts that aim at fostering an international orientation in knowledge and attitudes” (Huse´n and Postlethwaite, 1985: 260) and seek “to build bridges between countries” (McKenzie, 1998: 244) fit this idea of international education. Arum (1987) divides international education into three parts: (1) international studies (including all studies involving the teaching or research of foreign areas and their languages); (2) international educational exchange (involving American students and faculty studying, teaching, and doing research abroad and foreign faculty and students studying, teaching, and doing research in the United States); and (3) technical assistance (involving American faculty and staff working to develop institutions and human resources abroad, primarily in Third World countries).

    The justification for international education can be approached from two directions: a ‘top-down’ approach considers addressing global and national needs, and a ‘bottom-up’ approach, that is the development of the individual. These approaches are not mutually exclusive (James, 2005: 315). Thomas (1996: 24), writing on the development of an International Education System, asserts that ‘education is uniquely placed to provide lasting solutions to the major problems facing world society’, problems which transcend political borders (Gellar, 1996).

    The Mission and Aims of International Education

    Belle-Isle (1986) states that the “mission of international education is to respond to the intellectual and emotional needs of the children of the world, bearing in mind the intellectual and cultural mobility not only of the individual but . . . most of all, of thought”.

    The aims of international education are related to developing ‘international understanding’ for ‘global citizenship’, and the knowledge, attitudes and skills of ‘international-mindedness’ and ‘world-mindedness’ (Hayden and Thompson, 1995a, 1995b; Schwindt, 2003; YAIDA, 2007). Admittedly, none of the aims of modern ‘international education’ are exclusively international (James, 2005: 324). Therefore, and in a post-9/11 world, the term ‘internationalist’ may no longer be sufficient to describe the values espoused by the movement; it might be time to transcend ideas based on nation-states (Sarup, 1996; in Gunesch, 2004). Gunesch (2004) proposes ‘cosmopolitanism’ as an alternative name for the outcome intended of ‘international education’ (Mattern, 1991). While the aims of international education are laudable, it is misleading to relate them to internationalism, for they extend beyond differences in nationality (James, 2005: 323). Peterson (1987) asserts that international education seeks instead to produce what might be termed ‘cosmopolitan locals’, who have a national identity, understand others better, seek to co-operate and have friends across frontiers. That cosmopolitan is “familiar with many different countries and cultures” and “free from national prejudices”. OED (2004) indicates the potential limitations of the cosmopolitanism, in associating prejudices with nations. But, it is preferable as a term to ‘international’ in the sense that it does transcend purely nation-based associations.

    Towards a Working Definition

    Any working definition for international education should appropriately address the issue of “global interconnectedness that characterizes the contemporary world, and point to a form of international understanding required by the citizen of the future that must comprise some understanding of the world perceived as a whole.”

    UNESCO experts have developed conceptual approaches to international education that resulted in an operational definition being adopted by UNESCO (1974). I must emphasize here that we are more interested in a working definition and not an academic definition. UNESCO’s effort may be considered as the only large-scale effort to provide a working definition of the term “international education” by a widely recognized international educational body. The definition, agreed at UNESCO General Conference level, combined the elements of international understanding, cooperation and peace with the range of focal points of international education under the overall rubric of “education for international understanding”. UNESCO (1974: 2) outlines the following relevant educational objectives for international education:

    • a curriculum with a global perspective
    • understanding and respect for other peoples and cultures
    • human rights and obligations
    • communication skills
    • awareness of human interdependence
    • necessity for international solidarity
    • engagement by the individual in the local, national and global scale

    Malaysia’s International Education

    At this juncture, let us pose some pertinent questions: To what extent is international education important in the educational process and the education system in Malaysia? Personally, I like to think it should be important as “There is nothing that is more effective than having nations-states and people break down barriers between themselves.” In fact, in this highly globalised and inter-connected world it is imperative that we understand other cultures, languages, institutions, and traditions. More so, in today’s globalized world, Malaysian students and in fact students of ASEAN need more international experience. For Malaysia, foreign students enrich our campuses and our culture, and they return home with new ideas and ways to strengthen the relationship between countries. But interestingly, since the early 1990s, the market place and international education have become intertwined and international education has and continues to be seen as an engine for growth (see http://www.nxtbook.com/naylor/IIEB/IIEB0114/index.php – /38). Let us not mention the contribution of international students to the Malaysia economy at this juncture as I want to focus on aspects or issues that are beyond the monetary in this entry. That is, I want to focus on to what extent Malaysia has been successful in leveraging international education as a vital part of 21st century diplomacy. Admittedly, we send undergraduates, graduate students, administrators, faculty, and researchers on short and long-term programs abroad but what is more important and pertinent question to ask is: what are the impacts of our programs on students and scholars from abroad in Malaysian education system? Another question that beg some answers: Malaysia education institutions are implementing internationalisation-related activities such as international student mobility, but are these institutions themselves internationalised in its leadership, governance and management arrangement, curriculum content and pedagogy?

    The National Higher Education Strategic Plan, 2020 (NHESP), while adopting UNESCO’s operational definition for international education, could not be regarded as intending to progress the comprehensive aims and objectives of international education. This strategic planning document addresses the internationalisation of higher education and not international education. The NHESP fleetingly touched on the aims and objectives of international education by way of the benefits of international exposure and experience. For instance, while a “curriculum with a global perspective” is embedded in many courses offered by Malaysian universities, this is targeted at international student enrolment and recruitment or providing exposure to local students with limited global citizenship or international understanding objective. At best, these are offered at the “exposure level”. Promoting the establishment of Malaysian branches of foreign universities in Malaysia is widely regarded by policy makers as one element of international education. However, the introduction of the Malaysia’s Global Reach component in phase two of the implementation of the NHESP, 2011-2015 is an attempt to insert amendment to what is incomplete from the perspective of international education. Malaysia’s Global Reach was introduced with international education for 21st century diplomacy in mind.

    If we examined international education from more recent government documents, in particular the recently launched Malaysia Education Blueprint, 2013-2025, it is stated that:

    “…it is …imperative that Malaysia compares its education system

    against international benchmarks. This is to ensure that

    Malaysia is keeping pace with international educational

    development.” (Ministry of Education, 2013: 3-5).

    Our reading of this important document is that the emphasis is on “international educational development” and not “development in international education.” The international education element of the Blueprint is the International Baccalaureate (IB) programme, which is designed to develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect (international education), are offered only in two Fully Residential Schools in Malaysia) (Ministry of Education, 2013:4-6).

    At another level, the International Schools, which use international curriculum such as the British, American, Australian, Canadian, or International Baccalaureate programmes, sourced their teachers from abroad. In terms of enrolment, data as of 30 June 2011 shows that 18% of Malaysian students in private education options are enrolled in international schools nationwide (Ministry of Education, 2013:7-11).

    With a very restricted notion or definition of international education, based on the NHESP and re-emphasized in the Malaysia Education Blueprint, 2013-2025, the Performance Management Delivery Unit, and Prime Minister’s Department (PEMANDU) subsequently identified prioritised segments of the education system to drive the economic growth of the nation, namely:

    • Basic Education (primary and secondary), with Entry Point Project (EPP) identifying the private sector as playing an important role in improving basic education in terms of the provision of international education, as well as in the training and upskilling of teachers.
    • Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), with EPP 12: Championing Malaysia’s International Education Brand aims to position Malaysia as a regional hub of choice in the global education network. This will include marketing vocational training to international students. This EPP’s goal is to transform a foreign student’s experience in Malaysia into one that is comparable to that in Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States. Thus, targets are set as Gross National Income (GNI) by 2020 (mil) RM2, 787.7 and 152,672 -projected jobs by 2020.

    The prioritised segments identified above complement the regional education hub, which is the thrust for the NHESP. For the Malaysia Education Blueprint, 2015-2025 (Higher Education), the notion of international education was not conceptualised in the context of achieving UNESCO’s aims and objectives of international education as opposed to internationalisation of higher education and its monetary aspect to the Malaysian economy. In this Blueprint, the shifts on “Holistic, Entrepreneurial and Balanced Graduates’ and ‘Global prominence’ are conceived primarily in terms of monetary return and institutional reputation. There is no direct and clear statement in the Malaysia Education Blueprint, 2015-2025 (Higher Education), with respect to UNESCO (1974) guidelines on international education and the outcome for the students in a highly interconnected but at the same time highly divisive world. What can we improve upon in the next 15 years, is to present the idea of international education beyond the notion that international education is about “engine of growth for the national economy”. Arguably, we need to re-orientate our efforts towards international understanding, citizenship and (mutual rather than soft power) diplomacy (Knight, 2014).

    Conclusion

    The term international education has yet to acquire a single, consistent meaning. But the manner in which Malaysia interprets and uses this concept/term in the context of economic development need some reflection and re-examination. We may achieve the targets set for 2020 in terms of international student enrolment in our education system, but what about the real aims and objectives of international education, which is to realise international understanding among nations. We need to seriously examine whether the aims and objectives of international education are effectively embedded in Malaysia’s (i) educational program, (ii) educational system, (ii) educational process and (iv) educational material.” There is a need to reassess Malaysia’s commitment towards creating the goals of international mindedness and ‘international understanding’ beyond 2020 and in the context of the Transformasi Nasional 2050 or National Transformation 2050 (TN50). In the case of Malaysia, where economic development is of top priority, we need to seriously think in terms of the economic impetus for better intercultural understanding. Nothing much could move forward in the Malaysian context unless and until there are clear economic impetus for any initiatives coming out of the higher education institutions. We need to re-look at this economic premise if we are to emerge as a nation of ‘global prominence” with respect to the manner our citizen engage with others in this globalised and yet highly divisive world.

    References

    ARUM, S. ‘International Education: What Is It? A Taxonomy of International Education of U.S. Universities.’ CIEE Occasional Papers on International Educational Exchange, 1987, 23, 5–22.

    BELLE-ISLE, R. (1986) ‘Learning for a new humanism’. International Schools Journal 11 Springs: 27–30.

    EPSTEIN, E.H. (1994). Comparative and International Education: Overview and Historical Development. In: Torsten Husén and T. Neville Postlethwaite, eds., International Encyclopaedia of Education (p.918–923). Oxford: Pergamon Press.

    GELLAR, C.A. (1996) ‘Educating for world citizenship’ International Schools Journal 16(1): 5–7.

    GUNESCH, K. (2004) ‘Education for cosmopolitism? Cosmopolitanism as a personal cultural identity model for and within international education’. Journal of Research in International Education 3: 251–75.

    HAYDEN, M.C. AND THOMP SON, J. J. (1995a) ‘International Education: The crossing of frontiers’. International Schools Journal 15(1): 13–20.

    HAYDEN, M.C. AND THOMP SON, J. J. (1995b) ‘International Schools and International Education: A relationship reviewed’. Oxford Review of Education 21(3): 327–45

    HUSE´ N, T. AND POSTLETHWAITE , T.N. (1985) The International Encyclopaedia of Education. Oxford: Pergamon.

    JAMES, KIERAN. (2005). ‘International education: The concept, and its relationship to intercultural education Journal of Research in International Education’, December 2005; vol. 4, 3: pp. 313-332. Available at: http://jri.sagepub.com/content/4/3/313.full.pdf+html

    JUAN IGNACIO MARTÍNEZ DE MORENTIN DE GOÑI. (2004). What is International Education? UNESCO Answers. San Sebastian: UNESCO Centre. Available at: http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0013/001385/138578e.pdf

    KNIGHT, JANE. (2014). ‘The limits of soft power in higher education’. University World News, 31 January 2014 Issue No:305.

    MINISTRY OF EDUCATION (2013.) Malaysia Education Blueprint, 2013-2025. Putrajaya: Ministry of Education.

    OED (2004). The Concise Oxford English Dictionary, 11th edn. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    PETERSON, A.D.C. (1987). Schools across Frontiers: the Story of the International Baccalaureate and the United World Colleges. Chicago, IL: Open Court.

    MATTERN, W.G. (1991). ‘Random ruminations on the curriculum of the international school’, in P.L. Jonietz and D. Harris (eds) World Yearbook of Education 1991: International Schools and International Education, pp. 209–16. London: Kogan Page.

    McKENZI E , M. (1998). ‘Going, going, gone . . . global!’, in M.C. Hayden and J.J. Thompson (eds) International Education: Principles and Practice, pp. 242–52. London: Kogan Page.

    SARUP, M. (1996). Identity, Culture and the Postmodern World. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.

    SCHWINDT, E . (2003). ‘The development of a model for international education with special reference to the role of host country nationals’. Journal of Research in International Education 2(1): 67–81.

    THOMAS , P. (1998). ‘Education for peace: The cornerstone of international education’, in M.C. Hayden and J.J. Thompson (eds) International Education: Principles and Practice, pp. 103–18. London: Kogan Page.

    UNESCO (1974). Recommendations Concerning Education for International Understanding, Co-operation and Peace and Education Relating to Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms: adopted by the General Conference at its eighteenth session in Paris, November, 1974. UNESCO, Paris.

    YAIDA PUSUSILTHORN (2007). International Mindedness among Expatriate Teachers in Bangkok Patana School. MA Thesis. Language Institute, Thammasat University, Bangkok. Feb. available at: http://digi.library.tu.ac.th/thesis/lg/0262/01TITLE.pdf

    Source link