Abstract
Several factors contribute to the effectiveness of educational organizations. This chapter focuses on the role of internationalization as a key factor contributing to the success of higher education (HE) and higher education institutions (HEIs) in Oman. The aim of this chapter is to discuss two elements that are vital for successful internationalization in universities: affiliation and accreditation. This chapter also critiques different tools that assess the quality of internationalization in HE worldwide and considers how these can be utilized to support HE internationalization in Oman. Finally, the chapter recommends the NVAO evaluation tool as the most appropriate choice for the internationalization practices at HEIs in Oman.
TopIntroduction
Several factors contribute to the effectiveness of educational organizations. One key factor contributing to the success of both higher education (HE) and Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) is internationalization, which can be defined as:
The specific policies and initiatives of countries and individual academic institutions or systems to deal with global trends. Examples of internationalization include policies relating to recruitment of foreign students, collaboration with academic institutions or systems in other countries, and the establishment of branch campuses abroad. (Altbach, 2002, p. 1)
The aim of this chapter is to discuss two elements that are vital for successful internationalization in universities: affiliation and accreditation, as these are “policies responding to these national, regional and global contexts and pressures, seeking to ensure expanded and quality provision” (Al’Abri, 2016, para. 1). This chapter also critiques different tools used to assess the quality of internationalization in HEIs in Australia and Europe and considers how these can be applied to support HE internationalization in Oman.
First, the chapter presents the positionality of the author and explains its underlying rationale. It then critically discusses internationalization as a characteristic of HE. Following this, the chapter discusses the Omani context and the characteristics of its higher education system. It then explores the two main elements within internationalization – affiliation and accreditation – and describes and evaluates tools for measuring the quality of internationalization in HEIs in Australia and Europe. The chapter concludes with a summary of the main points and the core recommendations.
TopInternationalization As A Characteristic Of He
Internationalization within education is a result of globalization processes (Liu, 2021; Rumbley, Altbach, & Reisberg, 2012). One of the most commonly cited definitions of globalization is that offered by Held, McGrew, Goldblatt and Perraton (1999), who define it as:
Key Terms in this Chapter
Accreditation: Is the process of assessing the quality of activities and practices of an institution.
Quality: Is the level of excellence of something, or the totality of features and attributes of a product or service.
Globalization: Is a set of processes that has increased the connections between countries and driven economic, cultural, and social changes.
NVAO: Is a tool used to assess internationalization activities and practices in the Netherlands and Flanders.
Affiliation: Is the partnership between different institutions.
Internationalization: Is a process that aims to integrate international and intercultural dimensions into the education system.