چکیده:
This paper describes an alternative view of the internationalization process in higher education by comparing the traditional and non-traditional indicators on how the level of internationalization is measured; additionally, barriers that exist on both sides are reviewed and discussed. As higher education institutions are very accustomed to and focused on the number of international students, international cooperation agreements, visiting guest professors and international projects, another dimension could be added if we start to account and measure things that are happening in the digital communication, online data exchange, usage of mobile devices and other technologies. Authors argue that it would be necessary to include this perspective in the development of internationalization strategies, institutional development plans as well as external outreach tactics. The paper is based upon empirical knowledge coming from Erasmus+ KA2 project and a brief institutional self-assessment performed by Riga Technical University International Cooperation and Foreign Students Department.
خلاصه ماشینی:
Technology Enhanced Internationalization in Higher Education, Non- Traditional Indicators Karlis Valtins *Corresponding author, Lecturer and Researcher, Riga Technical University, ICFSD.
Authors of this paper argue that the same thing is happening in higher education – globalization produces indicators for internationalization, such as more mobile students around the globe, bilateral or multilateral cooperation agreements, international projects, joint study programs, etc.
E-mails have become the most used communication channel around the world and it has surpassed the physical meetings, calls or letters Number of online video calls with foreign citizens, Software log files or self- made statistics, Seeing intensity of international distance communication gives more comprehensive overview on international cooperation, opposite to just counting business trips for example Number of videos watched on internet in a foreign language, Playlists, routine diaries, self-made statistics, Introducing new formats of data allows to see in what setting university is working and there might be discoveries made about foreign language competencies, multimedia usage, common sources and more Number of instant messages sent to international phone numbers, Conversation history logs, software-based statistics, Instant online messengers such as WhatsApp, Skype, WeChat, Viber has become a standard for fast response communication and measuring the levels of foreign outreach could show the everyday internationalization levels Number of internet pages visited in a foreign language, Software log files or self- made statistics, Information and data flow are a two-way street and in case of academics and scientists, they often need to consult with the knowledge and findings from other countries and peers Number of foreign study materials used in courses, references to foreign scientists in research papers, Software log files, academic and scientific databases or self-made statistics, This would reveal how internationalization flows through the process of teaching, learning and research Number of files downloaded from the internet in a foreign language or foreign server, Data repository logs, self- statistics, Incoming data files from abroad could show where the information used by university staff is coming from and what is the local/foreign ratio %%انتهای جدول%%] Indicators shown in table 2 shows examples that are related to using of technology and are possible to measure, but the list can be significantly larger, depending on ICT usage habits of each institution, capabilities of the systems that are in use, specific academic or scientific activities and more.