Alternative approaches to internationalization of the curriculum

Abstract

The internationalization of the curriculum (IoC) is one of the issues usually mentioned in studies and
in policy statements and strategies on internationalization of higher education. The aim of this paper is to present and discuss some of the perspectives from which IoC is analyzed. The article begins with
the review of basic definitions about internationalization of higher education and curriculum that stem from studies on university internationalization. The prevailing approach on the IoC tends to consider it as the culmination -the point of arrival– of a process carried out by an institution. Throughout this work we suggest that there are alternative perspectives on the IoC, not taken into consideration by the dominant approach. The first one is the influence of disciplines and disciplinary
communities in internationalizing the curriculum. The second one deals with the role of discussions on multiculturalism and globalization in the rhetoric and decisions on curricular matters in US higher education. Finally, the paper describes and assesses the impact of the Bologna Process on the IoC,in which the trend towards internationalization does not derive from disciplinary or cultural rationales, but come from a supranational policy initiative