Crossing International Boundaries through Doctoral Partnerships: Learnings from a Chinese-Australian Forum

Flynn, Matthew; Carter, Merilyn G.; Alford, Jennifer; Hughes, Hilary; Fox, Jillian L.; Duke, Jennifer

doi:10.28945/2312

Cited by 4 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 23 publications

(25 reference statements)

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“…It was already daunting for exchange participants to get to know new people in these social situations, the additional language barrier simply could not be ignored. This concern was also reported in a recent study by Flynn et al (2015) about crossing international boundaries through a doctoral research forum partnership between an Australian university and a mainland Chinese university.…”

Section: Graduate Student Cohort and The International Exchange Programsupporting

confidence: 54%

“…Although recent research on student experience has focused on students' coping mechanisms when faced with hardship and isolation (Byers et al, 2014;Johnstone & Marcucci, 2010;Pash, 2014;Spaulding & Rockinson-Szapkiw, 2012), few studies have examined cross border higher education partnerships (Flynn et al, 2015;Knobel, Simoes, & de Brito Cruz, 2013;Mu et al, 2016). International students encountered additional challenges in their socialization into foreign settings and experienced identity transformation (Bøgelund & de Graaff, 2015;Phelps, 2016).…”

Section: Challenges Experiencedmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Exploring Mature-Aged Students’ Motives for Doctoral Study and their Challenges: A Cross Border Research Collaboration

Fung

Southcott

Siu

2017

IJDS

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Aim/Purpose: It aimed at investigating the motives and challenges of 15 mature-aged doctoral students at two education faculties in Australian and Asian contexts. Background: This cross-border research collaboration investigated the first international higher-research forum between two education faculties in Hong Kong and Australia. Methodology: Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) was used to explore partic-ipants’ self-reported experiences concerning the motivations and challeng-es of 15 mature-aged doctoral students. Contribution: The findings have important implications for global doctoral program de-velopment, international exchange forum organizations, intercultural capaci-ty building, academic enhancement and cross-border research collabora-tion. Findings: From interview data four overarching themes emerged: Taking calculated risks, Determination to succeed, Financial stress, and Balancing life and research. Recommendations for Practitioners: Recommendations include mentoring schemes, greater support for isolated students, and more opportunities for students to complete their PhD by publication. Recommendation for Researchers: More research is needed to investigate mature-aged students’ motives for embarking on study in diverse cultural contexts among different ethnic groups. Impact on Society: This study recognized the merits and potentials of mature students whose research contributes to their societies. Future Research: Future research directions include using multiple case study design, thus exploring diverse aspects of the existing sample in greater depth, as well as tapping into a new sample of students at risk of attrition at both faculties.

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Section: Graduate Student Cohort and The International Exchange Programsupporting

confidence: 54%

Section: Challenges Experiencedmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring Mature-Aged Students’ Motives for Doctoral Study and their Challenges: A Cross Border Research Collaboration

Fung

Southcott

Siu

2017

IJDS

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“…Researchers have shown that it is possible to increase doctoral students' cultural competence through their university program (see Boyce, 2012;Flynn et al, 2015;Malakyan, 2019). One such effort proven to be effective is study abroad (see Ballesta & Roller, 2013;Krishnan et al, 2017).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Case Study of Educational Leadership Doctoral Students: Developing Culturally Competent School Leadership Through Study Abroad

Richardson

Carr

Watts

2020

IJDS

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Aim/Purpose: This study focuses on how a short-term international study abroad program to England impacted doctoral students’ cultural competencies. Background: The case study captures the experiences of six school leadership doctoral students who traveled abroad to East London, England. The overarching goal of this experience was to improve their self-efficacy for culturally competent school leadership. Methodology: Through this case study of six doctoral students in an educational leadership doctoral program, the researchers sought to answer the following question: How do knowledge, attitudes, skills, and behaviors around cultural competencies of U.S. school leaders shift because they participated in an international internship? Through pre-post surveys and follow-up interviews, the researchers explored how the international experience impacted cultural competencies. Contribution: The primary goal of this experience was to improve self-efficacy for culturally responsive school leadership. The doctoral students were either aspiring school leaders or were currently serving as a building leader of a P-12 school. It is from these students that we can learn how a short-term international experience might impact school leaders, and in return, the students and staff they serve. This study adds to the limited literature about the benefits of study abroad programs for educational leadership students in doctoral programs. Findings: The doctoral students in this case study gained knowledge and skills because of this study abroad. Knowledge was gained about educational systems and self-awareness. Skills learned included relationship skills, travel skills, and skills related to empowering teachers. Attitudes about diversity shifted to be more encompassing. Further, the behaviors of doctoral students changed because of this trip. The results from the pre-test and post-test on cultural competence indicated a significant improvement in cultural competence for the group. Recommendations for Practitioners: The knowledge, skills, attitudes, and behavioral shifts captured in this study spoke to profound growth around cultural competencies. It is through preparing these doctoral students before the international sojourn, guiding them during the experience, and following up with them upon return that we were able to create a supportive, meaningful, and impactful study abroad experience for future school leaders. Thus, these experiences will likely impact their collective leadership in the future. Recommendation for Researchers: Though research about the benefits of study abroad programs for graduate students is limited, several studies are about the benefits of study abroad and international programs in undergraduate education. There is all but a lack of literature focused on doctoral educational leadership students and study abroad. Nevertheless, for many students who choose to study overseas, it may be the first opportunity they have to explore a new country and to be fully immersed in a culture that is different from their own. Through these experiences, many development opportunities can affect how students view their professional work. Impact on Society: Through exposure to others, by experiencing diverse ways of thinking and doing, and through critical conversation, institutions of higher education can develop school leaders to be culturally competent, culturally responsive, and socially just. As demonstrated in this study, international experiences are one decisive way to start this conversation. Future Research: Research has shown that it is possible to increase students’ cultural competence through study abroad. As such, in the current study, the researchers took a mixed methods approach to understand how cultural competencies around knowledge, skills, attitudes, and behaviors shifted. As a result, we found that each doctoral student increased their cultural awareness in significant ways. Students gained knowledge by comparing the cultures within education systems and gained self-awareness about their own cultural awareness issues. More research needs to be done to better understand the impact of study abroad experiences on graduate students in educational leadership programs. These experiences could be short experiences (i.e., one to two weeks) or longer experiences (i.e., more than two weeks). Further, focusing on developing cultural competency before, during, and after a trip in different educational fields other than educational leadership (e.g., literacy, curriculum & instruction) could have significant school-level effects. Lastly, extending study abroad experiences into locations where English is not the first or primary language could provide opportunities for developing language skills while enhancing patience, cross-cultural communication, and problem-solving skills that could be beneficial personally and professionally.

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“…Despite different foci and hosts, the Workshop commonly comprises social and cultural activities, student presentations, academic capability building, and collaborative writing. Over the years, collaborative writing has been a critical learning moment for reflection on Workshop activities and experience (Fedoruk et al, 2018; Flynn et al, 2015; Li, Fox, & Davis, 2013; Mu et al, 2016; Mu et al, 2019; Mu et al, 2013; Nelson et al, 2017). The pedagogic rationale is that scholarly writing, whether for the thesis (Kamler, 2006), toward publication (Cotterall, 2015), or within a peer group (Fotovatian, 2012), constitutes an intense site of identity work as doctoral students join academic conversations, integrate into academic communities, make contributions to knowledge, and claim the authority of their discipline.…”

Section: The Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

Negotiating Scholarly Identity Through an International Doctoral Workshop: A Cosmopolitan Approach to Doctoral Education

Zhang

Cheng

et al. 2018

Journal of Studies in International Education

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Current trends in the internationalization of doctoral programs require new understandings of the formation of scholarly identity. This study explores the utility of a cosmopolitan perspective. It reports on identity projects sparked by Chinese students’ participation in a doctoral workshop in Australia; it highlights the realization, retrieval, repositioning, and reshaping of the students’ scholarly selves. This identity work mirrors the complexities induced by the internationalization of doctoral pedagogies. We present the students’ identity work here to illuminate extant practice and further study of internationalized doctoral education.

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Crossing International Boundaries through Doctoral Partnerships: Learnings from a Chinese-Australian Forum

Cited by 4 publications

References 23 publications

Exploring Mature-Aged Students’ Motives for Doctoral Study and their Challenges: A Cross Border Research Collaboration

Exploring Mature-Aged Students’ Motives for Doctoral Study and their Challenges: A Cross Border Research Collaboration

A Case Study of Educational Leadership Doctoral Students: Developing Culturally Competent School Leadership Through Study Abroad

Negotiating Scholarly Identity Through an International Doctoral Workshop: A Cosmopolitan Approach to Doctoral Education

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