Interfaculty collaboration for improving international mobility experiences: sustaining a dialogue across difference

Abstract

Higher education institutions promote interfaculty collaborations in research and education projects, but few studies have examined the challenges of such collaborations. This case study investigates how a heterogeneous interfaculty group worked in a community of practice for two years curating an educational e-resource to support the professional learning of academic leaders of student international mobility experiences in their university. Focusing on the journey of working within this community of practice rather than the destination (the e-resource they produced), the study explores how the different members of the group negotiated the tensions and uncertainty associated with an interdisciplinary collaboration. Data in the form of reflexive 'critical incident' narratives written by all seven authors reveal the challenges of sustaining a 'dialogue across difference' in this cross-disciplinary collaboration. The study supports existing research that argues interfaculty collaborations are potentially rich and generative, but shows why success should not be taken for granted.

The genesis, development and implementation of an interdisciplinary university Cross-School Research Group

“…The first implication is that the cultivation of an ecology of interdisciplinary collaboration requires constant, and renewal of, effort in the face of a dominant traditional disciplinary-based research culture. As Fitzgerald et al note, an enabling and productive relationship “is challenging to develop, fragile to maintain and requires constant monitoring and nurturing” ( 2020 , p. 6). For us, this points to future research activities that include questions and insights into the ways in which the research teams within this group were generated; how the academic identity of the individual researcher/s developed and the ways in which tensions were addressed.…”

“…Often disciplinary and epistemological differences, combined with habitual ways of working in universities, reinforce traditional approaches to research (Cummings & Kiesler, 2008 ; Fitzgerald et al, 2020 ). As a result, assumptions about learning, research paradigms and methods become entrenched, with lived experiences often reinforcing personal and collective beliefs and practices in academia (van Manen, 1997 ).…”

“…This article describes and analyses the establishment of the cross-school research group (CSRG) and as such has the purpose of providing insights into the process and the lived experiences—specifically, the journey of setting up and launching this group (Fitzgerald et al, 2020 ). Thus, the key research question that underpins this research is: What are the aspirations and expectations of staff involved in the interdisciplinary cross-school group, and how can they be supported?…”

Diverse perspectives and lived experiences of educational work

“…The initial catalyst for this Special Issue about interdisciplinary educational work was the shared experience of the three guest editors working in an interdisciplinary team for an interfaculty grant at Monash University (Fitzgerald et al, 2020 ). Before this grant, we had also collaborated on several projects and publications that involved engaging with others across discipline, social and cultural contexts (e.g.…”

“…My first introduction to the construct of ‘educational work’ was through an interfaculty project that I participated in with Judy and Graham over a couple of years before subsequently engaging in some research around that shared interdisciplinary experience (see Fitzgerald et al, 2020 ). This introduction ended up being an ‘ah-ha’ moment in my professional life.…”