UniSA's Associate Professor Betty Leask has just been awarded $350,000 to undertake research and activities which support and promote excellence in teaching in Australian higher education institutions.

The prestigious National Teaching Fellowship, one of only three awarded by the Australian Learning and Teaching Council, will fund an ongoing program centred on internationalisation of the curriculum and develop both knowledge and practice in this area.

Prof Leask says that as universities endeavour to educate graduates who genuinely have the capacity to work globally, they need to more clearly define how best to do that within different contexts and settings.

"It is easy to talk about internationalisation, but when you look below the surface of the rhetoric, it's clear that we need to know much more about what internationalisation means to academic staff in different disciplines so that we can effectively measure our success in this area," she says.

"I want to use this funding to build capacity across institutions and discipline groups and to develop a framework, guidelines and principles for successful internationalisation of the curriculum that will have long-term value for institutions and academic staff and improve the learning outcomes of all students."

Prof Leask says the Fellowship activities will be supported by national and international networks to strengthen and broaden case studies and ensure that the framework is widely and critically evaluated prior to its release.

She says the Fellowship will deliver a practical "how to" guide for academic staff who are working to internationalise their curricula and apply changes within their discipline and institution.

UniSA Vice Chancellor Professor Peter Høj says he is delighted that the project will be led by such a valued member of the University's academic leadership team.

"Betty is a leader in her field and has led a number of initiatives to improve teaching and learning across the University, many of them focussed on the internationalisation of both the formal and the informal curriculum." Prof Høj said.

"Internationalisation is a priority area at UniSA and we seek to foster intercultural and global relationships and perspectives in all of our activities in a coordinated way.

"The focus of the National Fellowship activities on the development of a framework that connects the internationalisation of teaching and learning with institutional policy and vision will be of immediate and enduring value to our institution and other Australian educational institutions."




Source: University Of South Australia http://www.unisa.edu.au/news/2010/120510.asp