Dr. Annette Bamberger Wins 2025 Best Article Award in Higher Education from the Comparative and International Education Society CIES

Abstract:

The study reviews the literature on internationalization in higher education, distinguishing between mainstream and radical approaches within critical scholarship. It posits that the mainstream approach continues to guide internationalization toward socially progressive and equitable goals, although growing concerns have emerged regarding its commercialization. The focus then shifts to the postcolonial approach, which is identified as having inherent limitations due to its foundation in a "modern global/colonial imaginary"—a perspective rooted in an outdated bipolar or unipolar view of geopolitics rather than a multipolar one. In analyzing higher education, the postcolonial perspective is seen as failing to acknowledge contemporary forms of colonialism and, unlike other strands of critical scholarship, as overlooking the evolving nature of geopolitics and the diverse forms and sites of colonial power. As a result, the postcolonial approach is characterized as myopic, West-centric, selectively critical, and dismissive of local agency. Furthermore, it is found inadequate in explaining the motivations behind internationalization across varied global contexts. The study concludes by advocating for the use of multiple critical perspectives to develop a more nuanced and comprehensive understanding of internationalization on a global scale.