Transitioning 'In-Between'

Kun Dai, Ph.D., is Assistant Professor at the Department of Educational Administration and Policy, the Chinese University of Hong Kong. He has published several journal articles and book chapters in relation to transnational higher education, student mobility, and intercultural learning.

"There is an acute dearth of literature in international higher education on transnational programmes that do not involve the bodily mobility of students. This book provides an original and insightful analysis of the ways in which Chinese students negotiate transnational articulation programmes, and the extent to which such programmes have the potential to promote intercultural learning."– Fazal Rizvi, Professor in Global Studies in Education, The University of Melbourne“This timely volum reminds us of what scientists refer to as ‘the knowledge illusion’ in transnational higher education: We tend to believe we know more than we do. In this book, Dr Dai moves beyond appropriation of cultural resources to unravel the complexities of learning in modern transnational higher education programmes. Seeing intercultural learning as boundary crossing, he highlights the intricacies of the in-between spaces of students as agents of their life-changing experiences.”– Rui Yang, Professor and Associate Dean for Research, Faculty of Education, University of Hong Kong"The world is facing unprecedented health crisis with the spread of COVID-19 across different corners of the globe. Well before the present global health crisis, growing debates have emerged to critically examine the future of internationalization of education, especially when people begin to question the value and benefits that international education brings. The COVID-19 pandemic again raises the issues of the future of international higher education. Would the COVID-19 adversely international education and student mobility? This book by Dr Kun Dai has chosen very important research problem, connecting the wider international research community to critically reflect the futures of internationalization and transnationalization of higher education. The present volume provides critical review, rich empirical analysis and relevant theoretical debates on internationalization and higher education. This volume is highly relevant to academics, researchers, policy makers, and postgraduate students in higher education."– Ko Ho Mok, Lam Man Tsan Chair Professor of Comparative Policy, Vice President, Lingnan University, Hong Kong"Articulation programs are a form of transnational education that have been largely underexplored, so it is timely that Kun Dai provides us with this highly engaging and thought-provoking book. Examining the attitudes, perceptions and experiences of Chinese students who study on a range of Chinese-Australian articulation programs, Dai shines a light on how students, as ‘in-betweeners’, may experience intercultural learning and a sense of belonging with their home and host cultures. It is recognized that studying in two education systems may present students with both benefits and challenges. Dai calls upon his own experiences as a former articulation program student and expands this through the rich voices of the study’s interviewees, to candidly discuss and explain the positionality of those who fall ‘in-between’. This book offers valuable insights to both researchers and practitioners and may be useful for educators to consider in order to improve relevant programs and classroom practice."– Stephen Wilkins, Professor in Strategy and Marketing, The British University in Dubai"Transnational higher education (TNHE) is a significantly understudied area within the social sciences and yet its impact upon education systems is being felt around the world. This excellent book provides a valuable and detailed examination of students’ experiences of transnational higher education programmes in China. We still know very little about how students actually experience TNHE, and this is a significant growth area in China in particular. This book is timely and insightful, and I look forward to using it in my teaching and writing."– Johanna L. Waters, Professor of Human Geography, University College London

• ForewordBob LingardAcknowledgements1 Globalisation, Internationalisation, and Transnational Higher Education1 Globalisation and Internationalisation of Higher Education2 Transnational Higher Education3 Transnational Higher Education in China4 Signifijicance of This Study5 Research Design: A Narrative Inquiry6 Conclusion2 Cross-System Transitions across Cultures, Spaces, and Places1 Transitioning and Learning between Cultures2 Cultural Influences Shaping Chinese Learners3 Critical Understandings of CHC and Chinese Students4 Encountering Shocks with Complicated Transitioning Trajectories5 Moving across Diffferent Spaces and Places as Diaspora6 Conclusion3 Start the TAP Journey with Various Certainties and Uncertainties1 Begin the TAP Journey2 Encountering Certainties and Uncertainties3 Conclusion4 A Tortuous Trajectory of Intercultural Learning1 Positively Deal with Changes in Transition2 Being Stressful in Transition3 Shifting between Multiple Identities as Intercultural Learner4 Dependent and Demotivated Followers in China5 Becoming Independent and Motivated Explorer in Australia6 Shaping Diffferent Senses of Belonging as Transnational Diaspora7 Conclusion5 Mapping a Transitioning In-Between Learning Space1 The Conceptualisation of the Transitioning In-Between Space in TAP2 Conclusion6 A Reflexive Journey as an In-Betweener1 Transitioning between Diffferent Schools as a Domestic Diaspora2 Transitioning from China to Australia as a TAP Student3 Shifting between Chinese and Australian Contexts4 Conclusion7 Critical Reflections: Becoming Compatible1 Dynamically Transitioning between Diffferent Systems2 (Re)shaping Identity, Agency, and Belonging in Cross-System Transition3 The Contour of the In-Between Learning Space in TAP4 Intercultural Adjustment as a Way of Transitioning In-Between5 Implications8 ConclusionReferencesIndex