Australian ELT providers have been partnering with offshore providers for decades. Transnational partnerships are a sustainable way for Australian providers to grow and compete internationally as well as develop greater understanding of the cultural contexts of their international partners.
Transnational arrangements between Australian and offshore providers include delivering programs through distance learning modes, teacher and/or student exchanges and offshore campuses. NEAS has recently added a new area, ‘Transnational Delivery‘ to the NEAS Quality Assurance Framework.
Offering international students a transnational experience in their home countries provides many benefits. It’s a cost-effective way for students to build their English language competencies whilst being able to stay close to their families and support networks. Students also become accustomed to the teaching and learning culture delivered by the pathway institution assisting them adapt to both the target language and teaching methodologies.
NEAS endorsed provider, UTS College has enjoyed a successful history of transnational partnerships with a number of off-shore providers. According to their ELT Director of Studies, Jason West, a key benefit of these partnerships is the internationalisation of the college’s curriculum.
“When we are refreshing our curriculum, we can seek input from our partners to ensure that the content is more relevant for cohorts of students from different cultural backgrounds, We’ve listened to our partners to build in materials that listen to and respond to the voices of our multi-cultural and multi-lingual students.”
