Global Competence of Teachers in Higher Education Institutions. A Case Study of Novia UAS

Abstract

In university education it is important to ensure that students possess not only professional skills but also global competence to address challenges described in the UN’s 2030 agenda. This is relevant for higher education institutions in Finland. Global competence is related to internationalization of higher education. Based on a Finnish Ministry of Education report on global competence, the Finnish higher education should support conditions to work in international environment and actively use opportunities for Internationalization. The purpose of this paper is to provide information on what global competence means and how teaching skills in global competence can be developed. The focus is on conditions, materials and working methods to support the teaching staff’s competence development. The findings suggest that for Novia to develop the teachers’ global competence, a new way of working should be developed where native students and exchange students meet regularly in multicultural groups during a joint academic semester given entirely in English. Furthermore, teacher training must be arranged. Mentorship and access to a toolbox of knowledge and best practice of global competence could facilitate teachers in their development. This paper is drawn upon findings of a small-scale research of teaching staff of Novia University of Applied Sciences. Qualitative research in this study is based on the results of working groups at Novia and by interviewing the teachers who have experience in teaching multi-cultural students.