Lecturers' experiences of participating in an international exchange.
Globalization is a trend in higher education and is judged to be essential to quality; however, there is a lack of publications on the outcome of lecturers' exchange. The aim of this study was to describe lecturers' experiences of participating in an international exchange. Twenty-six lecturers who had taken part in an exchange were invited to participate through writing a narrative. Data was analyzed with a qualitative method, and five categories emerged: Preparation and timing, challenges in teaching, demanding but worthwhile, broadening perspective and expanding network. The overall result showed that participating lecturers judged their international exchange to be a positive experience that had resulted in personal as well as professional development. However, a successful exchange requires planning, support and an open mind from all involved lecturers and institutions.
Department of Nursing Science, School of Health Sciences, Jönköping University, Sweden. Karin.Enskar@hhj.hj.se
Karin
K
Enskär
Inez
I
Johansson
Gunilla
G
Ljusegren
Ingrid
I
Widäng
D000328:Adult; D000349:Africa; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D004506:Education, Nursing / Q000458:organization & administration*; D005181:Faculty, Nursing / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007393:International Educational Exchange; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D036301:Qualitative Research; D013548:Sweden