Can we transcend the 'nation-state' ontology in 'Internationalization'? Towards Inter-being
Channel: Critical Internationalization Studies Network
Date: 2022-02-14

Dr. Riyad A. Shahjahan - Can we transcend the 'nation-state' ontology in 'Internationalization'? Towards Inter-being

This lecture is part of the Critical Internationalization Studies Masterclass. To enroll for free, or learn more about it, please go to https://criticalinternationalization.thinkific.com/

About this Lecture:

At the heart of “internationalization” discourse and practice is the “nation-state” category and its associated ontology (ways of knowing/being). This presentation seeks to challenge the nation-state ontology which necessitates challenging the inherent logic of “internationalization” itself pervading global higher education policy and practices. “Internationalization” signifies the “in-between” of multiple nation-states and continues to perpetuate an anthropocentric ‘worldsense’ marked by national containers. In other words, without the “nation-state” category, to begin with, would the discourse or practice of “internationalization of HE” exist? This presentation begins with a genealogy of the word “international,” its inherent assumptions, and why it’s important to interrogate the role of methodological nationalism (MN) in the global HE field. It next presents the ways in which the nation-state as a category (and an entity) comes to being in HE research, policies, and practices. Finally, it presents the complexities, paradoxes, and consequences of such an ontology on research, practice, and more importantly, being. It suggests pursuing inter-being as alternatives to promoting planetary consciousness, rather than continuing to focus on trans/national problems.

About the Speaker:

Dr. Riyad A. Shahjahan is an associate professor and program coordinator for the online master`s program of Higher, Adult, and Lifelong Education (HALE) at Michigan State University. He is also a core faculty member of Muslim Studies, Chicano/Latino Studies, Asian Studies, and Center for Advanced Study of International Development. His areas of research interests are in globalization of higher education policy, temporality and embodiment in higher education, cultural studies, and de/anti/postcolonial theory. He has been conducting both empirical and theoretical work, focusing on a) the role of transnational actors/processes (international organizations, global rankings, media) in globalizing higher education policy; and b) rethinking the traditional objects of study/practice in higher education (e.g. temporality, pedagogy, and/or globalization) from global and non-western critical indigenous perspectives.

Suggested Readings

Alexander, M. J. (2006). Pedagogies of crossing. Duke University Press.

Shahjahan, R.A. & Kezar, A. (2013). Beyond the “national container”: Addressing methodological nationalism in higher education research. Educational Researcher, 42(1), 20-29. https://doi.org/10.3102/0013189X12463050

Shahjahan, R.A., Blanco-Ramirez, G, & Andreotti, V. (2017). Attempting to imagine the unimaginable: A decolonial reading of global university rankings (GURs). Comparative Education Review 61(S1), S51-S73. https://doi.org/10.1086/690457

Shahjahan, R.A. (2019) From ‘Geopolitics of Being’ towards Inter-being: Envisioning the ‘in/visibles’ in the globalization of higher education. Youth and Globalization, 1, 282-306. https://brill.com/view/journals/yogo/1/2/article-p282_282.xml

Shahjahan, R.A. & Edwards, K. (2021) Whiteness as futurity and globalization of higher education. Higher Education https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10734-021-00702-x

Shahjahan, R.A. & Grimm, A. (in press) Bringing the “nation-state” to being: Affect, methodological nationalism and globalization of HE. Globalisation, Societies and Education.

This masterclass is completely free. However, if you appreciate this resource and have the means to give back, then we encourage you to contribute to an emergency fund that will go toward supporting some of the many Indigenous communities featured in the second series of videos. These communities take a very different approach to international education than many of us are used to, and in doing so they raise questions that are extremely important for the sake of everybody’s future. You can also join and support the Last Warning campaign, of which many Indigenous communities featured in the second series of videos are a part. This campaign seeks to educate people about the importance of centering Indigenous peoples’ rights in the struggle for climate justice. This campaign takes a very different approach to international education than many of us are used to, but it raises questions that are extremely important for the sake of everybody’s future. 

Emergency Fund: https://www.gofundme.com/f/south-amer... 
Last Warning Campaign: https://lastwarning.org/ 
Critical Internationalization Studies Network: https://criticalinternationalization.... 

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