Dr Jenna Mittelmeier, University of Manchester
Dr Sylvie Lomer, University of Manchester
Dr Josef Ploner, University of Manchester
Dr Heather Cockayne, University of Manchester
Dr Miguel Antonio Lim, University of Manchester

Panel session led by Jenna Mittelmeier
Contributions from Heather Cockayne, Sylvie Lomer, Miguel Lim, and Josef Ploner

Over the last few decades, university staff have seen increasing numbers of international students and growing institutional pressures to ‘internationalise’ teaching provisions and services. However, the practicalities of teaching in intercultural settings can bring up a number of uncertainties and ambiguities, meaning ideas about ‘standard practice’ are challenging, impractical, or even impossible. We argue that one outcome of this is that discourses about international students are often positioned through a deficit lens, assumed to lack certain skills or qualities for success, particularly compared to their home student peers. Scholars on this topic have also questioned the harmful stereotypes and ‘othering’ of international students through assumptions that they should assimilate to academic cultures of their host countries, rather than developing more transformative intercultural pedagogies. This panel session offers critical perspectives on issues of ethics in our work with international students, reflecting on the potential for more meaningful and inclusive approaches in higher education. The panel includes the following presentations:

Jenna Mittelmeier: What is currently unethical about our practices with international students?
Sylvie Lomer: The implicit coloniality of UK HE pedagogy
Josef Ploner: Ethics or etiquette? International students and academic hospitality
Heather Cockayne: Meaning making – Evidence from international students
Miguel Lim: International students and local communities – Building contacts and partnerships