Revised model makes international competences more concrete

The International Competences Model is intended for all sectors of education, from primary school to university. We focus on every form of internationalisation: from a work placement abroad to an international project in one’s own classroom. In the accompanying report (please see the bottom of this page), you can read about the choices we made when developing this new version of the model.

From expectations to research

The original model from 2019 was based primarily on what internationalisation was expected to achieve. “Since then, many studies have been published on what students say they have gained from an international experience, or what researchers have observed in them,” says Nuffic researcher Cintia Granja. “At the same time, internationalisation itself is changing. Consider the growth of virtual forms of it, such as virtual exchange and Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) .” In addition to providing a more robust rationale for the competencies described, they are also defined in more concrete terms in the new model.

The three main categories remain the same as in the original: international orientation, intercultural competences and personal development. These include, for example, being open-minded, adopting different perspectives and independence. “It is an update, not a completely new model,” explains Granja. “In particular, the evidence underpinning each competence is now better substantiated.”

The researchers have merged, reworded or replaced some competencies. Others are new, such as sustainability awareness, critical thinking, problem-solving skills and digital literacy. ‘Taking the initiative’ and ‘assertiveness’ are now also included in the model. “We have strived to make the competencies more understandable and easier to apply,” says Granja.

An experience on its own is not enough

A key finding from the report is that pupils and students do not automatically develop international competences, nor do they do so solely through mobility. “If you send a student abroad, they will obviously not immediately master all these competences,” says Granja.

How exactly the international experience is organised and supervised is essential, she argues. Previous Nuffic research had already shown that reflection and guidance from the teacher have the greatest influence. “Teachers must not only give students access to an experience,” says Granja. “They must also prepare them, guide them and help them reflect on what they are experiencing. That means: determining in advance which competences students will be working on, checking in with them along the way and reviewing the experience together afterwards. The model can serve as a guide in that process.”

From individual activities to learning objectives

Since the model was introduced, it has been implemented at numerous educational institutions. Janneke Dubbelboer is the Internationalisation at Home coordinator at ROC van Amsterdam – Flevoland. She has been working with the model there since 2019. “Our students will soon be working in an intercultural society and in an internationally oriented labour market,” she says. “We need to prepare them properly for this through our education.”

An internship abroad is just one of many routes to achieving this. At ROC van Amsterdam, Dubbelboer estimates that only 4 to 5 per cent of students go abroad. “If we try to achieve this solely through mobility, we will not reach our goal,” says Dubbelboer. As far as she is concerned, international competences should therefore be a standard part of the curriculum.

According to Dubbelboer, the Nuffic model forms the basis for this. “I have practically got it tattooed on my back, I really think it is that influential. This model prevents an activity from becoming a one-off.” She advises the teams she works with to start small when it comes to developing international competences. “It does not all have to be done at once. Make a selection and see which activities you are already doing. Which competences do students develop through them? The following year, you can add a few more competences.”

Dubbelboer is pleased with the refined definitions in the new model. They provide more guidance when she explains the model’s usefulness to teams. One example is the formulation of competences: “The previous version stated ‘has knowledge of communication styles’. That is a very broad description. It has now been changed to: ‘has knowledge of the cultural influence on communication’. That is much more specific and clearer to apply in practice.”

Tailor-made model for first-year students

Talland College, a vocational college with around 17,000 students in North Holland, uses the model in workshops for teachers and in discussions with international partners. It forms the core of the KA2 Erasmus+ partnership project ‘Building Trust in the Future’. Talland College is carrying out this project with partners in Germany and Finland, and it focuses on first-year students going abroad.

“The model is broad in scope, covering everything from primary school to university,” says Alda Bakker-Out, internationalisation coordinator. “First-year students are a very specific target group. That is why we look closely at which competences are important to them and which learning activities go hand in hand with these.”

As part of the collaborative project, one-week trips are organised during which students participate in teaching at a school in one of the partner countries. Students from Germany and Finland are also welcomed at Talland’s own sites. “A trip like this is extremely valuable in many respects,” emphasises Bakker-Out. “To give just one example: many of these students have never been on a plane before. Teachers have noticed that simply by undertaking such a trip, students become more independent afterwards.”

According to the programme manager, reflecting on the competences acquired is essential. “A great deal goes on in a student’s mind during a project like this. I simply think a competence model that can really provide structure and help put everything into context is very important.”

From competence to profession

Nuffic is currently working on a follow-up study. In this study, we are linking the competences from the model to skills in CompetentNL (in Dutch), a national database that describes which skills are associated with which professions. “Take problem-solving ability,” says Cintia Granja. “That competence is included in our model, but it can, of course, be interpreted very broadly. Managers, nurses and social workers all use problem-solving skills. I think it would be helpful if we linked those competences more clearly to specific professions.” Granja and her fellow researchers at Nuffic hope to develop a model that shows even more clearly which professions benefit from international experience and in what ways.