With international business growing a greater need for educating students to compete on international markets is important. Subtle differences exist between national and international education. The type of education will determine the direction the educational process takes. A paper by Nisbet (2014) delves into defining these two concepts to better understand how the different focuses impact the perspective of graduates.
National education emphasis national curriculum while international education may follow national curriculum but focuses learning on international markets. Students in national programs seek to understand the most important concepts in their field while international education puts that information into a global perspective.
There are some important differences in terms of histories. Education accompanies stories and definitions that develop a perspective. National education places a greater emphasis on teaching national values while global education focuses more on international values required for working in international markets.
National education is successful in places like China that are trying to hold together people from different geographies, cultures and identities. It is an educational plan that supports national identity and national growth. We see examples of this with high levels of nationalist business decisions and paternalistic governmental styles.
National and global education often exist within the same university and throughout a country. National education is what we see in public education that attempts to socialize and educate societal members for productive work based in Industrial Age thinking. Global education would naturally seek to socialize to the standards of international organizations.
Global education requires students to think beyond their local towns and nations to see how business is conducted on international markets. Ideas such as international law, business, accounting, economics, communication, and cultural awareness are common in international business schools. Graduates would be more focused on the international arena and plan on working in those fields.
Nisbet, I. (2014) International education and national education – can they co-exist? International Schools Journal, XXXIII, (2)