A Social Practice Lens on Student Engagement in Sino-Foreign Postgraduate Dual-Degree Programs in China
There has been a growing interest in the dual-degree programs offered jointly by Chinese and overseas universities. However, what needs further exploration is the influence of student engagement in the settings and relations of the ongoing processes. This paper uses social practice theory to analyze this theme in depth. For this purpose, two focus groups of twenty postgraduates and five semi-structured interviews have been conducted. The study shows that the “joint” dimension should be understood as the aspect of relevance of these programs, demonstrating both the compatibility of the programs and the situations. Moreover, such a detailed perspective on the students’ relationship to education gives insight into the solutions adopted by postgraduates in the new learning spaces. Thus, the findings of the study were the foundation for considering methods of creating more inclusive and effective models for international education at the university level, as well as their impact on the wider sector of transnational higher education.
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