No human mobility: how is knowledge mobile in a context of internationalisation at a distance? a case study

The internationalisation of higher education has been challenged by the significant decline in international student mobility caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The emergence of internationalisation at a distance before COVID-19 paved a new avenue for the internationalisation of higher education, with the distinctive feature of knowledge mobility without human mobility. However, few studies have explored knowledge mobility in an internationalisation at a distance context. The ethnographic case study identifies three knowledge mobility channels–Information and Communication Technology (ICT), curriculum and virtual community of practice–and argues that the knowledge creation model SECI (Socialisation, Externalisation, Combination, and Internalisation) is inapplicable in the internationalisation at a distance context. Additionally, the absence of immersion in face-to-face interaction hinders internationalisation at a distance students’ identity construction, placing them at a disadvantage in acquiring tacit knowledge. The significance of cultural, linguistic and pedagogical contextualisation in the context is also emphasised.