The underlying concern in this thesis is with the real opportunities that people have to pursue beings and doings that they have reason to value. This concern is explored through the development of four themes, namely ‘shaping aspirations’, ‘capabilities of academic researchers’, ‘qualities of play’, and ‘university internationalisation’. These themes emerged during my journey of academic inquiry, which included empirical research conducted in two distinct settings.

Teachers working in international schools can be understood as gearing a student’s disposition towards the ability and preparedness to handle and value differences and diversity. The process of internationalisation of education implies a process of change pertaining to the mission, vision and delivery of education. In an effort to cope with a number of challenges from within and outside of the Netherlands, a Dutch School Group in Amsterdam embarked on a process of change by adopting an international dimension to the students’ experience. Instead of these schools becoming more similar to each other, i.e. converging towards an internationalising ‘master-viewpoint’, the schools’ alignment under pressure showed a process of ‘anisomorphism’: their education’s primary function, approach, tasks, role and objectives for society were changing into different internationalising directions. However, the pragmatic expectations and actions, particularly of the parents and the students, were creating new boundaries and rationales for the schools as bargaining zones. The ‘shifting borders’ between the schools were becoming more connected with a growing international focus, yet had different pragmatic and ideological implications for each of them. The result was that these borders became permeable, a nominal erosion of differences between the ‘international’ school selectively catering for children of internationally mobile families and the other schools catering for all children in the Netherlands. ‘International schools’ became places where students were trained to engage with difference and diversity and where the students had not necessarily been crossing geographical borders. This raises the issue of the role of education in a multicultural and globalising society, as –in this case- an increase in institutional diversity within the specific Dutch national context, and an increased uncertainty about the multiple aims of education, stretched the educational as well as social boundaries which constrain the futures for which students are being prepared.

The present inquiry sets out to explore the self as an expatriate eacher working in international schools, through the lens of ositioning. To better understand complex phenomena such as the self and its episodic encounters in the social arena, this study uses positioning theory as an analytical framework. The self is followed as it moves from its private sphere to the social milieu where it takes on its multiplicity, as a social being. The dynamics of positioning is illustrated by the mutually determined triad. Hence, the self is looked at in one of its main social engagements: the recruitment where the social episode is mutually framed by the storylines of the participants, the social force and the position taken on. Illustrations are given to exemplify and extend the use of positioning theory in an international school context. The implications brought up by the results of the present inquiry are applicable not only to the expatriate teacher but also to the wider expatriate community.

Existing research shows the importance of teacher professional development and that decisions regarding professional development in schools lie with administrators. However, while studies have been conducted on the need for administrators fostering professional development in schools in the USA, there appears to be limited research on administrator views of professional development in international school environments. The purpose of this study was to consider views of administrators in international schools regarding professional development activities. Using a mixed methods sequential explanatory design, a questionnaire followed by in-depth interviews, data was collected from a convenience and purposive sample of administrators from international schools in Europe, Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Middle East so as to explore and provide answers to the main research question: “What are the views of administrators on how professional development is planned, implemented, evaluated and resourced in international schools?” Findings from quantitative data indicated strong agreement that administrators should work collaboratively with teachers to determine the professional development needs of the school and that teachers should be involved in assessing professional development effectiveness. Analysis of qualitative data indicated the following themes: teachers are sent to conferences/workshops for professional development or content experts are brought to the school; decisions about professional development should align with school goals; professional development needs should be determined by teachers and administrators collaboratively; there are no significant professional development evaluation processes in place; 2% of the budget is standard allocation in schools for professional development and school boards approve the budget while administrators decide on allocation. By addressing the study’s purpose, this research seeks to contribute to the larger conversation on how administrator views on professional development in international schools can add knowledge to the limited research on effective avenues to professional development in the international school context.

Cette recherche analyse la dimension sociale de la mobilité pour études des Maliens en France et au Maroc. Face à un système d'enseignement supérieur à l'offre pédagogique et aux capacités d'accueil limitées, nombre d'étudiants maliens voient en la mobilité une échappatoire. En outre, ceux qui partent perpétuent une pratique de formation à l'étranger consubstantielle à la formation des élites maliennes au XXe siècle. Des acteurs institutionnels facilitent la mobilité étudiante. L'État, d'une part, à travers les bourses de mérite qu'il met en place, et par les nouveaux établissements privés, au Maroc notamment, qui adaptent leur offre de formation à la demande provenant des pays d'Afrique subsaharienne. Nous questionnons la manière dont la mobilité géographique participe d'une stratégie de mobilité sociale, puis démontrons comment les inégalités du champ scolaire malien, fondées sur les disparités de capitaux économique, culturel et social, façonnent les inégalités d'accès à la mobilité. Toutefois, ces dernières sont contournées par la mobilisation des « liens faibles », dont la parenté élargie, par les étudiants socialement défavorisés. Le rôle de ces réseaux apparaît crucial dans la mobilité pour études, comme l'attestent les parcours des étudiants défavorisés dont la réussite professionnelle et sociale est souvent comparable à celle des étudiants issus des élites politiques, économiques et religieuses. Les trajectoires d'insertion professionnelle des diplômés maliens de France et du Maroc mettent enfin en évidence le rôle clé de la mobilité internationale pour études supérieures, en complément de la scolarité au Mali : gage d'un accès au statut d'élite, au Mali, pour le plus grand nombre, une telle mobilité internationale apparaît comme un facteur de transformation des hiérarchies sociales. / This PhD research analyzes the social dimension of Malian students' mobility in French and Moroccan higher education. Confronted with a higher education system with limited capacity, many Malian students perceive mobility as a loophole. These students going abroad perpetuate a tradition of mobility consubstantial with the training of Malian elites in the twentieth century. This mobility is encouraged by the state through cooperation exchanges, as well as private educational institutions particularly in Morocco, that adapt their educational options and services to the demands of sub-Saharan countries. We interrogate how geographical mobility is part of a social mobility strategy and then demonstrate how inequalities in the Malian school system, based on disparities in economic, cultural and social capital, shape inequalities in access to mobility. However, these inequalities are overcome by the mobilization of "weak ties", including extended kinship, by socially disadvantaged students. Social capital plays a crucial role in achieving success through mobility, where students from disadvantaged families succeed as much as those from elite families with politico-economic and religious clout. The career paths of Malian graduates from France and Morocco finally highlight the key role of international mobility for higher education, in addition to schooling in Mali: a guarantee of access to elite status in Mali, for the greater number. Consequently, international mobility appears as a factor in the transformation of social hierarchies.

Η παρούσα διατριβή διερευνά τα καινοτόμα στοιχεία και τις προβληματικές παραμέτρους των εταιρικών σχολικών συμπράξεων, με βάση τη συμμετοχή δύο ελληνικών σχολείων σε ευρωπαϊκή σχολική σύμπραξη (Comenius 1). Στη συνέχεια, προχωρά σε σύγκριση των δύο προγραμμάτων σε σχέση με τα κριτήρια αξιολόγησης που προσδιορίστηκαν πριν την έναρξη της έρευνας. Για το σκοπό αυτό, δόθηκαν συνεντεύξεις από τους εμπλεκόμενους εκπαιδευτικούς και απαντήθηκαν ερωτηματολόγια από τους συμμετέχοντες μαθητές και τους γονείς τους. Οι μεν εκπαιδευτικοί αναφέρθηκαν σε ζητήματα όπως η ιστορία και οι στόχοι των σχολικών συμπράξεων, τα οφέλη που αποκόμισαν μαθητές και εκπαιδευτικοί, τα προϊόντα που παρήχθησαν, οι μεθοδολογικές παράμετροι που πλαισίωσαν τα εν λόγω σχέδια, η διαχείριση των συμπράξεων, η αξιολόγηση και διάδοση των σχεδίων καθώς και το μέλλον παρόμοιων πρωτοβουλιών. Οι δε μαθητές ρωτήθηκαν για τους στόχους του προγράμματος, τα οφέλη που αποκόμισαν από τη συμμετοχή τους σε αυτό, τις μεθοδολογικές παραμέτρους που συνόδευσαν την εφαρμογή των σχεδίων, ενώ προέβησαν και σε αξιολογικές κρίσεις για το περιεχόμενο και τις δραστηριότητες των εν λόγω προγραμμάτων. Οι γονείς των εμπλεκόμενων μαθητών έκαναν αναφορά στους στόχους των προγραμμάτων, τα οφέλη που αποκόμισαν τα παιδιά τους από τις συμπράξεις και το βαθμό συμμετοχής των παιδιών τους και των ιδίων στα εν λόγω προγράμματα. Σε αυτό το πλαίσιο, επιχειρήθηκε σύνθεση των αποτελεσμάτων των ποιοτικών και ποσοτικών προσεγγίσεων με τη βοήθεια της τριγωνοποίησης (εκπαιδευτικοί, μαθητές, γονείς) και για τα δύο προγράμματα, και αξιολογήθηκαν τα αποτελέσματα της έρευνας σε σχέση με τα ερευνητικά ερωτήματα. Οι ενδιαφερόμενοι συμφώνησαν σε αρκετά ζητήματα, ενώ δεν έλειψαν και οι διαφορετικές εκτιμήσεις για το περιεχόμενο και τις δραστηριότητες των εν λόγω συμπράξεων. Αν και, όπως διαπιστώθηκε, οι σχολικές συμπράξεις συνιστούν φορέα αλλαγής στο σύγχρονο σχολείο, δεν έχουν διερευνηθεί από το αρμόδιο υπουργείο οι δυνατότητες για την ενσωμάτωση των καινοτόμων στοιχείων τους στην επίσημη εκπαίδευση. Ωστόσο, είναι σαφές πως η φιλοσοφία των σχολικών συμπράξεων και των υπόλοιπων προαιρετικών προγραμμάτων βρίσκεται στη σωστή κατεύθυνση. Αυτό που πρέπει να ληφθεί υπόψη είναι το θέμα της διαχείρισης της εκπαιδευτικής αλλαγής που προτείνεται μέσω των σχολικών συμπράξεων, της δημιουργίας δομών παρακολούθησης και αξιοποίησης των δεδομένων, της συνεργασίας όλων των φορέων που εμπλέκονται στην εκπαιδευτική διαδικασία, της επιμόρφωσης των εκπαιδευτικών και της συνεπούς υποστήριξης του εγχειρήματος. / The present thesis investigates the innovative elements and the problematic parameters of school partnerships, on the basis of the participation of two Greek schools in a European school partnership (Comenius 1). Then, it continues with the comparison of two programmes in relation to the evaluation criteria determined before the beginning of the research. To this end, involved teachers were interviewed and questionnaires were answered by the involved students and their parents. The teachers referred to subjects such as the history and the objectives of school partnerships, the profits acquired by students and teachers, the products, the methodological parameters, the management of the partnerships, the evaluation and distribution of the programmes as well as the future of similar initiatives. The students were asked about the objectives of the programmes, the profits they acquired through their participation, the methodological parameters of the programmes, while they also proceeded to the evaluation of the content and the activities of the programmes in question. The parents of the involved students referred to the objectives of the programmes, the profits their children acquired through the partnerships and the degree of their own participation and their children’ s participation in the programmes in question. In this framework, what was attempted, was a composition of the results of the qualitative and quantitative approaches in the framework of triangulation (teachers, students, parents) for both the programmes, and the results of the research were evaluated in relation to the inquiring questions. The participants agreed about various subjects, while there were some different opinions about the content and the activities of the partnerships in question. Although, as it was realised, school partnerships constitute an institution of change in modern schools, the possibilities for the incorporation of their innovative elements in formal education have not been investigated by the Ministry of Education. However, it is a fact that the philosophy of school partnerships and other optional programmes is in the right direction. What should be taken into consideration, is the subject of the management of the educational change proposed through school partnerships, the formation of structures for follow-up and exploitation of data, the collaboration of all institutions involved in the educational process, the teachers’ training and the support of the effort.