Home and Away: A Case Study Analysis of a Learning and Teaching Programme Supporting the Development of a ‘Transformative’ Partnership with a Private HEI in Sri Lanka

Abstract

Transnational arrangements between different types of higher education institutions provide an interesting example of partnership working, being business arrangements with learning as a core organising principle. Successful partnerships both learn and work together and can become mutually transformative, sources of growth for the individuals and institutions involved. Individual projects early in the lifecycle of a partnership can support this development, enabling both organisations to take responsibility for relationship building and the demonstration of trust. This approach has the advantage that it takes the focus away from the home/away dichotomy often apparent in discussions of transnational partnership working and instead attention turns to the development of a new hybrid organisation, a ‘third space’ characterised by reciprocity, commitment, effective communication, competence and trust.

This chapter provides a case study analysis of a learning and teaching programme which provided the opportunity for a partnership between a London-based university and a private provider in Sri Lanka to have transformational potential. It uses multiple sources of data to identify practical characteristics associated with developing a culture of transformative partnership working which includes the experiences of the ‘boundary spanner’ responsible for its development and leadership.

Citation

Messenger, H., Warren, D. and Bloisi, W. (2016), "Home and Away: A Case Study Analysis of a Learning and Teaching Programme Supporting the Development of a ‘Transformative’ Partnership with a Private HEI in Sri Lanka", University Partnerships for Academic Programs and Professional Development (Innovations in Higher Education Teaching and Learning, Vol. 7), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 141-157. https://doi.org/10.1108/S2055-364120160000007018