Super-diversity and Cultural Mobility in European Higher Education: A Case Study in Cultural History

Abstract

The present article shows how the changing societal context in Europe is imposing a reshaping of the internationalisation of higher education. It argues that internationalisation has mainly focused on intensifying the mobility of students and staff, but has neglected the drastic change in European society brought about by “super-diversity” (Vertovec, “Super-diversity” and Super-diversity), that “diversification of diversity” which, over a couple of decades, has transformed the population of Europe into a highly complex mixture of people from different places, with different languages, religions and cultures. The consequence of this sudden change is that there is now an urgent need to “move beyond mobility” and to reshape internationalisation through “cultural mobility” (Greenblatt) in course content and learning styles. The second part of this article elaborates on a proposal for concrete course content in line with Greenblatt’s manifest to modify conventional ways of thinking about mobility. Taking account of “cultural mobility”, the proposed course in the Cultural History of the Arts tries to create a balance between cultural persistence and cultural change by introducing international content and interculturalism. The case study thereby highlights possible directions for future internationalised course development.