Web-Based Analysis of Internationalization in Israeli Teaching Colleges

Abstract

The international activities of academic institutions dramatically expanded in volume, scope, and complexity during the past three decades. This expansion raised the need to monitor and assess the process at various levels and ensure the effectiveness and efficiency of internationalization. This study has two main aims: first, to present a model large-scale feasibility test for internationalization assessment through institutions’ websites; and second, to assess internationalization using the proposed methodology in teachers’ colleges in Israel. A website-based analysis was combined with in-depth interviews with colleges’ leadership. The use of the proposed methodology is demonstrated through systematic assessment of 21 teachers’ colleges in Israel. The effect of contextual variables such as colleges’ size, location (national periphery vs. center), and educational stream (Jewish-Secular, Palestinian-Arab, and Jewish-Religious) on internationalization expression and intensity are presented and discussed in detail. Internationalization levels were found to positively relate to the size of each institution and its proximity to Israel’s geographic center. In addition, Jewish-Religious and Palestinian-Arab colleges were found to possess lower general levels of internationalization in comparison to the Jewish-Secular stream. This article presents discussion and policy implications of the findings.