Creating a 'world class' programme: reciprocity and constraint in networked global colloboration

Abstract

The article reflects on the construction of a common Master’s programme across four universities located on four continents, in order to explore the role of networks in international educational collaboration. The study draws on the documented processes of the principal members of the programme team. It is presented as a case study of the development of the programme that uses ideas drawn from actor-network theory to draw attention to the conjunction of human and non-human actors that shaped the resulting web-based courses. Constraints arising from major institutional and systemic obstacles were addressed through the effects of the actor-network. The reciprocity of action and de-centring of individual activity made possible through the collaboration enabled the human actors to sustain a level of innovation within their own institutions that would not have been possible through them acting alone.