Knowledge transfer in international educational collaboration programme : The China perspective

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to review the literature of international development strategy of high education and examine what is happening currently in terms of education collaboration between the UK and China and attempt to address various challenges in capacity building through knowledge transfer. Design/methodology/approach – Theoretical analysis supported by observation and interviews. Findings – The study has identified that there are a certain number of elements, which are crucial to the success of international educational collaboration, of which, the appropriateness and effectiveness of knowledge transfer/knowledge sharing is vital to the capacity building of higher educational institutions. The study examines on‐going Sino‐British education collaboration programme and fuelled the debate concerning knowledge transfer/knowledge sharing in high education between the developed and developing countries. Originality/value – Based on a comprehensive examination and analysis of the process of knowledge transfer/knowledge sharing in a Sino‐British educational collaboration programme, this study emphasizes the significance of incorporating both cultural and organisational factors that play a role in the whole process. This paper describes the process of knowledge transfer between foreign and Chinese faculties when they work together on academic collaboration project in China. Furthermore, the paper addresses the appropriateness and effectiveness of knowledge transfer/knowledge sharing during the implementation of the international academic collaboration programme.