V. Discussion of the Research Findings
During the process of comparing and analysing the research data, we found that the "conflicts" are mainly reflected in the following aspects: the conflicts and tension between the native language and English; "limited localisation" of teaching design; the “localisation of internationalisation” of evaluation methods; the challenge of teaching team construction; and the "conflicts" of the “internationalisation” of localisation in terms of media usage. It could be said that the above aspects roughly cover the problems that occur generally as part of the Sino-foreign cooperative development of pure-online course resources. The problems reflected in the research firstly lie in the fact that the English level and capabilities of the students need to be improved, which will be one of the major problems facing the strategy of localisation of foreign resources for a long time. Language is also a reflection of culture. As Cheng Yin Cheong points out, the needs of localisation include the improvement of external cultural and learning initiatives oriented towards local communities [12]. Although we have translated the resources provided by the OUUK into the local language, the quality of translation needs to be improved. On the other hand, from the perspective of the course managers, it is hoped that students can use the translation task as a means of improving their English level. Unfortunately, the ability of the students does not meet this high requirement. This also involves another comparably serious challenge: regardless of whether the versions we provide are in both English and Chinese, or an English version with a Chinese version for reference, students may still be "lazy". Instead they directly refer to the Chinese version and skip the English version, which is of no use for improving their English level and further enhancing their capacity for international exchange in the future. This also reflects the natural inertia students experience. Both localisation and internationalisation require further research. With regard to teaching design, we have proposed a strategy of "limited localisation", that is, for overseas advanced concepts, we adopt them with the purpose of "adapting our traditional ideas" instead of fully localizing them. We have made targeted modifications by adding more local stories so that students can better combine the learnt knowledge and theories with local problems. In terms of evaluation methods, we have adopted another strategy, namely the "localisation of internationalisation". We should firmly eliminate what we regard as "dregs" and "fight against" foreign concepts and practices that we believe are inappropriate by using "internationalized" advanced concepts and practices. In this regard, we believe the "localisation of internationalisation" practice in the summative evaluation of the three coures provided by the OUUK was very successful, in that we use a final paper that is in line with the needs and actual situation of domestic trainees to replace the examinations originally designed by OUUK. It can be seen from this example that localisation and internationalisation sometimes can be blended and transfer into each other. Through this research, we found that a very large challenge facing the construction of the OUC in the future is the implementation of an internationalized faculty brought about by the localisation. Cheng Yin Cheong notes that the phenomena and characteristics of globalisation include technical, social, cultural, and learning transfer, international alliance and competition, and international cooperation and exchanges [13], which places heavy demands on the construction of the teaching team for open and distance education. From the most basic language level perspective, at present, the English level and ability of the tutors in the RTVU system are still very low. Whether for localisation or internationalisation, they are unable to adapt to the requirements of the new situation. They need to continue to improve their language skills, otherwise "internationalisation" will be an empty promise. In the future, teaching team construction will focus on the following areas: teaching team, tutor skill level, cooperation and exchange, and comprehensive quality and ability. A number of teaching teams must be constructed so as to create a group advantage. In addition, all the tutors should be grouped into different levels and tutors’ roles must be clearly established. These tutors must have the ability to engage in exchange and collaboration, and cross discipline and special capacities. "The team must have an international perspective, which is of great importance to the OUC." In terms of media usage, the "conflict" of the "internationalisation" of localisation is normal and this is in fact a fierce collision between traditional domestic teaching concepts and advanced teaching philosophies from abroad, as well as a shock and subversion to the traditional "spoon-fed" education methods, requiring us to adjust or change traditional, backward ways of thinking and accept advanced international concepts so as to face up to internationalisation. For internationalised advanced concepts and practices, what we want is to take them with a mind of acceptance and determination.
To sum up, in this study, we proposed the strategies of "limited localisation" and "internationalised localisation". "Limited localisation" means that, for advanced foreign concepts, we "borrow" them directly without any changes. It is worth noting that, on this basis, we can still carry out some small changes related to the concepts, such as providing more localised cases. For the "internationalised localisation", our perspective is based on the international level; by inspecting international concepts and practices we can select the best options from the resources and carry out "internationalised localisation". In other words, if we find that there are international resources, ideas, and practices that are better than the ones we have already introduced, we should be able to adapt the introduced resources, and replace them with internationalised ideas and practices.
Based on the strategies of "limited localisation" and the "internationalised localisation", we further propose a future localisation strategy for foreign resources for the OUC: The localisation strategies of "limited localisation" and "Internationalised localisation" should be maintained during the period of introduction. After the transformation is completed, pilot teaching is firstly recommended to identify the problem and potential solutions so as to further perfect the resources and then eventually finalize the transformation, as shown in Figure 2 below:
VI. Conclusion
Through the qualitative research conducted for “The Three Courses” (Student Support, Tutoring Online, and Course Design) jointly developed by the CCRTVU and OUUK for the training of online educators (eTutors), we compared and analysed the five problems that became apparent during the interview research and held in-depth discussions. The localisation strategies of "limited localisation" and "internationalised localisation" were formed on this basis. Finally, we have put forward a localisation strategy for foreign resources for the OUC: adapt to the strategies of "limited localisation" and "internationalised localisation", launch a pilot programme, and then further improve the resources and complete the final localisation.
Due to the time constraints of this study, when choosing the sample, the trainees were mainly taken from the Tutoring Online course and the tutors mainly from the Student Support course, which may have some impact on the study’s validity and reliability.
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About the author:
Han Yanhui: Master’s degree holder, Associate Professor. Research directions include networked computer assisted language learning and the integration of digital technologies into online education (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.).