The International Studies in Education program at the University of Iceland illustrates how one university is responding to global trends in higher education. Through a case study we examined the significance of an innovative B.A. program, which is taught in English, aligned with values affirmed in critical multiculturalist scholarship, and designed to respond to demographic changes including a sharp increase in Iceland's immigrant population. The experience of students, teachers, and administrators raises important questions about institutional responsibilities, both local and global; about the role of Innov High Educ (2011) 36:125-139 English in an international studies program; about de facto segregation of students; and about the significance of local context in global trends in higher education.

The paper is part of the qualitative research project Educational Aspirations, Opportunities and Challenges for Immigrants in University Education in Iceland, conducted in Iceland's three biggest universities. The main goal of the paper is to investigate immigrant students' experiences of communication with teachers during the learning process and their perspectives on multicultural group work. Furthermore, the paper explores immigrant students' experiences of learner-centred approach and culturally responsive teaching methods applied by some teachers. The data was collected through focus group interviews and qualitative, semi-structured individual interviews with immigrant students. The theoretical framework is mainly based on the constructivist theory, which emphasises the importance of communication and the learner-centred approach. Additionally, the theoretical framework includes multicultural education theory, which puts an emphasis on applying culturally responsive teaching methods in classrooms with diverse student populations. The analysis of the interviews revealed that the participants' experiences of communication with teachers and peers were mostly positive. However, culturally responsive teaching is still a rare phenomenon in Icelandic universities. When it comes to the participants' perspectives on group work, the experiences ranged from being highly positive to negative.

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In 2016, a group of 55 Syrian quota refugees arrived in Iceland from Lebanon and settled in three municipalities. There were 11 families comprising 20 adults and 35 children. This study 1 aimed to critically explore the experiences, opportunities and challenges of these children, their parents, their teachers and principals in the municipalities of their resettlement since their arrival in Iceland. The theoretical framework of the study includes critical approaches to education, and multilingual education for social justice. Methods of data collection included semi-structured interviews with the refugee parents, the head teachers and teachers in all the schools in the study. While the findings indicate that most of the children were doing well both academically and socially in their first months in the schools, they also show that the children and parents have experienced a number of challenges. These included illiteracy, interrupted schooling of the children and hidden trauma before arriving in Iceland. After arrival, the parents have experienced lack of communication between schools and homes, as well as differences in norms, values, languages, and expectations between the schools and homes.