Between National Anchors and Global Imperatives: Reframing the Internationalisation of Teacher Education

Teacher education is nationally regulated yet increasingly shaped by cross-border agendas. While internationalisation is widely articulated in institutional strategies, implementation in initial teacher education (ITE) is reported as uneven across contexts and programme components. This narrative review clarifies how internationalisation in ITE is defined, driven, enacted, and critically assessed. We propose a 2 × 2 positioning typology at the intersection of strong National Anchors and intensifying Global Imperatives, identifying four profiles: showcase, faculty-driven, regulation-bound, and embedded internationalisation. Beyond activity lists, we specify mechanisms that can help convert mobility and virtual exchange/COIL into accessible learning: structured preparation, jointly designed tasks, guided reflection, and formal recognition/credit. We foreground an assessment gap – outputs are frequently reported, while outcomes such as intercultural competence, digital-pedagogical capability, and classroom enactment are not consistently evidenced or assessed across studies and institutions. Using a decolonising, language-sensitive lens, we surface equity and knowledge circulation limits in nationally regulated systems. Implications include embedded designs, aligned incentives and professional development, internationalisation-at-home/IoC in core coursework, and credit-bearing recognition. We reframe ITE internationalisation as learning-led design, rather than primarily a quantitative focus.