The competence-based approach as the international norm in higher education: the Tuning initiative in Central Asia

The present article shows how the flagship EU-funded project acted as a transnational epistemic community in higher education. Based on the case study of the TuCAHEA consortium (2012–2015), the article reveals how the development of international norms is driven by the opinion of academic experts, based on their principled and causal beliefs. The qualitative content analysis of scholarly publications by the members of the TuCAHEA project reveals that European experts showed a more balanced view on the competence-based approach, while the Central Asian members of the project expressed less critical thinking about it. Furthermore, while the European experts focused on the societal needs, the Central Asian authors connected the competence-based approach with the education reform process in their countries. The findings reveal that the Tuning initiative is an epistemic community that supports the diffusion and acceptance of the competence-based approach as an international norm in higher education.