Showing papers by "Philip G. Altbach published in 1984"

Student politics in the third world

Abstract: Student political activism remains a key issue in the Third World despite its decline in the industrialized nations. Students continue to be active in politics and frequently have an impact on societal events. The historical development of student politics and student involvement in independence struggles, the role of students as incipient elites, and the fragility of the political structures of many Third World nations all contribute to the efficacy of student politics. Universities, as key intellectual institutions in their societies, also play an important role in Third World societies. Students, especially those in the social sciences, are fairly easy to mobilize and they often have a basic interest in political and social issues. It is argued that student movements emerge from their social and political environment and it is not surprising that activism continues as a powerful force in the Third World.

Introduction: Perspectives on Foreign Students

Abstract: Foreign study provides an important educational option for individuals and nations. The usefulness of this option has been most obvious where national systems of higher education are limited in size and quality. But even in relatively rich educational environments, foreign study satisfies the desire for cross-cultural learning experiences and provides ways of dealing with overflows in educational demand, as in the case of American medical students abroad. The growing importance of the foreign study option is evident in the approximately eightfold increase that has occurred worldwide in the last 30 years. While the option to study abroad solves certain problems, it also raises difficult educational issues. A few examples may suffice. Thus, in Malaysia, where at the present time more students are abroad than at home, debate rages over the national implications of foreign education that many consider to be largely irrelevant. In the United Kingdom, where some 10 percent of all university students are foreign, heated discussions have arisen about the justification of subsidizing the education of foreigners. In the United States, a not entirely welcome reverse dependency has developed in some institutions and departments, where foreign students compensate for the dearth of U.S. students and help permit the institution or department to survive.' More generally, the seemingly inevitable flow of students from developing countries to industrialized nations is now very much part of the North-South debate and the quest for a new educational order. Efforts to conceptualize and examine the process of foreign study or overseas training have shifted in focus over the last 30 years. Prior to 1965, psychological and cultural approaches characterized the foreign student literature, reflecting a post-World War II view of foreign study as an individual cross-cultural experience.2 That strain of research has continued to the present, often focusing on students from particular countries, in particular fields, or at particular universities. Margaret Cormack and Barbara Walton have provided excellent reviews of the early literature.3 More recently, a review by Lee et al. has summarized studies about foreign students in the United States, relating their experience to such independent variables as age, sex, marital status, English language proficiency, academic