Showing papers in "Higher Education in 1991"
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors focus on the relationship between qualitative differences in learning outcomes, perceptions/evaluations of the learning environment and approaches to study and between approach to study, and the quality of learning outcomes.
Abstract: Previous studies of the relationship between perceptions and/or evaluations of the learning environment and approaches to study have either not included measures of students' learning outcomes, or have included quantitative differences and not qualitative differences in learning outcomes. The studies reported in this paper focus on the relationship between qualitative differences in learning outcomes, perceptions/evaluations of the learning environment and approaches to study. The results support previous research in identifying relationships between perceptions/evaluations of the learning environment and approach to study and between approach to study and the quality of the learning outcomes. The second of the two studies reported also identifies a relationship between perceptions, approaches and the quality of the outcomes. The results suggest that perceived environments which encourage deep approaches are more likely to facilitate higher quality learning than environments designed to discourage surface approaches.
766 citations
TL;DR: The idea of students having clear preferences in the way they learn led Pask (1976) to introduce the terms learning strategy and learning style as mentioned in this paper, which have also been accepted by practitioners involved in academic staff development and in advising students.
Abstract: It was in 1979 that the previous special issue on student learning was published in Higher Education. That issue reported some of the early work on the investigation of students' experiences of studying and learning in higher education. At that time the main emphasis was on establishing the concepts of deep and surface approaches to learning. Since then, these concepts have been firmly established in the research literature, and have also been accepted by practitioners involved in academic staff development and in advising students. Since that time other concepts have been introduced, creating both clarification and confusion in equal measures. The clarification has come, for example, from more refined definitions of ideas describing the reasons why students undertake courses in higher education (educational orientations Taylor 1983) and what adults believe learning entails (conceptions of learning Saljo 1979). Confusion has crept in with additional terms being used to describe overlapping concepts. The idea of students having clear preferences in the way they learn led Pask (1976) to introduce the terms learning strategy and learning style. 'Strategy' was used to refer to the preferences shown in tackling an individual task, while 'style' related to general preferences more akin to the psychological term cognitive style with its implications of relatively stable behaviour patterns rooted in personality differences or cerebral dominance. Unfortunately, the term learning style is also used in an even more general way to apply to any fairly consistent set of study behaviours, including approaches to learning (Schmeck 1988). Marton and Saljo (1976) initially described the distinction which they found among students reading an academic article as deep and surface levels ofprocessing, but later this was amended to approaches to learning (Marton and Saljo 1984) both to avoid confusion with the same term used in relation to memory processes, and to make clearer that 'approach' included not only process, but also intention. The term 'approach' was originally used to describe only the specific form of study activity provoked by the student's perception of a task instruction on a particular occasion. In other words, the approach was seen to depend crucially on both the context and the content. However, it became clear that students showed a certain consistency in their approaches to learning, at least at a fairly broad level of analysis. Thus, it made sense to develop questionnaires which would indicate the balance between approaches to learning which students were typically adopting in their studies. Biggs (1987) had initially used his own terminology for factors which he identified
397 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a detailed examination of the interview transcripts of 13 students, who had just completed their final degree, was supplemented by analyses of written responses from an additional 11 students in their final undergraduate year.
Abstract: Previous research on student learning has established the importance of the constrasting conceptions of learning held by students, and of the distinction between deep and surface approaches to learning. It has also shown that the outcome of learning may be described in terms of qualitatively different levels and that different forms of examination encourage different levels of answer. Within all these studies the nature of the understanding which is developed has been rather taken for granted. In this essentially exploratory study, a detailed examination of the interview transcripts of 13 students, who had just completed their final degree, was supplemented by analyses of written responses from an additional 11 students in their final undergraduate year. In the interviews, the students were asked about the revision strategies they had adopted and their attempts to develop understanding, and aspects of these were explored further through the written responses. Analyses of both interviews and written responses indicated the existence of differing forms of understanding which parallel, to some extent, the conceptions of learning identified previously. Links were also explored between the revision strategies adopted and the forms of understanding reached. Implications of the findings suggest that traditional degree examinations do not consistently test deep, conceptual understanding. It appears that some students gear their revision to question types which can be answered within frameworks provided by the lecturer or a textbook and that the type of questions set has a strong influence on the forms of understanding students seek during their studying and their revision. Some types of question encourage, and test, a restricted form of conceptual understanding. It also seems that the particular types of structure used in a lecture course to provide a framework also has an important influence on the ease with which students can relate it to other courses and also develop their own understanding.
326 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors consider the many aspects of foreign study and discuss the interrelationships of these elements, and also consider the various "push" and "pull" factors which determine the constantly changing flow of foreign students.
Abstract: Foreign study is a multifaceted phenomenon - its impact is felt on academic institutions in both the ‘host’ and ‘sending’ countries, on the economies of nations, and of course on the individuals involved. With more than one million students studying abroad, foreign study has assumed considerable importance in higher education planning. This article considers the many aspects of foreign study and discusses the interrelationships of these elements. The policies of the ‘host’ nations, for example, have an impact on higher education planning in the sending countries. The non-return of foreign students, traditionally referred to as the ‘brain drain’, is considerably more complex than was once thought since Third World graduates settled in the industrialized nations often retain contacts with their home countries and increasingly return after a period abroad. This article also considers the various ‘push’ and ‘pull’ factors which determine the constantly changing flow of foreign students.
159 citations
TL;DR: The conceptual and empirical basis for the concept of study orchestration at a group and at an individual level is discussed by means of an example that captures the range of individual differences, and of individual similarities that typically occur as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: This paper sets out the conceptual and empirical basis for the concept of study orchestration The manifestation of study orchestration at a group, and at an individual level, is illustrated by means of an example that captures the range of individual differences, and of individual similarities, that typically occur The interpretation and the categorisation of study orchestration is discussed and further illustrated by means of examples, as are the linkages between such categorisations and learning outcome Disintegrated orchestrations, in particular, are discussed and interpreted in more detail by means of interview data Important properties of individual study orchestration such as their stability and their contextual sensitivity are then addressed in terms of their contribution to intervention programmes for students who may be academically at risk This paper concludes with a discussion of the concept of metaorchestration which is seen as a logical development of the concept of metalearning and which is viewed as having important consequences in terms of intervention programmes
135 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors re-analyzed data describing students' study orientations, in relation to their evaluations of courses and their preferences for different kinds of learning environments, in the light of recent suggestions that failing students perceive their learning context in atypical ways.
Abstract: Data describing students' study orientations, in relation to their evaluations of courses and their preferences for different kinds of learning environment, are reanalysed in the light of recent suggestions that failing students perceive their learning context in atypical ways. Factor analysis and unfolding analysis demonstrate that failing students show inter-relationships between study orientations and preferences for learning environments which point to a disintegration of the coherent patterns previously reported in the full achievement range. The implications of such a disintegration of coherent patterns of perceptions are discussed in the light of case studies of individual students.
115 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a study was conducted in four departments in one institution of higher education: two arts and two science, and it was found that the development of student epistemology is influenced by interrelated factors of student learning approach, perception of the academic environment and lecturers' theories of teaching.
Abstract: Previous research into student learning in departments of higher education has shown that links can be established between students' approaches to studying and their perceptions of the academic environment. It has also been found that students with differing study orientations are likely to define effective teaching in ways which reflect those orientations. The study reported here began by identifying different types of student epistemology and then investigated those factors within the academic environment which appeared to influence their incidence. Employing a naturalistic methodology-observations, interviews and case studies - the study was conducted in four departments in one institution of higher education: two arts and two science. Through a process of progressively focusing upon emergent issues, the study evolved through three stages, culminating in a model of the factors appearing to influence the development of student epistemology. It is found that the development of student epistemology is influenced by the interrelated factors of student learning approach, perception of the academic environment and lecturers' theories of teaching, which tends to uphold previous findings. It is also found, however, that students' conceptions of knowledge and their learning approaches are influenced by the ways in which knowledge is structured and presented within departments. Most particularly, a relationship was found between historical and philosophical studies, the methods of teaching them, and the development of student epistemologies.
97 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors aim to increase teacher education students' understanding of the learning process by focussing on their own learning experiences by exposing them to a variety of learning experiences including negotiation of the curriculum, peer discussion and teaching, learning contracts, self, peer and collaborative assessment and critical reflection on these and other learning experiences.
Abstract: The aim of this project is to increase teacher education students' understanding of the learning process by focussing on their own learning experiences. 67 preservice teacher education students in 4 classes completed measures of academic locus of control and study processes before and after a semester course in a specially designed programme in Educational Psychology. The programme focuses on students taking greater responsibility for their own learning by exposing them to a variety of learning experiences. These experiences include negotiation of the curriculum, peer discussion and teaching, learning contracts, self, peer and collaborative assessment and critical reflection on these and other learning experiences by means of an ongoing learning log. Results indicate an increase in academic locus of control for one class, and an increase in deep motive, achieving strategy, deep approach and deep achieving approach to learning for the whole group. These outcomes are discussed in terms of the congruence between these changes and the particular learning experiences to which the students were exposed.
93 citations
TL;DR: The Australian case, however, presents several paradoxes as mentioned in this paper, such as: the federal government wishes to see a more diversified and adaptive higher education system, it seems to be implementing a reward structure for individual institutions and academics which encourages imitation of the elite universities.
Abstract: The policies of the Australian federal government are clearly intended to bring about a fundamental transformation of the country's higher education system. The Australian case, however, presents several paradoxes. Policy changes are being initiated by a federal government that has no legislative control over state chartered higher education institutions. While the federal government wishes to see a more diversified and adaptive higher education system, it seems to be implementing a reward structure for individual institutions and academics which encourages imitation of the elite universities. Although government claims that its new policy initiatives are designed to debureaucratize the system, a significant proportion of the Australian academic community claims that government is centralizing control. This article explores these and other issues facing Australian higher education, not for the purpose of resolving the seeming paradoxes, but to suggest a particular research agenda for investigating change in higher education.
89 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors compare different models of, or approaches to, study abroad programs and examine the effects of the different types of programmes. But, significant exceptions can be pointed out: students themselves might opt for contrasting educational experiences abroad not strongly emphasized in their programme; students might report substantial problems abroad though strong administrative and academic support is provided, recognition of study abroad upon return might remain limited even though students consider their academic progress abroad as higher than that during a corresponding period at their home institution.
Abstract: Study abroad programmes are characterized, in contrast to individual mobility of students across borders, by a particular set of established arrangements for foreign study between institutions of higher education, namely an ongoing, regular exchange of students; an organisational and educational infrastructure which supports the study experience; and provisions that successful study for some period abroad is at least partially recognized as a substitute for study at the home institution. The paper compares different models of, or approaches to, study abroad programmes and examines the effects of the different types of programmes. The paper draws on an extensive cross-national analysis of study abroad programmes, the Study Abroad Evaluation Project, addressing various support schemes by the European Community and national governments as well as programmes and students from British, French, German, Swedish and U.S. institutions of higher education. Findings show that there are certain logics of study abroad promotion programmes and of national modal types of programmes which shape the goals, attitudes of participants, experiences abroad, and the outcomes of the programmes to a large extent. However, significant exceptions can be pointed out: students themselves might opt for contrasting educational experiences abroad not strongly emphasized in their programme; students might report substantial problems abroad though strong administrative and academic support is provided, recognition of study abroad upon return might remain limited even though students consider their academic progress abroad as higher than that during a corresponding period at their home institution.
73 citations
TL;DR: This article investigated the relationship between approaches to learning, as measured by the Study Process Questionnaire (SPQ), prior knowledge of subject area, and performance on a multiple-choice test following a 15 × 2 hour unit in basic psychology.
Abstract: Relationships between approaches to learning, as measured by the Study Process Questionnaire (SPQ), prior knowledge of subject area, and performance on a multiple-choice test following a 15 × 2 hour unit in basic psychology were investigated. Subjects were 105 first year tertiary students, of mean age 19.9 years, and predominantly female (82.9%). Approaches to learning were unrelated to assessment performance, and prior knowledge did not relate to a deep approach although it did predict performance. The findings were interpreted in terms of additional elements in the teaching-learning process, and the role of the SPQ was seen as a stimulus to thinking about that process.
TL;DR: For instance, the Higher Education Research Institute at the University of California, Los Angeles has been conducting a national survey of new college freshmen since 1966 as mentioned in this paper, with a sample of 250,000 students and a nationally representative sample of 550 higher education institutions.
Abstract: New students entering higher education institutions in the United States have undergone dramatic changes during the past two decades. This paper summarizes some of the major trends observed in these surveys and discusses possible implications of the findings for educational policy and practice. Each fall since 1966 the Higher Education Research Institute at the University of California, Los Angeles has been conducting a national survey of new college freshmen. A typical survey involves 250,000 students and a nationally representative sample of 550 higher education institutions of all types. Between the late 1960s and the mid-1980s American college students became much more focussed on material goals and less concerned with altruism and social problems. These value changes were accompanied by dramatically increased student interest in business careers and a sharp decline of interest in school teaching, social work, nursing, the clergy, and other service careers. These changes are perhaps best illustrated in the contrasting trends in two values: ‘being very well off financially,’ which doubled in popularity during the period of survey and ‘developing a meaningful philosophy of life’ which was the top student value in the early 1970s but was endorsed by fewer than half as many students by the late 1980s. During just the past two or three years most of these trends seem to have ended or, in certain cases, shown signs of reversing direction. At the same time, there is growing evidence that students are increasingly oriented toward social activism. Protecting the environment appears to be the single greatest concern among American college students at the turn of the decade.
TL;DR: In this article, five alternative approaches that SCUs could use to develop distinct identities appropriate to their constituency are examined, and a broader definition of scholarship could enable the SCUs to achieve excellence in ways not dictated by the research university model.
Abstract: Faculty members at state-related comprehensive universities (SCUs) are ‘caught in the middle,’ caught between the demands of a research university model of higher education and other models such as that of the liberal arts or community colleges. They are caught in the ambiguity of not having determined their own identity. The SCUs are a major force in higher education that resulted from historical trends and the demands of parents, students, and state legislators for services. But the emerging form of these institutions has yet to complete its metamorphosis. During their transformation, the SCUs have emulated the high-status research universities as their own low status forced a search for an identity different from their origins, commonly as teachers colleges. The unfortunate consequence of the SCUs' quest for status has been low faculty satisfaction and additional loss of institutional self-esteem. Furthermore, an emphasis on published research has led to a disparagement of scholarship as it is manifested in teaching and service. As faculty members focus more on disciplinary research, their involvement with students and in university governance and other campus affairs diminishes. What can SCUs do? Five alternative approaches that SCUs could use to develop distinct identities appropriate to their constituencies are examined. The concept that connects these different approaches is ‘scholarship,’ in its traditional sense. A broader definition of scholarship could enable the SCUs to achieve excellence in ways not dictated by the research university model. There is some reason to hope that there is increasingly effective internal and external pressures for SCUs to develop and enact such distinctive identities.
TL;DR: In this paper, a brief outline of the social and economic context in the African countries in order to cast student political activism in the wider picture of rapidly deteriorating conditions is provided, which is deemed necessary to understand the genesis of student protests, and in particular, how school-based concerns (e.g., about declining educational standards) can escalate, providing the embryonic elements for the articulation of more widely-based social questions which have no other avenue of expression in increasingly closed and repressive political regimes.
Abstract: This article addresses the question whether educational institutions will in the future become the arenas of social struggle in the African countries as other avenues of dissent become progressively closed. The paper first provides a brief outline of the social and economic context in the African countries in order to cast student political activism in the wider picture of the rapidly deteriorating conditions. Such an outline is deemed necessary to understand the genesis of student protests, and in particular, how school-based concerns (e.g., about declining educational standards) can escalate, providing the embryonic elements for the articulation of more widely-based social and economic questions which have no other avenue of expression in increasingly closed and repressive political regimes. The vicious circle of student action and predictable government reaction (e.g., repeated closures of educational institutions) which further contributes to the decline in the quality of education is then discussed. Finally, the paper touches on the problems of rising violence in student demonstrations, the solidarity which seems to be emerging between students and other social groups in some countries, and the potential implications for the struggles for democracy and political pluralism in sub-Saharan Africa.
TL;DR: In this paper, a case study for studying the impact of substantial private provision on higher education systems in the Philippines is presented, where a high proportion of college and university students attend private institutions, mainly because of limited space in public institutions.
Abstract: A high proportion of college and university students in the Philippines attend private institutions, mainly because of limited space in public institutions. The system is examined as a case study for studying certain hypotheses about the impact of substantial private provision on higher education systems. After presenting basic data for the system as a whole the article compares public and private institutions and then explores the policy implications.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors analyse the current pattern of funding higher education in India and discuss the desirability and feasibility of various alternative methods of funding the same, and argue that given resource constraints and equity considerations, financing higher education mostly from the general tax revenue may not be a desirable policy in the long run.
Abstract: This paper is an attempt to analyse the present pattern of funding higher education in India and to discuss the desirability and feasibility of various alternative methods of funding the same. Higher education in India is basically a state funded sector. But as higher education benefits not only society at large, but also individuals specifically, and as it attracts relatively more privileged sections of the society, there is a rationale for shifting the financial burden to the individual domain from the social domain. It is argued here that given the resource constraints and equity considerations, financing higher education mostly from the general tax revenue may not be a desirable policy in the long run. Accordingly some of the alternative policy choices are discussed, including financing higher education from the public exchequer, student loans, graduate tax, student fees, and the role of the private sector. Among the available alternatives, it is argued that a discriminatory pricing mechanism would be relatively more efficient and equitable. While given the socioeconomic and political realities, the government has to continue to bear a large responsibility for funding higher education, instead of relying on a single form of funding, efforts should be made to evolve a model of funding that provides a mix of the various methods. It is also argued that fee and subsidy policies need to make distinctions across various layers and forms of higher education.
TL;DR: In this paper, student attitudes are surveyed and attention drawn to evidence of recent changes displayed in a study of five colleges/universities undertaken by the authors in 1989/90.
Abstract: US student attitudes are surveyed and attention drawn to evidence of recent changes displayed in a study of five colleges/universities undertaken by the authors in 1989/90. ‘Collective optimism’ appeared, heroes reappeared and what moved students most was the Challenger explosion rather than the political events which had been emphasised by their predecessors. Attitudes were less selfish and there was greater participation in social action. Examples are given of colleges which have responded by increasing opportunities for community service. The authors suggest that an analysis of past trends indicates that a rise in volunteerism leads to a period of student activism. The inverviews with students carried out by the authors provide evidence of such a development. The article concludes with a suggestion of points which colleges/universities should face in the light of these changes in student attitudes.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigate the role of instructional features and students' study activities across different courses and grade levels in the development of academic studying and suggest that the difficulties experienced by postsecondary students may be traced to certain discontinuities between characteristics of courses at the secondary versus post-secondary levels, including differences in the demands made on particular study activities associated with different coursework requirements.
Abstract: Students entering institutions of higher learning have been observed to be deficient in the skills and dispositions necessary for engaging in sustained autonomous study. Evidence from investigations comparing instructional features and students' study activities across different courses and grade levels suggests that (a) particular features of courses may act to prompt or inhibit the development of proficiency at academic studying; and (b) the difficulties experienced by postsecondary students may be traced to certain discontinuties between characteristics of courses at the secondary versus post-secondary levels. These discontinuities can be described in terms of three dimensions: (a) differences in the demands made on particular study activities associated with different coursework requirements; (b) the degree to which instructors provide supportive practices designed to facilitate or sustain students' productive study activities; and (c) the prevalance of teaching strategies designed to compensate students for their study deficiencies. Using evidence from extant research on studying and results from recent investigation of secondary-level courses, the claim is made that particular patterns of instructor-implemented demands (workload, test difficulty, and latitude for self-direction) and compensations (test review practices, overlap between test items and instructor handouts, and the presence of ‘safety nets’) might account for deficiencies in the study activities of postsecondary graduates. Further, improving the level of preparedness of secondary-level graduates for the demands associated with higher education courses is discussed in terms of the need for the provision of particular support practices (e.g., feedback, clear performance expectations, and guided practice) in secondary-level courses.
TL;DR: In this paper, four factors have led to the evolution of the modern mass university in Europe, namely demographic and democratic developments, the university's role in economic development, the pattern in scientific advances and political developments in Europe.
Abstract: Four factors have led to the evolution of the modern mass university in Europe, namely demographic and democratic developments, the university's role in economic development, the pattern in scientific advances and political developments in Europe. These trends are linked to certain developments in the labour market, and they reveal the demands which lead to the modern university's dual role as a regional as well as an international institution. The internationalisation of the university has been furthered by innovative exchange programmes which promote the mobility of students and scholars and flexibility in academic programmes and institutions. Nonetheless, the programmes add a political dimension to the existing academic and research aims for mobility, and the success of the exchanges appears to depend on the development of adequate capacity within universities to support expanded international flows of students and scholars.
TL;DR: The authors describes and analyses postwar changes in regulatory and classificatory relationships between British governments and higher education institutions, in the context of broad social, economic and political change, in three time periods.
Abstract: The paper describes and analyses postwar changes in regulatory and classificatory relationships between British governments and higher education institutions, in the context of broad social, economic and political change, in three time periods. The first, from 1945 to 1970, was marked by consolidation, increased government support, growth in numbers of institutions and students and a broad consensus around the desirability of expansion. The second, from 1970 to 1987, was marked by political hostility and, until 1983, stagnation in the rates of demand for places by students and for graduates by employers. The third period, from 1987 to the present day, suggests that Britain is now committing itself, whether deliberately or not, to a system of mass higher education, with a series of radical changes in government-higher education relationships. In conclusion the paper discusses alternative theoretical approaches to interpreting these developments: Trow's typology of elite-mass- universal higher education and its implications for transition between types; Teichler's analysis of models of higher education structure; and a possible synthesis between the two. But all such models need to pay due attention to the internal processes of higher education at the level of departmental and even individual behavior.
TL;DR: In this article, a critical analysis of the World Bank report on education in Sub-Saharan Africa: Policies for Adjustment, Revitalization and Expansion is presented, which highlights the results of a recently published comparative study of higher agricultural education institutions in ten countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America.
Abstract: Southern countries have invested rather heavily in higher education. Yet, their development is severely hampered by problems originating from both national policy conditions and institutional weaknesses. This paper presents an analysis of these problems through a critical analysis of the World Bank Report onEducation in Sub-Saharan Africa: Policies for Adjustment, Revitalization and Expansion. The paper further highlights the results of a recently published comparative study of higher agricultural education institutions in ten countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America. By carefully examining the concrete mandates, expectations and actual possibilities of higher education institutions, this paper tries to explore the academic and societal frontiers of higher education in the South. The paper ends by suggesting ways to improve higher education in the South by using the instrument of South-North university co-operation.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors discuss the financial impacts of foreign student enrolments within a cost-benefit framework, considering both direct and indirect costs associated with tertiary institutions, and suggest ways of adjusting the costbenefit approach for analyses at the national level.
Abstract: This paper discusses the financial impacts of foreign student enrolments within a cost-benefit framework. It considers both direct and indirect costs associated with tertiary institutions, suggests ways of adjusting the cost-benefit approach for analyses at the national level and poses several questions related to financial issues which are critical to the formulation of institutional and national policy.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors describe the context for and developments related to the internationalisation of higher education in Germany and describe the most effective ways to bring about internationalisation in systems of higher learning.
Abstract: This paper describes the context for and developments related to the internationalisation of higher education in Germany. Considerable mobility of students and scholars already exists, much of it taking place without special public financial support. Nonetheless, more needs to be done to encourage greater mobility. In this connection, Germany makes available financial support for those participating in foreign study or research. More recently, there has been a trend toward support for groups rather than individual students, for a more intensive ‘prestructuring’ of the stay abroad and a stronger international dimension in larger scientific projects. Both financial support and favourable conditions are seen as necessary for programmes aimed at promoting effective exchanges. The central need, in the face of limited resources, is to develop and implement the most effective ways to bring about internationalisation in systems of higher education.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present an overview of these changes, and try to formulate an analytical framework that might be suited to analyze this process, focusing on the Dutch higher education system as a policy network, and address the relationships that exist between the various key actors in the network.
Abstract: Like many other higher education systems in the Western world, Dutch higher education underwent profound changes during the last decade. In this article we will present an overview of these changes, and try to formulate an analytical framework that might be suited to analyze this process. In order to set the stage, we will begin with an overview of the Dutch higher education system, in which the broad structure is described, and some trends are presented. Next, an overview is given of the retrenchment and restructuring operations with which Dutch higher education was confronted during the last decade. Drawing, mainly, on public administration and political theory, we then attempt to formulate a framework for analysis. In this we focus on the Dutch higher education system as a policy network, and address the relationships that exist between the various key actors in the network: between government and higher education, among higher education institutions themselves, and among the different actors within the institutions, especially administrators and academics. In doing so, we hope to demonstrate that at all these levels some identical basic processes operate which to a large extent determine the outcomes of governmental policies aimed at changing the higher education system. Time and again the modern state stumbles over the academic system (Clark 1983: 137)
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors provide an overview of the issues raised during a 1990 seminar on the effects of programs and policies for foreign students and study abroad and address those concerns related to national policy and institutional responses in the light of changing patterns of foreign student flows and against the background of the new global economic and political setting.
Abstract: This paper provides an overview of the issues raised during a 1990 seminar on the effects of programmes and policies for foreign students and study abroad. The seminar was organised by the Hochschul-Informations-System in co-operation with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). In particular, this paper addresses those concerns related to national policy and institutional responses in the light of changing patterns of foreign student flows and against the background of the new global economic and political setting.
TL;DR: In the face of continued uncontrolled expansion and in the absence of basic facilities for teaching and research, the university system cannot sustain a healthy growth as mentioned in this paper, therefore, greater attention is being given to improved fiscal management, income generation by the universities and rationalisation of academic programmes.
Abstract: A phenomenal expansion of the Nigerian university system began with the oil boom of the 1970s. Following a downturn in the nation's economy and the introduction of structural adjustment programmes, government subventions to Nigerian universities have dropped appreciably, and in real terms the universities have suffered considerable decline in purchasing power. Institutional structures for monitoring efficiency have played an important role in efforts to maintain academic standards; but in the face of continued uncontrolled expansion and in the absence of basic facilities for teaching and research, the university system cannot sustain a healthy growth. Greater attention is being given to improved fiscal management, income generation by the universities and rationalisation of academic programmes. As scholarships and bursary awards for able but indigent students are resuscitated, cost recovery measures in the universities need to be intensified. Proposals for the establishment of private universities operating within guidelines prescribed by the National Universities Commission (NUC) should be re-examined.
TL;DR: The challenges facing most university systems in today's developing world are representative of the challenge facing most universities as discussed by the authors, including nation building, training of high level manpower, satisfying the social demand for education, conducting research and being centers of excellence.
Abstract: The papers in this issue are representative of the challenge facing most university systems in today's developing world. Higher education systems have multiple and various tasks, including nation building, training of high level manpower, satisfying the social demand for education, conducting research and being centers of excellence. As shown by experience, the above batch of laudable objectives is seldom, if ever, achieved. Why? In this introduction I attempt to explain briefly why the dynamics underpinning the development of university systems in low income countries might have changed drastically relative to, say, 30 years ago, and offer a vision of the inevitable directions higher education might be heading.
TL;DR: The stability of the Ontario higher education system can be attributed to the relative homogeneity of each of two clearly differentiated sectors, the limited role of the federal government in the policy arena, a structure which has deflected or rejected calls for structural change, and the failure of those who seek change to stimulate a public or political debate on higher education policy.
Abstract: Policy change in Ontario higher education in the 1960s resulted in a series of structures designed to co-ordinate each of the two sectors in this binary system. Recent government initiatives may be characterized as attempts to initiate or stimulate change within the boundaries and constraints associated with a structure which has been relatively stable for twenty years. There has been some increase in regulation in the university sector through the establishment of targeted funding mechanisms, programme appraisal and approval mechanisms, and the government's legislated monopoly over degree-granting, but these changes have had little impact on the basic operations of the universities. Government initiatives in the community college sector have had some impact in terms of greater institutional differentiation, but little impact on institution stratification. The stability of the Ontario system can be attributed to the relative homogeneity of each of two clearly differentiated sectors, the limited role of the federal government in the policy arena, a structure which has deflected or rejected calls for structural change, and the failure of those who seek change to stimulate a public or political debate on higher education policy.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors discuss the funding constraints as related to higher education in Tanzania and discuss also the trend of internal and external efficiency indicators, including low growth rate of GDP, balance of payment problems, inflation, devaluation of the shilling, absence of cost sharing and resources mismanagement.
Abstract: The purpose of this article is to discuss the funding constraints as related to higher education in Tanzania. The article discusses also the trend of internal and external efficiency indicators. The funding constraints include: the low growth rate of GDP, balance of payment problems, inflation, devaluation of the shilling, absence of cost-sharing and resources mismanagement. Higher education is characterized by high unit costs, low capacity utilization and high teacher-student ratios and yet private benefits are high as compared to social benefits. Tanzanian higher education remains elitist and continues to serve a well-to-do minority.
TL;DR: In this article, the problems facing Chinese higher education are analyzed and it is argued that these are caused by underfunding, high inflation and low internal efficiency, and possible strategies for addressing these problems are discussed: these include: improving internal efficiency; developing systems of cost-sharing and cost-recovery; income generation by individual universities; and increasing national expenditure on higher education as soon as the state of the economy allows.
Abstract: The problems facing Chinese higher education are analysed and it is argued that these are caused by underfunding, high inflation and low internal efficiency. Possible strategies for addressing these problems are discussed: these include: (i) improving internal efficiency; (ii) developing systems of cost-sharing and cost-recovery; (iii) income generation by individual universities; and (iv) increasing national expenditure on higher education as soon as the state of the economy allows.