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Showing papers in "Higher Education in 2010"


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The authors examined the experiences of international students at The University of Toledo and highlighted problems international students experience such as adapting to a new culture, English language problems, financial problems and lack of understanding from the broader University community.
Abstract: This study examines the experiences of international students at The University of Toledo, where international students comprise approximately 10% of the student population. It highlights problems international students experience such as adapting to a new culture, English language problems, financial problems and lack of understanding from the broader University community. Recommendations for improvement include initiatives to raise the profile of international students, improved financial assistance and scholarships, and creating opportunities for international students to improve their spoken English skills.

569 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This paper found that all stakeholders identify clear connections between international experience and employability given outcomes associated with the forging of networks, opportunities for experiential learning, language acquisition and the development of soft skills related to cultural understandings, personal characteristics and ways of thinking.
Abstract: This paper reports the findings of an Australian qualitative study (N = 45) concerned with the way that employers, academics and students perceived connections between international experience and graduate employability. Drawing on the literature, the authors argue that increasing globalisation and internationalisation has heightened the need for graduates with the ability to operate in culturally diverse contexts. Universities have focussed upon exchange as part of internationalisation to prepare students for work but there is still limited literature on the nature of the relationship between international experience, more broadly and graduate employability. The findings suggest that all stakeholders identify clear connections between international experience and employability given outcomes associated with the forging of networks, opportunities for experiential learning, language acquisition and the development of soft skills related to cultural understandings, personal characteristics and ways of thinking.

369 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The authors argue that universities' responsiveness to stakeholders does not evolve simply and functionally but in response to the networks of relationships in which they are situated, which has important implications for how stakeholder research is used in higher education research, and for the design and implementation of policies to improve universities' societal contributions.
Abstract: Valorisation is at the centre of many debates on the future of academic research. But valorisation has largely become narrowly understood in terms of universities’ economic contributions through patenting, licensing, spin-off formation and technology transfer. This emergent restrictive definition of universities’ societal impacts is a worrying development, overlooking the potential of universities’ knowledge in the Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (HASS). Our hypothesis is that HASS disciplines’ disadvantage compared to the hard sciences (lesser policy attention and funding for commercialisation) arises because HASS stakeholders are not sufficiently salient as stakeholders to universities. Using case studies of three policy experiments, we argue that universities’ responsiveness to stakeholders does not evolve simply and functionally but in response to the networks of relationships in which they are situated. This has important implications for how stakeholder research is used in higher education research, and for the design and implementation of policies to improve universities’ societal contributions.

322 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The subjective well-being of a sample of 979 international students attending a large metropolitan university in Melbourne, Australia, was investigated in this article, where a person-focused approach was used to determine whether different ways of adapting, based on patterns of wellbeing, could be discerned.
Abstract: The subjective well-being of a sample of 979 international students attending a large metropolitan university in Melbourne, Australia, was investigated. A person-focussed approach was used to determine whether different ways of adapting, based on patterns of well-being, could be discerned. Cluster analysis of responses on 21 measures identified three different patterns: positive and connected (58.8% of students), unconnected and stressed (34.4%), and distressed and risk-taking (6.7%). Tests of the concurrent validity of the typology were significant. Demographic factors were not particularly helpful in distinguishing among the three patterns of well-being. The results provide universities with knowledge pertinent to provision of appropriate international student support.

217 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The Australasian Survey of Student Engagement (AUSSE) as discussed by the authors is the largest educationally focused cross-institutional collection from current students in Australasia and has been used to encourage evidence-based quality management in higher education.
Abstract: Student learning and development are the core business of the academy, yet until recently Australian and New Zealand universities lacked data on students’ engagement in effective educational practices. This paper reports the foundations and development of the Australasian Survey of Student Engagement (AUSSE)—the largest educationally focused cross-institutional collection from current students in Australasia. Results from the 2008 AUSSE are analyzed to elucidate the focus and significance of the collection. A review is undertaken of the AUSSE’s approach to stimulating each institution’s continuous improvement. The analysis is expanded, by way of conclusion, to consider the role of the collection as a general agent for encouraging the expansion of evidence-based quality management in higher education.

214 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors analyzed changes in institutional performance following the adoption of these new accountability standards and found that states which adopted performance-based accountability did not see a noticeable increase in the institutional performance.
Abstract: In the 1990s, most US states adopted new forms of performance-based accountability, e.g., performance-based budgeting, funding, or reporting. This study analyzed changes in institutional performance following the adoption of these new accountability standards. We measured institutional performance by representative education and research indicators—graduation rates and levels of federal research funding. We collected data from 1997 to 2007 and used a hierarchical linear modeling growth curve analysis. The main finding was that states which adopted performance-based accountability did not see a noticeable increase in institutional performance. In addition, we highlighted a critical policy issue—whether state and institutional factors contribute most to institutional performance in higher education.

166 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This article investigated the relationship between multiple predictors of academic achievement, including course experience, students' approaches to learning (SAL), effort (amount of time spent on studying) and prior academic performance (high school grade point average) among 442 first semester undergraduate psychology students.
Abstract: This study investigated the relationship between multiple predictors of academic achievement, including course experience, students’ approaches to learning (SAL), effort (amount of time spent on studying) and prior academic performance (high school grade point average—HSGPA) among 442 first semester undergraduate psychology students. Correlation analysis showed that all of these factors were related to first semester examination grade in psychology. Profile analyses showed significant mean level differences between subgroups of students. A structural equation model showed that surface and strategic approaches to learning were mediators between course experience and exam performance. This model also showed that SAL, effort and HSGPA were independent predictors of exam performance, also when controlling for the effect of the other predictors. Hence, academic performance is both indirectly affected by the learning context as experienced by the students and directly affected by the students’ effort, prior performance and approaches to learning.

163 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In Malaysia, the national government has seen fit to steer higher education policy in a direction that is in the ‘national interest’ as discussed by the authors, which is best exemplified by the changing relationship between the State, higher education institutions and the market.
Abstract: In Malaysia, the national government has seen fit to steer higher education policy in a direction that is in the ‘national interest’. This notion of ‘national interest’ is best exemplified by the changing relationship between the State, higher education institutions and the market. Since the late 1960s, we saw the gradual but steady erosion of university autonomy with the increasing dominance of the State. The recently launched National Higher Education Strategic Plan 2020 and the National Higher Education Action Plan, 2007–2010, which operationalised the Strategic Plan, promises greater autonomy for the universities. While this increased autonomy for universities could be regarded as Malaysia’s response to deal with emerging issues in higher education management and governance, the amendments to the University and University Colleges Act, 1995 have not resolved the issue of wider autonomy from the Malaysian treasury regulations for public universities. For the State, in the present climate of political and economic uncertainty, giving full autonomy to the public universities is seen to be inappropriate and untimely. The State considers public universities as still heavily dependent on the State for resources, and thus the need for regulation and supervision.

144 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present a comprehensive, cross-country study on the magnitude and determinants of cheating among economics and business undergraduates, involving 7,213 students enrolled in 42 universities located in 21 countries from the American (4), European (14), Africa (2) and Oceania (1) Continents.
Abstract: Today’s economics and business students are expected to be our future business people and potentially the economic leaders and politicians of tomorrow. Thus, their beliefs and practices are liable to affect the definition of acceptable economics and business ethics. The empirical evaluation of the phenomenon of cheating in academia has almost exclusively focused on the US context, and non-US studies usually only cover a narrow range of countries. This paper presents a comprehensive, cross-country study on the magnitude and determinants of cheating among economics and business undergraduates, involving 7,213 students enrolled in 42 universities located in 21 countries from the American (4), European (14), Africa (2) and Oceania (1) Continents. We found that the average magnitude of copying among economics and business undergraduates is quite high (62%) but there was significant cross-country heterogeneity. The probability of cheating is significantly lower in students enrolled in schools located in the Scandinavian, and the US and British Isles blocks when compared with their Southern European counterparts; quite surprisingly this probability is also lower for the African block. On a distinctly different level, however, students enrolled in schools in Western and especially Eastern European countries reveal statistically significant higher propensities towards committing academic fraud.

137 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors identify the presence of feedback according to the regulation of learning required, characterise this feedback, and explore possible relationships between feedback and the results of the teaching and learning process (i.e., students satisfaction and final grades).
Abstract: Within the constructivist framework of online distance education the feedback process is considered a key element in teachers’ roles because it can promote the regulation of learning. Therefore, faced with the need to guide and train teachers in the kind of feedback to provide and how to provide it, we establish three aims for this research: identify the presence of feedback according to the regulation of learning required; characterise this feedback according to content (i.e. the meaning of feedback); and, finally, to explore possible relationships between feedback and the results of the teaching and learning process (i.e. students’ satisfaction and final grades). The results for a sample of 186 students, taking nine courses at the Open University of Catalonia, are discussed in the light of feedback, which is considered a central element in university teaching practice in online environments. We conclude that, in general, the presence of feedback is associated with improved levels of performance and higher levels of satisfaction with the general running of the course.

134 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors describe an experience of educational innovation in a university context and determine the relationship between students' frequency of use of online self-assessment with feedback and their final performance on the course, taking into account both learners' motivation and perceived usefulness of these resources for their learning process.
Abstract: The present work describes an experience of educational innovation in a university context. Its aim was to determine the relationship between students’ frequency of use of online self-assessment with feedback and their final performance on the course, taking into account both learners’ motivation and perceived usefulness of these resources for their learning process. Furthermore, we studied the relationship between metacognitive variables and academic performance and/or execution of activities aimed at learning the course content. To this end we created self-assessment material with the Hot Potatoes educational program and assessed the degree to which students took advantage of the tool, their satisfaction with it and their perceived knowledge, using ad hoc questionnaires. The results indicate better academic performance in those students that use interactive self-assessment. It should be pointed out that even students with low motivation levels made use of this teaching tool. Finally, a relationship was found between metacognitive variables and students’ effort and performance. We discuss the need to include self-assessment in the curriculum, with a view to improving students’ metacognitive knowledge.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, an efficiency analysis of Italian and Spanish universities is conducted; as well as from a comparative perspective, the efficiency scores are obtained using data envelopment analysis, demonstrating a good average efficiency in both countries relative to each “country-specific” frontier; but when compared together, Italian universities seem relatively more efficient.
Abstract: The growing internationalization of European Higher Education requires more emphasis on cross-country comparisons. In this paper, an efficiency analysis of Italian and Spanish universities is conducted; as well as from a comparative perspective. The efficiency scores are obtained using data envelopment analysis. The results demonstrate a good average efficiency in both countries relative to each “country-specific” frontier; but when compared together, Italian universities seem relatively more efficient. Malmquist indexes show, in both cases, efficiency improvements in the period considered. In the Italian case, this improvement is due to major “technological changes”; that is, the introduction of some structural reforms in the sector (e.g., Bachelor/Master curricula). In the Spanish case, there is an improvement in “pure” efficiency, which is due to new funding models. Further stages of the study underline the role of “regional effects”, probably due to different socio-economic conditions in Italy, and to the decentralization process in Spain.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Lee et al. as mentioned in this paper explored the reasons for current reverse mobility patterns in South Korea and how the country benefits from returning U.S. doctoral recipients in the forms of brain gain and brain circulation.
Abstract: This study explored the reasons for current reverse mobility patterns in South Korea and how the country benefits from returning U.S. doctoral recipients in the forms of brain gain and brain circulation. Based on interviews of Korean faculty who studied in the U.S., this study found that while the political economy might help to explain why Korean students choose to study in the U.S., it does not fully capture their decisions to return. Family ties and cultural reasons transcended reasons related to economic mobility. The study also found that while both brain gain and brain circulation were present, brain adaptation was especially prevalent.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This paper examined how researchers have conceptualized entrepreneurship in five leading higher education journals and found notable patterns in the application of theoretical and conceptual frameworks of entrepreneurship to higher education phenomena, as well as observable distinctions in how entrepreneurial models are applied in specific organizational, institutional, and geographical contexts.
Abstract: Over the past several decades higher education scholars have conducted a significant amount of research aimed at understanding the implications of enhanced interactions between the academy and the private marketplace Accordingly, a voluminous literature that includes conceptualizations and discussions of academic entrepreneurship has emerged This paper used content analysis to examine how researchers have conceptualized entrepreneurship in five leading higher education journals The analysis revealed notable patterns in the application of theoretical and conceptual frameworks of entrepreneurship to higher education phenomena, as well as observable distinctions in how entrepreneurial models are applied in specific organizational, institutional, and geographical contexts Results suggest that there is a paucity of attention paid to the conceptual and theoretical underpinnings of entrepreneurship within higher education scholarship We introduce a framework for strengthening the application of entrepreneurial models to higher education research that is grounded in the theoretical constructs of entrepreneurship as articulated in the economic and management literatures

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The authors examined the relationship between important aspects of a university education and the assessment and development of generic skills and found that students' grade point average was significantly related to scores for all four skill scales both within each discipline area and across the total sample.
Abstract: This study examined relationships between important aspects of a university education and the assessment and development of generic skills. A sample of 323 students enrolled in single or double arts, engineering and/or science degrees from a research-intensive university in Australia were administered the Graduate Skills Assessment to measure four generic skills—critical thinking, interpersonal understandings, problem solving and written communication. As expected, students’ grade point average was generally found to be significantly related to scores for all four skill scales both within each discipline area and across the total sample. Reporting of academic achievement through the GPA therefore provides some measure of students’ generic skill levels. However, since relationships were modest, GPA should be considered an imperfect indicator of levels of generic skills attainment. In addition, we found only limited evidence that students’ skill levels increased with progression through their studies, with study length being consistently related only to Problem Solving. Finally, our analyses revealed significant, interdisciplinary variations in students’ skill scores. Results are discussed with respect to theoretical, practical and methodological implications.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, a series of studies conducted in Sweden 1999-2007 by the authors indicates that the didactical realisation of internationalisation as an educational goal can be very elusive, and the concrete content considered by teachers and students to represent internationalisation did not follow any clear pattern or goal.
Abstract: Internationalisation of higher education is a strategic theme in current research on higher education and policy debate. Both at national and institutional levels, in many countries, internationalisation is stated to be an educational goal. However, the dominant discourse on internationalisation of higher education in research and research-based discussions tends to be framed by political, economic and organisational perspectives, rather than informed by educational considerations. There is also a tendency to place internationalisation in higher education within the conceptual frame of economic globalisation and the increasing trade in educational services worldwide. While such discussions may shed light on various organisational, political or economic issues, this research does not give a pedagogical basis for the internationalisation of higher education in terms of teaching and learning. In particular, questions relating to the internationalisation of content and learning outcomes need to be addressed. A series of studies conducted in Sweden 1999-2007 by the authors indicates that the didactical realisation of internationalisation as an educational goal can be very elusive. In our findings, the concrete content considered by teachers and students to represent internationalisation did not follow any clear pattern or goal. Internationalisation was assumed to be represented by some form of ‘general knowledge’ and general human qualities, without considering cultural differences. Institutionalised curriculum thinking as a basis for developing internationalisation was lacking. Concrete thinking was very much restricted to organisational and administrative aspects, and thoughts concerning content and learning outcomes tended to be expressed in idealised and general terms, rather than developed into clarifying and useful specifications underpinned by curriculum theory. Certain consequences ensuing from this situation are discussed, and a curriculum approach to internationalisation of higher education is suggested.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the impact of instructional development for teachers has been investigated by use of a quasi-experimental design, and the authors reveal that the influence of instruction on teachers' teaching approach being slightly different for teachers belonging to distinct disciplines.
Abstract: Although instructional development for teachers has become an important topic in higher education, little is known about the impact it has on daily teaching practice. The lack of systematic programme evaluation is an ongoing concern. In this study we investigate by use of a quasi-experimental design, the impact of an instructional development program for beginning university teachers on their teaching approach. Quantitative pre-test as well as post-test data were assembled from 20 experimental teachers and 20 control teachers. At the post-test qualitative data were gathered too: 17 teachers of the experimental group and 12 teachers of the control group were interviewed. Paired t-tests and analysis of covariance with the pre-test scores as a covariate showed some effect of instructional development on teaching approach. The analysis of the qualitative data sustained this result. Our results reveal the influence of instructional development on teachers’ teaching approach being slightly different for teachers belonging to distinct disciplines. Several interpretations and perspectives for further research are discussed.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, a scale for the measurement of service quality in higher education in South Africa was developed and the relationship between the measures of quality and some other related variables such as intention to leave the university, trust in management of the university and overall satisfaction with the university was examined.
Abstract: This study commences a process of developing a scale for the measurement of service quality in higher education in South Africa and also examines the relationship between the measures of service quality on the one hand and some other related variables such as intention to leave the university, trust in management of the university and the overall satisfaction with the university. Using structured questionnaires, survey data was collected from students (n = 391) in two South African universities. Findings indicate that the 52-item measure of service quality in higher education is a multidimensional construct loading on 13 factors with a high reliability coefficient (0.93) and some construct validity. Significant relationships were also found between service quality in HE and other study variables—intention to leave university, trust in management of the university and overall satisfaction with the university. Some further research directions were suggested and policy implications of findings discussed.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This article examined the impact of an academic degree and field of study on short and long-term unemployment across Europe (EU15) using the LFS data on over half a million individuals.
Abstract: This paper examines the impact of an academic degree and field of study on short and longterm unemployment across Europe (EU15). Labour Force Survey (LFS) data on over half a million individuals are utilised for that purpose. The harmonized LFS classification of level of education and field of study overcomes past problems of comparability across Europe. The study analyses (1) the effect of an academic degree at a European level, (2) the specific effect of 14 academic subjects and (3) country specific effects. The results indicate that an academic degree is more effective on reducing the likelihood of short-term than long-term unemployment. This general pattern even though it is observed for most of the academic subjects its levels show significant variation across disciplines and countries.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The authors explored the role of the Canadian federal government in two foreign policy areas: overseas development assistance and international cultural relations by providing a brief history of the federal government's engagement in both policy areas and highlighting the contributions and challenges of Canadian foreign policy to the internationalization of Canadian higher education.
Abstract: This paper explores the role of the Canadian federal government in two foreign policy areas: overseas development assistance and international cultural relations by providing a brief history of the federal government’s engagement in both policy areas and highlighting the contributions and challenges of Canadian foreign policy to the internationalization of Canadian higher education. More broadly, the paper explores the unique characteristics of the Canadian federal government’s role in higher education policy making, and in particular, its relations with academics and the university community. Ironically in a world increasingly characterized by greater international education flows, in Canada, there has been a narrowing of vision, a focus on more short rather than long term objectives and a limited engagement of dialogue between academics and the government to promote both development assistance and international education as Canada’s soft power.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This paper found that those from higher socio-economic backgrounds are more likely to aspire to attend university and that there is little difference in the level of importance placed on the views of parents between students from English and non-English speaking background.
Abstract: Using data from a recent survey of Australian secondary students, we find that those from higher socio-economic backgrounds are more likely to aspire to attend university. The same can be said for students who do not speak English at home. We find that students with an ethnic minority background are more likely to perceive higher levels of support from parents. However, we find that all students believe they receive encouragement from their parents to do well at school (rather than discouragement or disinterest), and that there is little difference in the level of importance placed on the views of parents between students from English and non-English speaking background. While interest in university education is strong across all socio-economic groups, particularly for students who do not speak English at home, there is a considerable gap between aspirations and enrolment levels. We suggest that this ‘aspirations gap’ is larger for students from low socio-economic backgrounds. This analysis also supports growing evidence that the postcode methodology for allocating socio-economic status to individuals is unreliable.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors analyzed the dropout rate of the economics and business faculty of Sapienza University of Rome and found statistically significant effect of students' characteristics, like citizenship and income, while the main findings relate a high dropout probability to a high secondary school final mark and a low individual students' performance.
Abstract: University students’ drop-out is a crucial issue for the universities’ efficiency evaluation and funding. In this paper, we analyze the drop-out rate of the Economics and Business faculty of Sapienza University of Rome. We use administrative data on 9,725 undergraduates students enrolled in three-years bachelor programs from 2001 to 2007 and perform a Generalized Linear Mixed Model. Our aim is to improve the general understanding of the students’ withdrawing focusing on personal characteristics of students rather than on institutional aspects of the university. The empirical analysis unveils the statistically significant effect of students’ characteristics, like citizenship and income, while the main findings relate a high drop-out probability to a high secondary school final mark and a low individual students’ performance.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigated the extent to which instruction in research publication provided in the context under study attends to the four domains of competence, namely, scholarly communication, strategic research conception, strategic management of publishing.
Abstract: As a result of globalization, universities in some Asian countries now require their faculty members, by way of carrot or stick, to research and publish internationally. In tenure, promotion, contract renewal and faculty recruitment exercises, rate of publication in reputed journals based in the US and the UK has become a major criterion of assessment. The stakes involved in publication in many of these contexts, have created ripple effects on their doctoral students, many of whom are now under pressure to publish internationally during their doctoral tenure in order to secure professoriate employment upon graduation. Yet, publishing during the doctoral years is rarely an easy task not least because it is a taxing endeavor even for practicing academics. Challenges of publishing multiply when it is done in a period when the new researcher is already intensively engaged in the daunting tasks of researching and thesis-writing. However, what make publishing most challenging for students in these contexts are perhaps its linguistic demands and the need to make their work relevant to the international academic community. Given the stakes and difficulties involved in publishing internationally during and beyond the doctoral years, instruction in research publication (IRP) need be given some priority in doctoral programs in the Asian contexts. However, to what extent is IRP in place and to what extent can the instruction prepare students to face the various challenges of publishing in the early phase of their academic career? The questions remain largely under-explored in the literature. The study reported in this paper is a response to this lacuna by examining the IRP provided in the universities in Hong Kong. The study assumes that to succeed in publishing internationally, one needs to develop competence of three major domains, namely, scholarly communication, strategic research conception, strategic management of publishing. And in the context of doctoral undertaking, an added domain is that of strategic management of thesis-publishing. The study investigated the extent to which the IRP provided in the context under study attends to the four domains of competence. Methods of investigation involved an analysis of documents of research degree programs and courses (n = 155) offered in seven doctoral degree granting universities and interviews with doctoral students (n = 30). Findings suggest that instructional attention tends to be skewed towards developing students’ scholarly communication while competence in the other three domains remains relatively under-addressed. Pedagogical implications will be discussed.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigated the efficacy of gender equality policy measures in all 14 universities in the Netherlands, implemented between 2000 and 2007, and revealed a positive relationship between policy measures and the reduction of the glass ceiling and between policies in the cultural perspective and the increase of the proportion of women among professors.
Abstract: Are policies to increase women’s share among university professors effective? The importance of gender equality on the labor market has been well established, but our understanding of what kind of policy is effective to increase the share of women is still unclear. Three sets of factors explain women’s low shares at higher job levels, notably individual, cultural, and structural or institutional perspectives, and policies to increase the proportion of women therefore should address these factors. This paper aims to investigate if they do so and if they are effective. We investigated the efficacy of gender equality policy measures in all 14 universities in the Netherlands, implemented between 2000 and 2007. Based on documents and interviews, 19 measures were identified that could be classified according to the three perspectives. The university with the most measures applied four times more measures than the one with the least measures. The more measures a university applied in the cultural perspective, the more likely it also applied measures in the other two perspectives. Whereas the HR managers and policy makers at universities reported skepticism and lack of evaluations, our study reveals a positive relationship between policy measures and the reduction of the glass ceiling and between policies in the cultural perspective and the increase of the proportion of women among professors.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, an alternative for Tinto's integration theory of student persistence is proposed and tested, in which time available for individual study is considered a major determinant of both study duration and graduation rate.
Abstract: In this article, an alternative for Tinto's integration theory of student persistence is proposed and tested. In the proposed theory, time available for individual study is considered a major determinant of both study duration and graduation rate of students in a particular curriculum. In this view, other activities in the curriculum, in particular lectures, constrain self-study time and therefore must have a negative impact on persistence. To test this theory, we collected study duration and graduation rate information of all-almost 14,000 students-enrolling in eight Dutch medical schools between 1989 and 1998. In addition, information was gathered regarding the timetables of each of these curricula in the particular period: lectures hours, hours spent in small-group tutorials, practicals, and time available for self-study. Structural equation modeling was used to study relations among these variables. In line with our predictions, time available for self-study was the only determinant of graduation rate and study duration. Lectures were negatively related to self-study time, negatively related to graduation rate, and positively related to study duration. The results suggest that extensive lecturing may be detrimental in higher education. However, in the curricula employing limited lecturing considerable energy was spent in supporting self-study activities of students and preventing postponement of learning. Given our findings, both activities will likely have large pay offs, in particular in curricula with low graduation rates.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Hong Kong has moved from elite to mass post-secondary education in a very short space of time and at little cost to the Government as discussed by the authors. But the achievement has been clouded by complaints from associate degree graduates that the articulation envisaged by the government is not working; so they are unable to obtain places for undergraduate degrees in UGC-funded universities.
Abstract: Hong Kong has moved from elite to mass post-secondary education in a very short space of time and at little cost to the Government. Most of this spectacular expansion in participation has come through enrolments in 2 year associate degrees in recently founded community colleges, which have self-financing status. The achievement has been clouded by complaints from associate degree graduates that the articulation envisaged by the government is not working; so they are unable to obtain places for undergraduate degrees in UGC-funded universities. The value of an associate degree as a suitable terminal award for employment in a knowledge-based economy is yet to be clearly established. There must be doubts as to whether students will continue to enrol in associate degrees if they provide stepping stones to neither employment nor places in undergraduate degrees in UGC-funded universities. In an attempt to deal with the lack of articulation, some community colleges, in conjunction with overseas universities, have started to offer top-up degrees to enable associate degree graduates to convert the award to a degree. However, the resulting qualifications are seen as inferior to undergraduate degrees from the UGC-funded universities.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the role of the World Bank in advancing higher education sectors in the developing world, considering in particular the increasing power and strength of a global knowledge-based economy, is examined.
Abstract: This article examines the role of the World Bank in advancing higher education sectors in the developing world, considering in particular the increasing power and strength of a global knowledge-based economy. Given the powerful role that intergovernmental organizations such as the World Bank play in shaping global economic policies, the authors are concerned about how the Bank’s policies and actions may limit knowledge generation and capacity building of universities in the developing world. Relatedly, the authors use case studies of the Bank’s involvement in Thailand and Uganda to better understand the role it plays in producing and reproducing forms of global hegemony. The authors discuss hegemony in terms of neocolonialism and neoliberalism. Neocolonialism is described as forms of domination advanced by powerful nations and their institutions, while neoliberalism is understood as an economic ideology by which weaker nations may be brought into greater alignment with global trade initiatives.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors conducted a study with 257 professors from ten different schools of the Universidad Complutense de Madrid to understand faculty knowledge and attitudes about changes in higher education in Europe.
Abstract: The main objective of the Bologna Process is to create a “European space” for higher education that allows for comparability, compatibility, and coherence between the existing systems of higher education across Europe. This objective is commonly known as the European higher education area (EHEA). The creation of the EHEA is a new and specific challenge for higher education in Europe, one that depends upon improved faculty development and training across Europe. The integration of Spain and other European countries into European higher education more generally entails these challenges. In order for necessary changes in faculty development and training to take place, university managers and policy makers must account for designing training plans, as well the knowledge, attitudes and needs of faculty members. This investigation was undertaken with these themes in mind. Conducted in Madrid, Spain, it included 257 professors from ten different schools of the Universidad Complutense de Madrid. The aim of the investigation was to understand faculty knowledge and attitudes about changes in higher education in Europe. Moreover, with an eye to helping faculty members cope with the change that is accompanying the creation of EHEA, the investigators sought to understand the importance that faculty members place upon professional development and how current approaches to professional development at the university level could be improved. The results indicate a degree of ignorance regarding changes in European higher education as well as a feeling of resistance on the part of many faculty members. While many faculty members consider knowledge of change processes and adaptability to be important qualities, faculty responses also indicate a clear need for guidance if they are going to integrate new learning models and adequate coping strategies into their work in higher education.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, a review of the systems applied to the OECD countries, with special attention to Spain, demonstrates the difficulty involved in establishing classification criteria for existing indicators, on which there is currently no consensus.
Abstract: Higher Education Institutions are undergoing important changes involving the development of new roles and missions, with implications for their structure. Governments and institutions are implementing strategies to ensure the proper performance of universities and several studies have investigated evaluation of universities through the development and use of indicator systems. In this paper, we review some of the systems applied to the OECD countries, with special attention to Spain. We demonstrate the difficulty involved in establishing classification criteria for existing indicators, on which there is currently no consensus.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, Tait et al. examined the validity of the Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students (ASSIST) for Portuguese undergraduate students and found that three main factors correspond to the original dimensions of the inventory (deep, surface apathetic and strategic approaches to learning).
Abstract: This paper examines the validity of the Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students—short version (ASSIST; Tait et al. in Improving student learning: Improving students as learners, 1998), to be used with Portuguese undergraduate students. The ASSIST was administrated to 566 students, in order to analyse a Portuguese version of this inventory. Exploratory factor analysis (principal axis factor analysis followed by direct oblimin rotation) reproduced the three main factors that correspond to the original dimensions of the inventory (deep, surface apathetic and strategic approaches to learning). The results are consistent with the background theory on approaches to learning. Additionally, the reliability analysis revealed acceptable internal consistency indexes for the main scales and subscales. This inventory might represent a valuable research tool for the assessment of approaches to learning among Portuguese higher education students.