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The argument of my paper is that higher education in China is going through a process of totalitarianization and democratization at the same time. On the one hand there are organizational controls and ideological indoctrination of students and cooptation of the faculty by the Party-state. On the other hand, there are democratic breakthroughs on the part of both students and professors. Whatever happens in the ivory tower inevitably affects what happens outside of it. Whether the Party-state is going in the direction of totalitarianism or democracy depends on the result of the tug-of-war between the forces of totalitarianization and democratization in both state and society. My analysis is based on an examination of the available data in research from a perspective of the sociology of higher education. I hope that a better understanding of what happens at the university and the role of higher education in China's development will help all the stakeholders of higher education in making wiser policies and practical decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper aims to discuss the outreach strategies of higher education institutions (HEIs) to promote the inclusion of refugees, focusing on two case studies of programs in southern Brazil. Design/methodology/approach: This paper analyzes two outreach programs of Brazilian universities: the Welcome Program for Immigrants (Programa Acolhida ao Imigrante) of the University of South Santa Catarina, a private higher education institution and the Support Center for Immigrants and Refugees (Núcleo de Apoio ao Imigrantes e Refugiados), sponsored by the Federal University of Santa Catarina, a public university. The activities of the two institutions were compared with the targets of the sustainable development goals to discuss the outreach strategies of HEIs aimed at promoting the inclusion of refugees, through descriptive research, with a qualitative approach based on documentary and bibliographic research. Findings: The results show that academic participation in research and outreach programs provides refugees with an education but also represents a social contribution far beyond qualifications and technical training, by mitigating local and global problems. The practice of inclusive education allows a reduction in historically existing inequalities. The findings of this study indicate that the results are much more effective when universities, government and society work together to reduce inequalities. Originality/value: This study addressed how universities can and should ensure life quality (SDG 3), including an equitable education and fostering lifelong learning opportunities for everybody (SDG 4) and gender equality (SDG 5), to reduce unemployment (SDG 8) and inequalities among people (SDG 10), through outreach projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The agency of international students has long been neglected and undertheorised, though recent literature indicates that this has started to change. This paper systematically reviews 51 studies that address student agency in international higher education. Focusing on research published in the last two decades (2000–2020), the review draws on studies that foreground student voices, or international students' perspectives, rather than the perspectives of teachers, administrators or policymakers. A detailed discussion of how international student agency is positioned in the literature found that agency appears as either: a research object, as part of a theoretical or conceptual framework, or an emergent finding. Furthermore, our analysis suggests that the term "agency" is often used as a buzzword rather than as a fleshed-out concept. Thus, drawing on this initial analysis, the review synthesises varying but overlapping conceptualisations of international student agency in the literature into an integrative framework. Implications for future research are drawn, based on our findings about the understudied populations and methodological limitations in the literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a sociologically informed analysis of the historically changing relation between education and society. Using a set of socio-geographical methods and longitudinal data from population censuses, we explore changes in the forms of educational inclusion and exclusion in the period 1961 to 2011. We analyse, more particularly, changes in the geographical segregation and clustering of both high- and low-schooled individuals, while geographical proximity determines the kind of social contacts people normally have. Our findings show, firstly, that the segregation of university-trained human capital within Belgium and its regions has remained high, in spite of the expansion of university education and the creation of "regional" universities. Highly educated individuals now increasingly attract one another; they increasingly search for an environment in which they are able to meet people with a similar educational background. Our findings show, secondly, different evolutions for early school leavers. While the overall decrease in the share of early school leavers has gone hand in hand with decreasing heterogeneity within Belgium, our analyses point to increasing divergences between Flanders, on the one hand, and Wallonia and Brussels, on the other. In large parts of Wallonia and Brussels, the labour markets suffer from comparatively high shares of early school leavers. We conclude that the coupling between education and society has changed in the period under consideration. We question, however, that education has become a dominant social system. We rather argue that historical analyses of geographical inequalities in educational participation shed light on the complexity and heterogeneity of society. Cet article présente une analyse sociologique de l'histoire de la relation entre l'éducation et la société. Par le biais d'un ensemble de méthodes sociogéographiques et de données longitudinales issues de recensements de la population, cette étude analyse les changements historiques dans les formes d'inclusion et d'exclusion scolaire dans la période 1961 à 2011 en Belgique. Nous analysons plus particulièrement les changements historiques de la ségrégation géographique et le clustering des individus hautement et peu scolarisées, sachant que la proximité géographique détermine le type de liens sociaux que tissent normalement les individus. Nos constats montrent, tout d'abord, que, en Belgique et dans ses régions, la ségrégation du capital humain formé à l'université est demeurée élevée malgré l'expansion de l'enseignement universitaire et la création des universités 'régionales'. Les individus hautement scolarisés de plus en plus s'attirent mutuellement les uns les autres; ils recherchent ainsi un environnement dans lequel ils peuvent rencontrer des personnes ayant un niveau de formation similaire. Nos résultats montrent, d'autre part, des évolutions différentes pour les abandons scolaires. Si en Belgique la diminution globale chez les 'abandons' va de pair avec une hétérogénéité scolaire décroissante, nos analyses indiquent des divergences croissantes entre la Flandre, d'une part, et la Wallonie et Bruxelles, d'autre part. Dans une grande partie de la Wallonie et de Bruxelles, le marché du travail souffre d'une proportion relativement élevée de jeunes qui quittent précocement l'école. Nous concluons que l'accouplement entre l'éducation et la société a changé au cours de la période analysée. Nous remettons cependant en question l'hypothése que l'éducation soit devenue un systéme social dominant. Nous soutenons plutôt que les analyses historiques des inégalités géographiques dans la participation à l'éducation mettent en lumiére la complexité et l'hétérogénéité de la société contemporaine. Dieser Aufsatz präsentiert eine soziologisch informierte Analyse des historisch veränderten Verhältnisses zwischen Erziehung und Gesellschaft. Anhand einer Reihe von sozio-geografischen Methoden und Längsschnittdaten aus Volkszählungen untersuchen wir Veränderungen in den Formen der Inklusion und Exklusion von Schulerziehung im Zeitraum 1961-2011. Wir analysieren insbesondere Veränderungen in der geografischen Segregation und Clustering von Personen mit hohem und niedrigem Schulabschluss, weil die geografische Nähe die Art der sozialen Kontakte bestimmt, die Individuen normalerweise haben. Unsere Ergebnisse zeigen zum einen, dass die Trennung des von Universitäten ausgebildeten Humankapitals in Belgien und seinen Regionen trotz des Ausbaus der Hochschulen und der Schaffung "regionaler" Universitäten hoch geblieben ist. Hochgebildete Individuen ziehen sich zunehmend an; sie suchen vermehrt nach einem Umfeld, in dem sie Individuen mit einem ähnlichen Bildungshintergrund treffen können. Unsere Ergebnisse zeigen zweitens unterschiedliche Entwicklungen für frühzeitige Schulabbrecher. Während der allgemeine Rückgang des Anteils der Schulabbrecher mit einer abnehmenden Heterogenität in Belgien einherging, deuten unsere Analysen auf wachsende Unterschiede zwischen Flandern einerseits und Wallonien und Brüssel andererseits hin. In weiten Teilen Walloniens und Brüssels leiden die Arbeitsmärkte unter einem vergleichsweise hohen Anteil von Schulabbrechern. Wir schließen daraus, dass sich die Kopplung zwischen Schulerziehung und Gesellschaft im betrachteten Zeitraum geändert hat. Wir stellen jedoch in Frage, dass Erziehung zu einem dominanten gesellschaftlichen Funktionssystem geworden ist. Wir argumentieren vielmehr, dass historische Analysen geografischer Ungleichheiten im Falle von Schulerziehung gerade die Komplexität und Heterogenität der heutigen Gesellschaft beleuchten. Este artículo presenta un análisis sociológico de la relación cambiante entre educación y sociedad a lo largo de la historia. Utilizando un conjunto de métodos socio-geográficos y datos longitudinales de los censos de población, analizamos los cambios en las formas de inclusión y exclusión educativa en el pertíodo de 1961 a 2011. Analizamos, más espectíficamente, los cambios en la segregación geográfica y la agregación tanto de individuos de alto nivel de escolaridad como de bajo nivel de escolar, considerando que la proximidad geográfica determina el tipo de vínculos sociales que normalmente desarrollan las personas. Nuestros hallazgos muestran, en primer lugar, que la segregación del capital humano con formación universitaria en Bélgica como al interior de sus regiones, se ha mantenido alta a pesar de la expansión de la educación universitaria y la creación de universidades 'regionales'. Las personas con un alto nivel educativo se atraen cada vez más entre sí y buscan cada vez más un entorno en el que puedan conocer a otras con una formación académica de simila [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim/Purpose: This paper focuses on understanding undergraduate computing student-learning behaviour through reviewing their online activity in a university online learning management system (LMS), along with their grade outcome, across three subjects. A specific focus is on the activity of students who failed the computing subjects. Background: Between 2008 and 2020 there has been a multiplicative growth and adoption of Learning Analytics (LA) by education institutions across many countries. Insights gained through LA can result in actionable implementations at higher institutions for the benefit of students, including refinement of curriculum and assessment regimes, teacher reflection, and more targeted course offerings. Methodology: To understand student activity, this study utilised a quantitative approach to analyse LMS activity and grade outcome data drawn from three undergraduate computing subjects. Data analysis focused on presenting counts and averages to show an understanding of student activity. Contribution: This paper contributes a practical approach towards LA use in higher education, demonstrating how a review of student activity can impact the learning design of the computing subjects. In addition, this study has provided a focus on poor performing students so that future offerings of the computing subjects can support students who are at risk of failure. Findings: The study found that: • Collecting data relating to student activity and analysing the activity is an important indicator of engagement, with cross referencing the data to grade outcome providing information to support modification to the learning design of the computing subjects. • The computing subjects in this study all had the majority of the assessment marks awarded at the later part of the study period. • Students that fail subjects are active within the LMS for the period of the subject even when they submit no assessments • Assessment weight and the time of delivery could influence the outcomes. Recommendations for Practitioners: The collection and analysis of student activity in the LMS can enable learning designers and practitioners to better reflect the subject design and delivery to provide more informed ways of delivering the learning material. Recommendations for Researchers: Collecting LA requires a thought-out process, designed well in advance of the teaching period. This study provides useful insight that can impact other researchers in the collection of assessment related analytics. Impact on Society: The cost of education is expensive to those that undertake it. Failing, although expected, potentially can be reduced by examining how education is designed, delivered, and assessed. The study has shown how information on how students are engaging has the potential to impact their outcomes. Future Research: Further work is needed to investigate whether intervention may assist the poor performing students to improve their grade outcomes relative to activity levels, subsequently impacting their retention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim/Purpose: The aim of this study is to adopt more systematically the collaborative learning dimension in the technical translation teaching at Master Degree level. In order to do so, a computer-supported skills lab approach is targeted. This approach is aimed at enhancing traditional courses on Computer-Assisted Translation (CAT) so that student competences and soft skills are enhanced. Background: In traditional CAT courses, laboratory sessions complement theoretical lessons, thus providing students mainly with tool-oriented operational knowledge, while nowadays more intertwined competences are required by the labor market. Moreover, this sector lacks skills labs which engage students in collaborative activities mimicking professional workflows, thus not exploiting team-based learning potential effectiveness. Methodology: In this paper, therefore, a design Methodology to deploy and operate an enhanced skills lab as a remote Computer-Supported Collaborative Simulated Translation Bureau (CS2TB) is proposed and validated. The proposed Methodology is based on a set of intertwined methodological frameworks that address: 1) student competences and educational requirements, 2) collaborative aspects, 3) regulatory policies as well as functional and interactional guidelines for the simulated fieldwork. The overall effectiveness of the proposed Methodology has been assessed by using pre-post questionnaires to ascertain student feedback. The improvement in technology skills has been evaluated by collecting and examining student help requests as well as system error logs. Contribution: The CS2TB provides a technology-enhanced simulation-based learning environment whose aim is twofold: first, enriching traditional approaches with a Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) experience and, second, incorporating widely adopted approaches for the translation-teaching domain as the required grounding knowledge. Findings: Results demonstrate the effectiveness of CS2TB in improving students' competences (specifically in the IT area but also in the technical translation area), students' willingness to operate in a fieldwork-like context and cooperative learning efficacy. Recommendations for Practitioners: The educational implications of the proposed approach concern the development of a full range of competences and soft skills for students in the technical translation teaching at the higher education level, ranging from language and translation proficiency to the usage of IT platforms as well as personal and interpersonal interactional soft skills. Recommendations for Researchers: This study offers a wide overview of all the aspects entailed by the design, implementation, management, and evaluation of a skills lab for technical translation teaching. Researchers may benefit from the rigorous modelling approach as well as from the adopted assessment techniques. Moreover, the study stresses the pivotal role of a tight collaboration between language/translation teaching and computer engineering. Impact on Society: Higher education institutions that already have courses on computer-assisted translation may benefit from the proposed CS2TB approach, which allows them to design new thematic activities leveraging team-based learning, collaborative learning, and fieldwork-situated simulation. Moreover, the presented broad range of assessment approaches can be used to measure the impact of CS2TB on learning outcomes of the involved students. Future Research: Future research activities will be dedicated to examining the impact of a different set of enabling IT platforms on the collaborative learning perspective, to evaluate alternative scaffolding approaches (e.g., chatbots or augmented reality), and to increase simulation fidelity further, so that even more student competences can be fostered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article is about ‘making’ in education. Often associated with software programming (as in ‘digital making’), making can also involve creating or modifying physical technological artefacts. In this paper, making is examined as a phenomenon that occurs at the intersection of culture, the economy, technology and education. The focus is not on the effects on cognitive gains or motivations, but on locating making in a social, historical and economic context. Making is also described as a form of ‘material connotation’, where connotation refers to the process through which the technical structure of artefacts is altered by culture and society. In the second part of the paper, the theoretical discussion is complemented by a case study in which making is described as a networked phenomenon where technology companies, consultants, volunteers, schools, and students were all implicated in turning a nebulous set of practices and discourses into an educational reality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose Higher education institutions are regarded as forerunners and pioneers of sustainability. However, it is to question whether they actually fulfill their role model function. This paper aims to reveal whether selected universities in Australia and Austria meet the reporting expectations about their activities on sustainability in very heterogeneous environments.Design/methodology/approach Annual reports of selected universities in Australia and Austria are screened by the qualitative text analysis suggested by Mayring to identify their information policy on sustainability. Following the standard definitions, sustainability comprises economic, environmental and social aspects as main categories, which are supplemented further by specifically adapted eight subcategories.Findings The results reveal that the universities concentrate on economic information, preferably on accounting, whereas social aspects are of second importance. Environmental activities that essentially shape the image of sustainability for the majority of the stakeholders are mostly unattended.Research limitations/implications For further research, the authors suggest analyzing the reports of additional countries to get a bigger picture on the role of sustainability information in university reporting. Possible limitations are because of language use and time requirements, as each report must be encoded manually.Practical implications The results reveal the gaps that standard setters should fill by enforcing sustainability content in universities’ reports.Originality/value This paper is the first to analyze the annual reports of international universities in respect to sustainability. Hereby, we further fill a gap by applying a qualitative text analysis on the basis of individually derived categories to reveal the sustainability aspects more precisely. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper considers the role of independent research in helping an education and training system ‘know itself’, illustrating this through the experience of the Centre for Educational Sociology (CES) of which David Raffe was a member and director. It highlights the tensions in the research-policy relationship arising from the different ‘normative worlds’ of researchers and policy makers, and their priorities at each stage of the policy cycle. It shows how such tensions have been evident in the research-policy relationship in Scotland pre- and post-devolution and points out the importance of the plural provision of research support and funding. The paper argues the need for system-wide, longitudinal data to enable a country to 𠼘know’ its education and training system and analyse the impact of government policies and wider societal change. It points out that Scotland no longer collects such data and so cannot interrogate and understand its education and training system. The failure of policy makers to learn from the experience of their own country’s past is noted; the paper concludes by reaffirming the need for research to challenge policy and policy-makers, especially in a system such as Scotland with a tendency to complacency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of the paper is to discuss the most crucial problem, related to "winding down" of the Russian Liberal Arts education due to its economic inefficiency. The methodology includes the descriptive scientific-research method, which involves the analysis of scientific sources, official provisions, mass-media publications and the students' questionnaire. The authors came to the following conclusions: 1. The model of education, which is guided by the logic of economic growth, and not by the logic of human development, leads to a general dehumanization of education and society. 2. The process of education "dehumanizing" is manifested in the following destructive trends: pragmatic utility and convenience of gaining knowledge; the dominance of technical knowledge and the transfer of humanitarian disciplines into optional courses; the advance of online education; the imperfection of university lecturers' ratings and their transformation into a bureaucratic evaluation system; new types of inequality in education. 3. In Russia, the above-mentioned trends are aggravated by the abnormal establishment of market economy; the verticalization of power and the lack of professionalism in university management; social sphere underfunding; the aggressive implementation of the Bologna system. 4. The current crisis in education is accompanied by the large-scale emigration of gifted students and lecturers. The authors recommend to consider the University as a classical "home" of formation, preservation and transfer of culture; online courses should be seen as a new format of teaching aids, as well as a technological tool for retraining and for people with disabilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper takes up an existing discussion around critical perspectives on adult education, in particular how empowerment and emancipation have been understood. Previously in this journal, concern has been raised with traditional understandings of critical adult education. The problem is that these tend to assume that learners require assistance from experts, be they teachers or researchers, in order to gain understanding of how they are oppressed. The purpose of this paper is to present a deeper engagement with this concern through an examination of how both empowering and emancipatory adult education have been understood and practised. The demarcation is examined in the context of the historical development of critical understandings and practices associated with adult literacies learning, as a significant field of adult education where the idea of empowerment and emancipation has been theorised. The ideas and practices associated with empowering literacies are defended as ways for learners to gain positions from which to speak and be heard, as well as support participation in work, community and family life. Informed by the ideas of Jacques Rancière, there is also acknowledgement that societal inequalities are increasing, necessitating a need to consider how adult education might encourage political transformation and emancipation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper uses Bourdieu’s concept of ‘field’ as a tool to examine higher education participation in England in the context of diversified and differentiated provision. Admissions practices for courses in two institutions offering tertiary and higher education demonstrate how the official rules of the game shape the experience of students moving into and through HE on vocational and alternative routes. These examples suggest that rules created for the ‘selective’ part of the HE field can have perverse effects on other parts of the field, creating barriers rather than bridges for students seeking to participate in HE via alternative routes. The paper concludes by considering the strengths and limitations of using Bourdieu’s tools for understanding diversification in HE. Does using Bourdieu lead to the inevitable conclusion that diversity is a form of diversion, directing a proportion of the population through an easily accessible, but ultimately less rewarding path, or can Bourdieu’s tools suggest possibilities for transformation and change? [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

An inclusive education goes beyond the acquisition of discipline knowledge or skills. Inclusion is concerned with the participation and integration of all students (regardless of their intrinsic characteristics), helping them to develop civic competences. Civic and democratic values, equality and social justice became critical dimensions in this broader concept of education. This paper argues that the incorporation of civic dimensions, such as civic knowledge, civic skills or civic values in academic curricula could be an effective step towards more inclusive education. Specifically, this work intends to explore what civic dimensions are emphasised as a learning outcome in Portuguese higher education programmes. Adopting a qualitative methodology, typologies and incidence of civic learning outcomes were analysed and compared across three academic levels (first, second and third study cycles). The results provide a better understanding of what civic dimensions are stressed by institutions. All types of civic learning outcomes have been reinforced, defining civic values, civic skills and civic knowledge as expectable learning results. Both civic values and skills are well represented while civic knowledge is the less mentioned category. The enforcement of such civic dimensions is a valuable approach to enhancing education as a collective societal endeavour and as a common good. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the role that social characteristics play in determining the academic success of students who begin university with roughly similar entry grades. The data used were drawn from the administrative records of over 38,000 UK-domiciled undergraduate students from one British university between 1998 and 2009. Results show that the characteristics of entrants have varied only slightly over this period and intake is still largely in favour of ‘traditional’ entrants: namely those from professional occupational backgrounds, the privately educated and those of traditional age. The relationship between background characteristics and eventual academic success also reflects patterns seen at earlier education stages. However, when prior attainment was taken into account, the link between degree outcome and many social characteristics does diminish – notably for students who were privately educated and who came from professional occupational groups. This suggests that once students have overcome barriers to admission, it is entry grades rather than social characteristics that may most strongly influence eventual academic success. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper examines the idea of the university from the first-in-family enabling students' perspective. It provides an overview of the current crisis of meaning in scholarly commentary that points to a spectrum of meanings about the university. This spectrum ranges from the ancient imaginary of the monastic university as 'ivory tower' to the instrumental idea of the entrepreneurial university. The analysis then reports on the idea of the university in over 40 interviews and surveys of first-in-family enabling students who attended two large regional Australian universities in 2014. Their metaphorical understandings of the university constitute a powerful imaginary about what a university is and can do for individuals and the wider society. For many, the resolution of the individualistic passion for knowledge of 'ivory tower' studies and the commitment to the social and economic usefulness of the fully engaged entrepreneurial university can be found in the pursuit of the passionate career. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the epistemological diversity and indigenous praxis present in intercultural education, through the case of Instituto Superior Intercultural Ayuuk (isia) in Jaltepec, Oaxaca, Mexico. The main objectives are to outline the range of conceptions of intercultural education, describe its key articulations, and explore the way that knowledge is conceived, constructed, and transmitted in this institute. Two arguments are stated: a) The lack of a predetermined meaning in intercultural higher education allows people from diverse backgrounds to become interested in and form part of this project, enabling new epistemological diversity; b) Although isia uses the praxis and social organization of the Ayuuk people, a more profound dialogue is still lacking among diverse types of knowledge and epistemological frameworks. Therefore, isia represents an important case for exploring the negotiation among diverse perspectives to construct a unique vision of intercultural higher education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports on a recent study of aspirations for higher education by secondary school students from disadvantaged backgrounds in regional Australia. At the same time, it goes in search of explanations that transcend a Bourdieuian account of aspirations as produced by and reproductive of cultural histories and dominance, given the apparent inadequacy of these accounts in redressing disadvantage. To this end the authors distinguish between historicising and spatialising aspirations, taking up Appadurai’s notion of navigational capacity as a way of advancing greater agency for disadvantaged groups. Data from the research inform the analysis, including the mediation of students’ desired futures by their perception of what is possible given their differentiated locations and access to resources. It is concluded that while this spatial turn in theorising aspiration has potential for changing the terms of recognitioninternalto disadvantaged communities, there remain structural limits on change ‘from below’. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In this paper, we put Basil Bernstein's theory of pedagogic discourse to work together with additional theoretical resources to interrogate knowledge and practice in mathematics teacher education. We illustrate this methodology through analysis of an instance of mathematics teacher education pedagogic practice. While the methodology itself is our focus, the particular example provides a compelling story at the heart of which is the problem of integration of knowledge(s) within a pedagogic practice. Here, a constructivist pedagogy is at work, but differentially with respect to teaching/learning mathematics and teaching/learning mathematics teaching. The example illuminates mathematics and teaching, and their co-constitution in a particular pedagogic context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]