Search

There are three different types of activities performed in higher education institutions that, taken together, form the components of a trilemma in higher education. These include traditional academic activities (research and teaching) and those that aim to transfer knowledge beyond academia (industry-oriented activities). The increased use of digital technology that has resulted from the replacement of face-to-face encounters with digital interactions, or digitalization, is leading to transformations in higher education and is affecting the trilemma; universities face new challenges, and opportunities are emerging. Drawing on lessons learnt from COVID-19, the author explores whether digitalization is helping to bridge the gap between academia and industry.

In this reflective piece, I consider the degree to which Australian universities have become financially dependent on income from foreign students, the reasons for that dependence, the risks it poses and the potential consequences now that COVID-19 has undermined this revenue stream.

Higher education is viewed as part of the national agenda in transforming Malaysia into a high-income nation. This has resulted in a sky-rocketing number of graduates in Malaysia's recent history. Industry relies on higher education as the source of skilled employees, and it is important for industry to attract and retain talented employees in their effort to remain competitive in the market. This article presents an overview of the higher education system in Malaysia that has in the recent years jumped onto the "industry-driven" wagon. The impacts of both industry-driven and society-driven systems are discussed. The article concludes with practical recommendations for higher education institutions in Malaysia to encourage a balanced higher education policy and strategy that can blend industry-driven and society-driven approaches as a joint-agenda for institutions of higher learning.

The founding of the Australian system of higher education closely parallels the creation of public postsecondary education in the United States during the nineteenth century. Their subsequent histories reflect a growing recognition of postsecondary education's capacity to shape the economic prospects not only of individuals, but of entire nations. Less recognized are the ways individual institutions (which collectively constitute these systems) affect their local communities. In this article, we briefly outline the economic impact of postsecondary education in Australia and the United States and then describe how a research university in each country, the University of Pennsylvania in West Philadelphia and the University of Queensland, has served as a key anchor institution for its local area. A variety of factors are explored, including local context, funding sources, university leadership, and institutional mission.

Concept maps are used to assess student and cohort learning of sustainable development. The concept maps of 732 first-year engineering students were individually analyzed to detect patterns of learning and areas that were not well understood. Students were given 20 minutes each to prepare a concept map of at least 20 concepts using paper and pen. The maps were then analyzed using three different methods. The first method considers only the structure of the map by quantifying its features. The second method considers the content and comprehensiveness of the map by classifying every concept included using a new taxonomy. The third method scores the maps against a rubric that considers the correctness of the maps' propositions as well as the maps' comprehensiveness and complexity. The results show that concept maps are a useful tool in assessing the knowledge and understanding of sustainable development concepts and that the students surveyed have a good awareness about the technical, social and environmental aspects of the domain. They did not include many concepts relating to equity and economic impact of sustainable development policies.

Higher education, especially that leading to a degree from a high-prestige university, is strongly related to social status and employment opportunities in East Asian countries. This is a consequence of both traditional Confucian attitudes to education and the social and economic changes accompanying industrialisation. Since the number of places available at high-prestige universities is limited, competition is intense. Successful entry to such a university is not only an important achievement for the future career of the student, but also a victory for the family. In contrast, failure to do so is often seen as shameful for the family, sometimes resulting in psychological problems or suicide. This background affects the international education of East Asian students, who often have a high level of family support, with correspondingly high expectations of their success. Motives for international study vary, from avoidance of the hyper-competitive domestic system, pursuit of an overseas degree as an "easy option" of moderate prestige, to an expectation of more up-to-date teaching and content. Understanding this background can be a first step for Australian or other Western educators to better meet the needs of East Asian international students and to attract students from East Asia in the long term.

Powerful nations have influential systems of higher education. The article explores the possible pattern of geopolitics in the twenty-first century, and the competing prospects of America and its rivals in higher education and research. Pressures on both the American and non-American worlds are evaluated, along with relative economic strengths, and how factors such as these translate into intellectual prowess. The article suggests that peak intellectual and research achievement is dependent on cultural factors, and that America remains well positioned as an intellectual nation despite fierce competition from rivals because of unique cultural characteristics. (Contains 6 notes.)

Background: The extent to which the global financial crisis (GFC) has impacted upon teacher education in universities in Australia is potentially, like most other aspects of teacher education, a contested area. Purpose, aims/questions: The aim of this article is to examine the impact the GFC along with other funding constraints, has had on teacher education in Australia. Sources of evidence: On the surface we could cite some aspects of teacher education which may point to a significant impact of the GFC such as funding from the government not keeping pace with other OECD countries' spending on higher education in general and teacher education in particular, increased pressure to find appropriate practicum placements for students, increased staff/student ratios, reduction of hours for teaching in university courses, obsession with profit margins and cost-driver budget models. However, all of these issues were evident or at least immanent before we started hearing about the GFC. Alistair Mant in his book "Intelligent Leadership" (Crow's Nest, NSW: Allen and Unwin; 1997) employs the metaphor of frogs and bicycles to describe organisations and systems. Universities and most organisations are in fact more naturally like frogs than bicycles. They are organic in that all parts interact to create the whole and they are complex systems, which are not susceptible to technical, machine-like approaches. A bicycle is a machine and a frog is a living thing. Main argument: Governments view universities as bicycles or machines, and this thinking is further reinforced through the introduction of a market forces model. Teacher education when treated as a bicycle when it is really more of a frog, shows signs of adaptation for as long as it can cope with various bits being cut off, but then will become unsustainable. While the impact of the GFC in Australia generally was much less severe than in many other countries, the continued starving of teacher education of adequate funding over a long period has taken its toll as reflected in unduly high staff student ratios, an over-reliance on casual staffing, insufficient funds to support the requirements of practicum placements, unrealistic staff workloads, lack of succession planning and inability to innovate. Conclusion: The issues discussed in this article are likely to be attributable to a highly successful and prolonged period of economic rationalism and policies, which emanate from New Right ideologies. The influence of neo-conservative and neo-liberal policies is well in evidence in universities generally and in Australia, successive governments have underfunded higher education.

The purpose of the doctorate and the desirable outcomes of doctoral education are the focus of debates in the UK, the USA, Australia and other Organisation for Economic Development countries. Part of that reconceptualisation of the doctorate includes a growing international interest in university-industry research, which, as a consequence, has become one of the emergent features of contemporary doctoral programs. This article, which draws on findings from a research study in an Australian university, focuses on the impact of university-industry research on the process and practice of doctoral supervision, and in particular the pedagogical, epistemological and institutional issues being faced by doctoral supervisors. Doctoral supervisors interviewed were positive about the benefits of university-industry research, but they also identified areas of changing practice and of dissonance. Individual personal skills were an important feature in developing positive collaborative partnerships. Given current national and international priorities for a nexus between university and industry research, this study illustrates the need for a stronger pedagogical, epistemological and institutional framework that is mutually beneficial for both universities and industries in research partnerships.

Purpose: The main purpose of the present paper is twofold: to examine and compare the current strategies and policies that are employed by the UK, Australia and Singapore and to recommend appropriate strategies and policies to higher education institutions and the Hong Kong government and elsewhere that are interested in expanding their efforts in recruiting the growing number of students from other countries who are planning to study overseas. Design/methodology/approach: The data for this project were obtained primarily from documents and in-depth interviews. Documents include government reports, policy addresses, official statistics, etc. The in-depth interviews were conducted in Hong Kong as well as in the four studied cities--Mumbai, New Delhi, Jakarta, and Kuala Lumpur. Interviewees included government officials, academics, higher education institutions' representatives, consultant generals, and officials from policy bodies. Findings: It is clear from the findings of this present study that a set of favorable policies and strategies at the national level was behind the success of these competitors. Such policies are not confined to educational policies but are extended to population and employment policies. Research limitations/implications: Though the study examined policies and strategies employed by three countries, findings from the study may generate useful information to countries that may be interested in exporting their higher education to Asian markets. Practical implications: The paper suggests that if Hong Kong is to attain success in becoming an international exporter of education services, it may need to adopt favorable policies at institute and system level, and in so doing it can definitely benefit by carefully studying the strategies and policies employed by these three competitors. Originality/value: Few studies have examined and compared strategies and policies employed by these three key major players of higher education services. This study provides some useful strategies and policy recommendation to education decision makers in Hong Kong and elsewhere that may be interested in entering Asian markets. (Contains 1 table.)

This study investigated the news-seeking and browsing behaviours of young adults, partly in the context of everyday life information seeking (ELIS), in order to explore their perceptions of and attitudes towards print and online news media. The study is significant because traditional print newspapers face a steady decline in their readership with the growth of free online content. Therefore, it is important to understand the online news-seeking behaviours of young adults to try and predict changes and trends in this field. A qualitative (interpretivist) approach was adopted and twenty university students were interviewed. Findings indicate that, contrary to expectations, print newspapers were still favoured by young people in this sample and the most successful online news disseminators were the ones who have attached themselves to a popular website. Finally, the impact of newspaper reading and publishing trends on library reading rooms is also discussed.

The pressures facing universities today are manifold, and universities throughout the world have come to realise that they can no longer proceed as they have done in the past. In many nations universities are being forced to perform a delicate balancing act between promoting increased access to tertiary education, while at the same time dealing with reductions in core funding from governments. Once somewhat oblivious to the hardcore precepts of management theory, universities are increasingly talking about "restructures" to meet these competing objectives. In short, they are trying to do more with less, and therefore studying the way(s) in which universities negotiate this dilemma has become as important as ever. This case study employs neo-institutional theory to argue that actors pursue their actions within the constraints of endogenous and exogenous factors (Greenwood & Hinings, 1996). Using this theory, the paper assesses the execution of strategic change within one of Australia's largest universities before concluding with some general prescriptions as to how university management can better actualise organizational reconfiguration.

Modernising the teaching profession has become one of the main goals of contemporary educational system reform. The evaluation of teachers has been integral to the new teacher quality policies and programs. This article provides a comparative and critical analysis of the evaluations that teachers now confront during their professional careers. Examples of teacher evaluation practices and processes from Australia, Canada, the United States, and England are described and analysed.

Higher education, particularly in the area of international education has exhibited significant growth since the mid-1980s. Whilst it is beginning to attract research from both educational and tourism industry perspectives, the current body of knowledge regarding this market is still quite limited. This is particularly the case in the area of associated visiting friends and relatives' travel patterns and expenditure. The findings of a research project on international students at a leading university in Western Australia are presented in this paper. The importance of tourism arising from visits by family and friends of international (higher education) students within WA is estimated at between A$10.3 million and A$17.4 million per annum. This represents between 1.0% and 1.7% of international tourist expenditure in WA in 1999. The significance of international student family and friends' travel behaviour within WA is presented, followed by a discussion regarding marketing implications, based on conclusions arising from this research. (Contains 9 tables.)

This article examines some of the social, technical, and economic issues encountered in the implementation of an educational technology at an Australian regional university. Reference is made to the implementation of the videoconferencing network at Central Queensland University (CQU). In late 1996 when the implementation process was completed the videoconferencing network was unique in universities within Australia. The article, which is based on current doctoral research, explores the reasons for the development of this videoconferencing network and its effect on academic teaching in the videoconferencing environment. The implications of this study for understanding geographical influence on educational innovations are also considered. The geographical isolation of the campuses at CQU helped to shape a unique teaching model using the interactive videoconferencing network. (Contains 5 footnotes.)

Identifies administrative, ethical, and pedagogical issues raised by policies which encourage the commercialization of the academic research enterprise, with particular reference to Australian higher education. Provides examples of recent government initiatives which encourage cooperation between universities and industry. Discusses issues related to intellectual property. (KS)

Australia has been stunningly successful in its ability to recruit foreign students. An estimated 250,000 of them study at Australia's 39 universities and their offshore programs. That's an estimated 6 percent of the world market. This article reports that even as Australia has gained admiration overseas for its recruiting successes, university administrators and professors here have become increasingly worried that their higher-education system has developed a dangerous dependence on foreign students. About 25 percent of the public system's budget comes from foreign-student tuition. That revenue proved to be a blessing for much of the 1990s and the early 2000s as federal support declined. Enrollment numbers have dropped from their double-digit increases and higher-education officials grow concerned about revenue and quality.

The purpose of this study is to explore the impact of the PESTLE (Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Legal, and Environmental) framework on the motivations of Chinese students to pursue a higher education degree at Australian universities following the COVID-19 pandemic. We conduct a survey with a unique sample of 446 Chinese undergraduate students who are looking to study a postgraduate degree abroad. Seldom used in an educational setting, our empirical findings show a positive effect of PESTLE, particularly the economic factor, on students' choice to study abroad, which is contrary to the null hypothesis. This study has broader implications for university administrators as it suggests that the PESTLE model can be a useful tool in analyzing education choices at a time of uncertainty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Community engagement in higher education is a shift beyond the traditional roles of instruction and research. This paper presents a transnational view of community engagement developed from two case studies of universities in the Philippines and Australia. The study, revealed variations in the way community engagement is understood and implemented by universities across different countries. These variations are related to economic, social–cultural, political and organizational factors. The role of university leadership was found to have a critical role in embedding community engagement in the organizational identity and image. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]