Search Results

In the current economic crisis the role of government has once again become central. Similarly, as the limits of the unregulated market are becoming clear in the economy, the public responsibility (responsibility of the state) for higher education is once again taking centre stage in a context of growing expectations that higher education will contribute to the solutions needed. The notion of public responsibility for higher education is not the same as public responsibility of higher education, though they are closely interconnected and there is an expected mutuality of benefits when these two sides of the coin are balanced properly. The collection of papers presented here focuses primarily on the former, namely the public responsibility for higher education. The 'Asia and the Pacific region' section contains the following papers: In search of relevance: higher education for participatory research and sustainable development / Rajesh Tandon; Higher education: a public good or a commodity for trade?: commitment to higher education or commitment of higher education to trade / Jandhyala B. G. Tilak. The 'Europe region' section contains: Higher education as a 'public good and public responsibility': what does it mean? / Sjur Bergan; Bologna seminar on the public responsibility for higher education and research: final report of the conference / Eva Egron Polak. The 'Latin America and the Caribbean' section contains: Higher education in the World Trade Organization (WTO): a threat to the future of higher education in the world / Rafael Guarga; Higher education: a public good, a duty of the state / Jose Dias Sobrinho.

Excerpts from publication. Show less

One of the clearest trends to emerge since the UNESCO World Conference on Higher Education in 1998 is the growth of many private/non-government providers of higher education in response to the strong demand for access and the need for a greater diversity of curricula and approaches. This report acts as a background document for the 2009 World Conference on Higher Education held in Paris in July 2009. It provides a brief overview of private/non-government higher education in 2009 and examines some of the main themes relating to the provision of private higher education (PHE). Chapter one sets out the scope and scale of PHE in 2009 globally and chapter two looks at financing of private education. Public-private partnerships (PPPs) is an approach which is gaining considerable traction globally and chapter three examines the various modalities of PPPs in higher education ranging from simple contracting of services to more involved and long-term education partnerships. Governments want to provide increased access to education opportunities, while at the same time ensuring such opportunities are of equal or higher quality than that found in the public sector. Chapter four therefore outlines seven elements for a policy framework which governments might consider. The final chapter provides an overview of the quality control and assurance mechanisms currently in place ranging from simple licensure to accreditation and quality audit.

Excerpts from publication. Show less

This report examines the changes that have taken place since the 1998 UNESCO World Conference on Higher Education, in particular the main engines of change and their impact on higher education. This trend report is intended to provide background analysis and to animate discussion at the 2009 UNESCO World Conference on Higher Education. It examines the central issues and the contextual factors that have shaped higher education in the past decade, and presents prospects for the immediate future. Much of this report is concerned with the ways in which higher education has responded to the challenge of massification. Other issues examined include globalisation; inequalities in access; increasing student mobility; teaching, learning and curricula; quality assurance, accountability and qualifications frameworks; financing and the public good-private good debate; the growth of private higher education; the academic profession; the research environment; information and communications technology; and the impact of demographics and the economic crisis on the development and reform of higher education in the immediate future.

Excerpts from publication. Show less