The OER mix in higher education: purpose,process, product,and policy

Success in open educational resources (OER) has been reported by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the USA and the Open University in the UK, among others. It is unclear, however, how valuable OER are in learning and teaching. Approaches to OER policy and sustainability are just two other key aspects that remain unresolved across the sector. Based on the findings from the Open, Transferable, Technology-enabled Educational Resources (OTTER) project at the University of Leicester, UK, ¹ 1. Open, Transferable, Technology-enabled Educational Resources (OTTER) project, University of Leicester, UK, http://www.le.ac.uk/otter we introduce the OER mix framework: purpose, processes, product, and policy. We argue that different mixes of the four Ps can generate different approaches to OER. We discuss the relevance of the framework and its importance for social inclusion and widening access to higher education. We also discuss the implications of the OER mix for the openness agenda. Institutions may find value in adapting and applying the framework. We invite colleagues to critique it and report back.     

Financing higher education in India: principles,practice, and policy issues

Financing higher education in India has been a complicated problem due to theoretical and practical problems. It has been largely a state funded activity with about three-quarters of the total expenditure being borne by government. The shares of non-governmental sources such as fees and voluntary contributions have been declining. At the same time the needs of the higher education system have been growing rapidly. It is being increasingly realized that public budgets cannot adequately fund higher education, particularly when sectors of mass education are starved of even bare needs. Hence of late several policy proposals are made, including privatization. This article critically reviews these proposals, and argues that the Indian higher education system is not yet ready for privatization. At the same time the need for experimentation with several alternatives, including student fees, students loans, graduate tax, and privatization in general is emphasized.     

Efficiency and equity in Japanese higher education

The historical background and institutional characteristics of theJapanese system of higher education are described and then analysed withparticular reference to their relationship to both efficiency and equity.Post-World War II developments are shown to have initiated a movement fromwhat was a system of government regulation towards one which is moremarket-orientated, including a measure of market segmentation. Thesignificance of a fast-growing private sector is emphasised. The socialcharacteristics of the present-day Japanese system are analysed in terms ofthe employment of graduates, the rate of return and the economic use offinancial and human resources. Factors such as family income, background andregion of residence all influence opportunities and it is argued that thesystem cannot be considered as being entirely meritocratic. Nor can it bedescribed as being dependent on market forces; though both price andacademic quality affect student choice of institutions, the two are notnecessarily correlated. The social and economic consequences of the systemare complex and the author concludes by discussing these in the context oflikely changes in the future.     

Changing the course: equity effects and institutional risk amid policy shift in higher education financing in Kenya

Reform in higher education financing in Kenya has been occasioned by both endogenous and exogenous variables. Internal pressures of a declining economy, rapid demographic growth and increased inter-and intra-sectoral competition for scare financial resources, couple with external neo-liberal doctrine championed by global donors like the World Bank have resulted in a new market-competitive policy of financing higher education. This paper analyzes the equity and risk effects of the new policy for the main stakeholders, namely students, academics and institutions themselves. The paper contends that the policy shift has had a significant effect on equity just as it has introduced universities to risks through engagement in academic capitalism with its emphasis on marketization of university programs and services. The paper concludes with suggestions on some policy options that could help to mitigate the negative consequences of this new policy.

Equity,justice and standards: assessment decision making in higher education

Recent concerns about ‘fairness’ in university entrance have highlighted the need to review existing practices in admissions processes. The agendas for equity and social inclusion, however, must also apply to the processes and outcomes of higher education, where considerations of ‘standards’ are additionally crucial. As principles underpinning the assessment process, ‘equity’ and ‘justice’ and ‘academic standards’ are part of taken‐for‐granted cultures and practices which impact on decisions about progression, eligibility for awards and degree classification for individual students. Changing discourses of academic standards have given rise to contrasting decision‐making processes rooted in the role and operation of assessment boards. Contrasting models of assessment board cultures are developed to highlight how practices are beset by conceptual confusions about what is being assessed and the basis for judgements about success and failure in higher education. There is a strong case, not only for critical review of assessment processes, but also for monitoring outcomes for different social groups.     

Use, updating and integration of ICT in higher education:Linking purpose, people and pedagogy

In this article the use, updating and integration of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) for teaching and learning purposes is discussed. Based on an empirical study using interviews and document analysis of the implementation of ICT in five Norwegian universities and colleges, the article analyse a number of factors that are of importance for the implementation of ICT in higher education. The analysis discloses that Norwegian higher education institutions often have adequate economic resources and a rather well developed technical infrastructure and support structure related to the use of ICT. However, attempts to link ICT initiatives to organisational development issues and to human resource management have not been very successful. In the conclusion it is argued that pedagogical issues and organisational and human development aspects must be better linked if ICT is to play a more effective role in teaching and learning in Norwegian higher education.     

MOOCs,institutional policy and change dynamics in higher education

The last couple of years have witnessed a growing debate about online learning in higher education, notably in response to the global massive open online course (MOOC) phenomenon. This paper explores these developments from an institutional policy perspective, drawing on an analysis of the initial stages of different approaches to MOOCs and e-learning being taken up at three Australian universities. It points to four commonalities emerging from the institutional constructions of these initiatives including (1) the use of e-learning policy as a vehicle for curriculum redesign; (2) an emphasis on internal curriculum redesign as a core rationale for MOOCs; (3) a desire to capitalise on promotional opportunities but a reticence around wholly embracing the concept and structure of MOOCs and (4) the absence of access-driven concerns in university policy despite the prominence of such concerns in broader public debate. The approach is framed by a consideration of change dynamics in higher education and highlights the emphasis on internal university work within the policy narrative, suggesting this could represent an attempt to reframe the debate about MOOCs away from popular arguments about systemic disruption and instead use them to progress forms of change that align to broader strategic objectives.     

The knowledge triangle, European higher education policy logics and policy implications

While it is common to claim that university reforms are based on universal and standardised ideas about ‘modernising’ the university, few studies have examined in a more coherent way how the combined external pressure for change with respect to the areas of education, research and innovation has affected the university. In this paper it is argued that one can identify three different sets of logics concerning the current external reform agenda, and that these logics together create new challenges as to how knowledge is created, diffused and governed by the university. In the conclusion, it is discussed whether the current pressure for reform might change the university as we know it, or whether new institutional translations might emerge from the process renewing the university while maintaining its identity.     

Assessment options in higher education

This article evaluates an initiative to introduce assessment choice within a taught unit on an undergraduate healthcare programme as a means of addressing poor performance, especially for those students diagnosed with dyslexia. Students’ perceptions of the assessment experience were sought via the use of two focus group interviews (n = 16). The article describes the effect the assessment experience had on students’ stress levels, individual learning styles and achievement. Students’ performance improved and statistical analyses indicated parity between the assessment methods offered with similar performance profiles between students with and without dyslexia. The conclusion reached is that while the introduction of assessment options may be time consuming for staff to develop, the benefits of an enhanced student‐centred approach to assessment may be well worth this investment in time. Although a limited study owing to the small sample size, the results should be of interest to those academics who are concerned with assessment and its impact on students’ achievement.     

Changing concepts of equity in transforming UK higher education: implications for future pedagogies and practices in global higher education

This paper is about changing concepts of equity in UK higher education. In particular, it charts the moves from concepts about gender equality as about women’s education as a key issue in twentieth century higher education to questions of men’s education in the twenty-first century. These changing concepts of equity are linked to wider social and economic transformations, the expansion of higher education and the growth in the knowledge economy, or what has been called ‘academic capitalism’. Feminist theorists and activists, often called second wave feminists, developed concepts of gender equality in education, including higher education in the twentieth century, and these have been incorporated into higher education and policies with the expansions of higher education, especially around notions of widening participation. Notions of widening participation in policy and practice arenas focus on equity as about social class, socio-economic disadvantage, ethnicity and race, rather than specifically on gender questions. Equity is now twinned with diversity and where gender is now invoked it is largely about young and working class men’s disadvantage in relation to higher education. In this paper, I will also provide research evidence from the UK’s Teaching and Learning Research Programme (TLRP) which has been the UK’s biggest ever initiative in education research about equity and diversity as currently conceived in UK higher education. I will show how gender has been incorporated with diversity questions and has lost its critical and feminist edge. I conclude with addressing questions about the future of higher education policies and practices to address questions of equity and diversity, attempting to counter the systemic inequalities in current forms of UK higher education. There are opportunities for developing new, critical and feminist pedagogies. More inclusive or ‘connectionist’ approaches, rather than ‘teaching to the test’, would engage socially diverse men and women students in a range of higher education subjects and settings.     

促进高等教育公平的政策考量

高等教育公平是构建和谐社会的重要基石。由于制度设计的缺陷、教育经费投入不足等原因,我国的高等教育在入学机会、教育过程和教育结果等方面都存在着教育不公平的现象。应通过强化教育公平理念、稳定教育经费来源、合理配置教育资源、改革收费制度和完善招生录取制度等方面促进教育公平的实现。     

对我国高等教育公平问题的认识和思考

追求高等教育公平是我国高等教育改革和发展的基本价值取向。随着我国高等教育大众化进程的加快,高等教育公平问题越来越突出。本文对教育公平理念的产生及其内涵、目前我国高等教育公平方面存在的问题进行了分析、探讨,并提出了推进我国高等教育公平的对策。     

Gender, equity and the discourse of the independent learnerin higher education

The ‘independent learner’ is a key construct within discourses of educational policy and practice in the UK. Government policy statements stress the importance of developing learner independence, and higher education pedagogical practices tend to rest on the assumption that students are independent learners. This paper draws on research with undergraduate students in a post-1992 university to offer a critical appraisal of the discourse of the independent learner. The paper examines students’ perceptions of independence in both their first year of undergraduate study, and in the later years of their degree courses. Support for learning and issues related to asking for help are discussed. Whilst students tend to both expect and want to be independent, it is suggested that dominant constructions of the independent learner are gendered and culturally specific, and as such are inappropriate for the majority of students in a mass higher education system.     

The purpose, value and structure of the practicum in higher education: a literature review

The practicum constitutes an integral part of many professional courses in higher education; and is manifest in several different forms depending on the discipline: field experience, cooperative education, sandwich programs, internships, clerkships, clinical practicum, and the like. This paper provides an overview of different ways in which the practicum has been conceptualised, implemented and evaluated in higher education. It focuses attention on the purpose and value of the practicum; the relationship between the practicum and the learning outcomes of a course as a whole; and the structure and placement of the practicum within a course. Findings indicate that whilst the practicum is widely accepted as a valuable and successful component of professional education, it has a number of shortcomings; and the lack of good quality research into the practicum makes it difficult to draw unequivocal conclusions. A number of questions are posed to guide further research into the role of supervision during practicum placements; the kinds of learning goals and outcomes that are best achieved through the practicum; and the impact on student learning of the length and structure of the practicum.