Private higher education in Australia

In the post World War Two era and prior to the mid 1980s Australia has been characterised by exclusive public provision, financing and regulation of higher education. The 1980s, however, have been marked by considerable turmoil which culminated in the 1988 White Paper. Circumstances provided by the reform of the higher education system, the booming overseas student market and unmet domestic demand have provided a window of opportunity for private providers. This paper charts the growth of private provision, federal and state government responses and the pressures for subsidy and regulation. The paper concludes that the policies of both levels of government are hastening the development of what Geiger (1988) defines as a peripheral private sector of higher education in Australia.     

论高校内部的学术尊重

建立在学术制约上的学术尊重,应以学术自重为基础,而学术自重应以学术自律为起点。在大学内处理好学术权利与行政权利关系是学术尊重的关键。在具体的办学实践中,高校可采取行政权力扶持学术权利、利用学术权力与行政权力的互补性提升学术尊重;同时,通过提升学术自律水平、倡导学术创新达到学术自重,建构学术尊重的制度保障体系,形成尊重学术权利的文化氛围。     

Trends in private higher education in Australia

The last decade has witnessed a significant growth of private higher education around the world. The growth included the number of private education providers, and also the growing number of students. While some countries are experiencing trend growth, others are witnessing decline. Some of the reasons for the decline include increased regulation and stringent accreditation and reaccreditation of higher education institutions and courses, government policies to encourage the growth of public universities, and acquisition of small providers by large private education institutions. The growth of private higher education has increased competition, and it has also established collaboration with public institutions. The growth of private higher education has also raised concerns about ethical governance, maintenance of academic standards, and mechanisms to plan, review, and improve educational outcomes. This paper focuses on Australia where despite growth, there is limited research about private higher education. This paper reviews literature on the global growth and decline of private higher education. It then analyses the trends in Australia and possible scenarios for the future of private higher education in the country.     

Socio-economic position and higher education in Australia

The proportion of students enrolled at university from the lowest quartile of socio-economic position has remained static at around 15% for at least the past 15 years (DEEWR, Transforming Australia’s higher education system, 2009). This paper argues that the apparent lack of progress towards equity of access has been exacerbated due to how socio-economic position (SEP) is measured within higher education. Three major methodological issues are identified: (a) the use of socio-economic indicator for areas (SEIFA) at an inappropriate unit of geographic area (postcode), (b) an inappropriate choice of index (education and occupation), and (c) using the index of education and occupation as the sole indicator of SEP thereby increasing the risk of misclassification of individuals through the operation of ecological fallacy. This paper argues that to address these methodological deficiencies, alternative methods of determining SEP are required at both the aggregate and individual level. Possible options are proposed for use as replacements for the geographic area (postcode) and index (education and occupation) as well as additional measures at the individual or household level.     

从高等职业教育的高等性认识高职英语教学

高等职业教育的高等性是高等职业教育人才培养目标定位的基准,忽视对高等职业教育的高等性特征的认识,将使高等职业教育人才培养目标和人才质量出现问题。因此,要坚持高等职业教育的层次和类型,从高等教育的高等性认识高职英语教学,在突出高职英语教学特点的同时,重视其高等性,才能达到高等职业教育专业英语教学的目的。     

北京高等教育普及化对高中阶段教育的影响

高等教育普及化对高中阶段教育的影响主要表现在:进一步改变高中阶段教育的职普比例;促进初中后分流机制向高中后分流机制转变;促进高中阶段教育由二元制结构向一元制结构转变;促使高中阶段的培养目标和课程结构发生根本性转变;从根本上推进高中阶段素质教育的开展。     

Enrolment trends in school science education in Australia

Investigations were carried out to find the amount of science portrayed by terrestrial television in the UK and the public comprehension of that science as shown on television. UK terrestrial programming was derived from the Radio Times . Advertisement information was derived from UK terrestrial commercial television commercials. Public opinions were solicited by a survey of 200 members of the public ( n = 196). Science-based programming formed 5.36% of all terrestrial broadcasting time, with people watching an average of 1.75 science programmes per week (approx. 0.2% of programmes possible). 65% of all television advertisements were found to be science-based, although only 26% of advertisement categories were recognized as being science-based by the public. If interest in science is reflected in the amount of science programmes watched then the public are not interested in science. The lack of comprehension of the scientific basis of many advertisements is indicative of the lack of relevance of science education to people in modern society.     

Mentoring for school based teacher education in Australia

This article is to explore the possibilities of mentoring for school based teacher education in Australia. Traditionally, supervision at the school level during the practicum in Australia has been focused on the classroom teacher whose role was to oversee and watch the direct work of the student teacher. However with the reforms in teacher education within the higher education sector which began in the late 1980s, a new challenge has arisen, which emphasises a shift of focus within the practicum from the role of classroom teacher as supervisor to one of mentor. Therefore, teachers who wish to become mentors will require new skills and competencies which extend beyond those of supervision, which necessitates the need for further training and education of classroom teachers. This article examines the mentoring role and the skills needed by teachers in supporting the development and education of student teachers into the teaching profession. The article also briefly examines the implications that this shift in focus from supervisor to mentor may bring for the participants involved in the education of student teachers.     

From romance to rocket science: speed dating in higher education

This article is the first comprehensive review of speed dating in the tertiary sector. While speed dating has its origins as a networking technique to connect singles, it has only more recently made its way into the academy. Since 2005 universities world-wide have begun to adopt speed dating protocols as a tool for building research culture. An extensive review of the brief history of speed dating in university settings indicates that the motivation for organising events tends to fall into six clusters. Each motivation is discussed here, as well as two potential as-yet-unexplored outcomes for research students in academe: increasing wellbeing through improving social relations and aiding the conceptualising of theses. Finally the authors raise the need for further research in this area to establish its real impact and to identify best practices.     

Pathway from vocational education and associate degree to higher education: Chinese international students in Australia

Understanding factors influencing international students' decision to engage in international education is essential for education providers to better cater for students' educational expectations and enhance their attractiveness to international students. Whilst there has been extensive research on the reasons why international students undertake cross-border higher education, international students' motivations for enrolling in vocational education and associate degree programmes are still under-researched. Drawing on semi-structured interviews with 30 international students from China, this research found that pathway to higher education appears to be the most important factor motivating international students to undertake vocational education and associate degree programmes. In addition, prospect of immigration, English language proficiency, previous academic performance, agent's recommendations and relatives' and friends' advice are amongst the important factors that students take into account in their decision to choose vocational education and associate degree programmes. This research also examines why Chinese international students have chosen vocational education programmes in a dual-sector university over vocational education colleges. It found that the flexibility to articulate to higher education, international reputation of the programme, practical training and favourable location are key issues that these students draw on when making their decision to study in a dual-sector university.     

论新时期高校图书馆德育工作的优化

德育是高校实现培养“四有”新人教育目标的重要保证。高校图书馆是直接面对大学生的教育阵地,应适应新形势,主动履行教育职能,采取有效措施,使德育工作不断得到优化。     

A new approach to researching school effects on higher education participation

A new approach to researching school effects on higher education participation is proposed here, which combines insights from the school effectiveness field of research with sociological theories and concepts of schooling. In doing so, it draws attention to some of the problems with the dominant approach often taken in this area and attempts to offer a more analytically precise way of measuring and explaining school effects on higher education choice. It will be argued that whilst past approaches can make it difficult to decipher school effects, the new approach proposed here provides greater understanding about the extent and nature of the school’s influence.     

A contractual approach to higher education performance: with an application to Australia

In an effort to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of higher education, some governments have redefined their funding relationships with universities as contracts rather than grants in order to develop stronger incentives for university performance. This paper explores this approach, as adopted in Australia, within a principal agent framework. It examines the conditions necessary for success in achieving government objectives as well as preserving university autonomy.     

浅析《澳大利亚高等教育残疾支持计划》

1990年,澳大利亚联邦政府把残疾人视为高等教育中的弱势群体,自此澳大利亚联邦政府开始制定政策来保障残疾人的高等教育入学机会。《澳大利亚残疾人支持计划》的目的就是保障该类群体的入学机会。本文通过分析的政策文本,政策实施,政策理念和特点来分析《高等教育残疾人》政策。     

From elitism to mass higher education in Taiwan: The problems faced

The transition from an elitisthigher education system to mass education hascreated a number of concerns in this sector.Among these are fears for the quality of theprovision; the rise in the unemployment rate ofgraduate university leavers; and the increasedfinancial burden on the government.This paper examines the transition periodover the last fifty years in Taiwan, in orderto promote an understanding of the problemscurrently being faced, and to give an insightinto the political and cultural background inwhich they have arisen. The USA and Japan arecompared, as these countries are seen to beadvanced in the provision of mass education.The paper has three main objectives. Firstly todetermine whether or not Taiwan can be said tohave developed a mass higher education systemby international comparison. Secondly, todetermine which factors have influencedgovernment policy to achieve mass highereducation, and thirdly to identify the problemswhich remains as barriers to the success ofthis system.Conclusions are drawn relating to the aboveobjectives and it is noted that similarproblems to those experiences by Westerncountries can be identified.