Quality Teaching and Learning in Australian and South African Universities: Comparing policies and practices

Over the last decade universities across the world have been grappling with quality and quality assurance issues. In several countries national policies on higher education quality assurance have been evolving, mostly with the purpose of putting external systems of quality assurance in place. In many instances, these policies and systems had less effect on the quality of teaching and learning than had been expected. This paper serves as a comparison of national quality policy developments in two countries, Australia and South Africa, and goes on to investigate the emerging tensions in quality policy processes in these countries. Whereas a number of similarities were discerned, differences were as evident, verifying the underlying assumption of the authors that notions of quality, and quality policies and their implementation are very much dependent on the particular localised contexts in which they exist.     

加拿大终身学习政策述评

20世纪90年代以来,加拿大政府制定并实施了一系列推动终身学习的政策,包括制定法律文件、提供经费保障、完善技术支持、建设学习载体、支持处境不利群体、开展相关的研究.本文对此进行综述,并在此基础上作出评价.     

Universities as Centres of Lifelong Learning

The author's basic thesis is that all properly conceived education is in fact continuing or lifelong education. It is democratic and liberating because it responds to the real needs of real people in society. Higher education today throughout the world is beset by crises and contradictions. While universities have so often served the interests of selfish self‐perpetuating élites, their implied or explicit educational message is all‐encompassing and democratic. Nothing better furthers the democratic aims of university education than open‐access continuing education that enriches culture and production while interlinking the two in a creative relationship. In fact, properly conceived and functioning continuing education encompasses all other forms of education, including initial training which has so often been viewed as a finality in itself and as a means for ensuring educational selection in the interests of the dominant class. If applied at the international level, continuing education properly conceived will lead to a far greater democratization of the relations among universities of different countries, one which will end the dominant/dominated syndrome; it will likewise permit a positive rather than a negative assimilation by the university of educational technology.

     

终身教育与终身学习及其关系

终身教育与终身学习是现代教育理念、生活理念体现在实践层面的产物。终身教育是全程、全态、全面的长、宽、深的教育，终身学习是“全人生学习、全方位学习”；终身教育主要是政府行为，而终身学习是个体行力；终身学习的基础是终身教育，终身教育的实质是终身学习。无论终身教育，抑或终身学习，都旨在通过把人自身的潜在能力不断转化为现实能力，尽可能地促进人与社会协调发展、可持续发展。终身教育和终身学习还蕴涵着教育、学习和生活三位一体的理念。     

构建终身学习社会:高校继续教育大有作为

高等学校继续教育在终身学习成为一种趋势的前提,在分析自身办学问题及其面临困境的基础上,积极探索继续教育学院发展的策略,从校企合作、中外合作、教育质量、师资队伍、教学管理制度、网络教育等方面进行改革与尝试,努力推进终身学习社会的构建。     

Global Trends in Lifelong Learning and the Response of the Universities

The argument of this article is that higher education is forced to respond to the dominant social pressures of the day, especially the demands of advanced capitalism. Globalisation has produced an international division of labour with more knowledge-based workers in the West. Higher education in those countries has, consequently, endeavoured to respond to the demands of these workers in innovative ways and these changes point the direction that higher education elsewhere might have to go. However, some countries will not have sufficient knowledge-based workers to force changes in the higher education system and market-orientated Western universities will fill that gap through new means of delivery. Where universities are not responding to the needs of the international division of labour, transnational companies are taking the initiative in creating their own universities.     

Competences,Learning Theories and MOOCs: Recent Developments in Lifelong Learning

Our societies have come to be known as knowledge societies in which lifelong learning is becoming increasingly important. In this context, competences have become a much discussed topic. Many documents were published by international organisations (UNESCO, World Bank, European Commission) which enumerated 21^st century key competences. The field of learning theories has also experienced advances. Findings from neuroscience have promoted a new understanding of what really happens in the brain when we learn. At the same time, the fact that learning increasingly takes place in virtual communities led George Siemens (2004) to propose connectivism as a learning theory for the digital age. Similarly, Roberto Carneiro (2010) suggested a theory he called generativism which aims at describing collaborative learning with digital technologies and open educational resources. These theories might be better able to describe and explain lifelong learning than classical learning theories. In the field of digital technologies, Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) have recently received a great deal of attention. While Siemens suggested connectivist MOOCs (cMOOCs) as the ideal platform for connectivist learning, other forms of MOOCs were also developed. These MOOCs have spread at a breath-taking pace in the last few years, although it is far from clear to what extent they are based on principles from learning theories and really support learning. These developments will be presented and discussed with respect to their relevance for lifelong learning as an integral part of man's quest for meaning.     

Lifelong learning policies in France

France has more than 30 years of experience with continuing education and training. Thanks to the 1971 law and subsequent reforms, enterprises are obliged to pay for education and training activities. What are the results after three decades? Did the law fulfil its initial objectives? As recently as this year, a new agreement has been signed between social partners. How significant is this agreement and what changes could be expected? Are there lessons for lifelong learning policies that might be applied in European member states and elsewhere?     

终身学习、学习型社会和图书馆

终身学习、建设学习型社会是社会经济、科技和社会文化生活发展的必然。图书馆是建设学习型社会的一种重要的教学资源。我们要抓住当前的良好机会,把图书馆建设成为学习型社会的学习中心。     

我国终身教育、终身学习与学习型社会政策综述

过去的10余年里,我国在有关终身教育、终身学习与学习型社会的教育政策领域内取得了很多突破性进展。该文系统地回顾了10余年里有关终身教育、终身学习与学习型社会的政策的变化历程。     

Intercultural education in Europe: policies,practices and trends

European societies have become increasingly diverse as a result of legal and illegal migration flows, and educationists are facing the challenge of how to address the presence of migrant students. In recent years, there has been increasing activity at European level in the field of intercultural education despite the principle of subsidiarity. This article draws on 30 European level policy documents published within the last decade to analyse the dynamics influencing intercultural education in Europe. These include European Union institutions (such as European Commission, European Council, and Council of Ministers) and Council of Europe documents. Our discussions are situated within historical and contemporary European immigration policy developments. We argue that the main emphasis of recent European level policies and directives is on fostering social cohesion through incorporating migrant students. In so doing, European organisations have had to deal with arguments surrounding the legitimacy of European policy initiatives in the field of intercultural education.