Transcript Reforming Higher Education: Lessons Learned in the

Reforming Higher Education:
Lessons Learned
from the Transition Countries
Prof. Marek Kwiek
Center for Public Policy
Poznan University, Poznan, Poland
[email protected]
www.policy.hu/kwiek
Introduction/Overview
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Introduction/Overview
Briefly: author’s experiences with reforming HE
Transformations of HE: global
Transformations of HE: the European Union
Transformations of HE: CEE countries
Some statistics: CEE and SEE
Two major reform agendas in transition countries today:
– global (World Bank, OECD, development agencies)
– European (Bologna Process and European Research
Area)
Introduction/Overview
• Reforming HE in transition / EU countries: differences
• Lessons Learned
• Discussion, questions & answers
HE transformations: global (1)
• HE more influential than ever before for the economic
growth of nations and regions
• Passage from industrial (work-based) to postindustrial
(knowledge-based) economies and societies (OECD)
• Consequently, knowledge viewed as the major driver of
economic development
• Old and new challenges in HE. Old challenges include:
– shifting from elite to mass (expanded) systems under severe
resource constraints
– inequality of access and opportunities
HE transformations: global (2)
– low quality and relevance of education to the labor market
– rigid governance and administrative structures
– inability (or unwillingness) of governments to finance expanding
public HE
– inability (or unwilingness) of governments to finance everexpanding research in public sector institutions (partnerships)
• New challenges in HE:
– crucial role of knowledge production, dissemination and
application for “knowledge-driven societies”
– consequently, HE in the center of public scrutiny (nationally,
regionally, and globally) – EU, WB, OECD, IMF, WTO etc.
– emergence of powerful market forces
HE transformations: global (3)
– unprecedented growth of new for profit and virtual providers in
HE (consortia, franchises, corporate universities; foreign/
borderless institutions
– unprecedented differentiation of HE (from community colleges to
elite institutions)
– rapidly changing demographics (EU, CEEs – and Balkans)
– globalization of economies and cultures
– internationalization of academic disciplines and research
communities
– rapid spread of the English language
– advent of new technologies (especially telecommunications)
HE transformations: global (4)
• New challenges for HE in more general terms mean:
– new questions asked: „What is it that society needs from higher
education? - and no longer „What is it that higher education needs
from society?”
– radical move away from the state and more reliance on the market,
for both teaching, research and service functions
– changing social status of the academic profession (from “Herr
Professor” to „knowledge analyst”), changing working conditions
– commodification of research, marketization of educational offer,
corporatization of academic governance and management
structures (collegiality vs. CEO/corporate models; managerialism)
– diversification - growth of the private sector
HE transformations: global (5)
– research - increasingly goes to the corporate sector (EU goal - 3%
of GDP for research - but increase from private funds, and
considerably for the private R&D
students - increasingly „consumers”, HE institutons - „providers”
of services
tighter links between university/corporations/military
Unfortunately, the transition countries today face both old and new
challenges at the same time! Western European countries faced old
challenges 20-30 years ago, when they moved towards mass
systems of HE. HE is working increasingly under both types of
pressures.
HE transformations:European Union (1)
• Majority of aspects of global transformations present - but
in softened versions
• Majority of aspects of global transformations confirmed in
the „Lisbon strategy” (2000): to make Europe by 2010 „the
most competitive economy in the world”
• Consequently, emergent „European Research Area” (ERA)
and increasingly Bologna - directed to economic goals
• „European Welfare Model” in conflict with the global
market orientation of HE (but not of research)
• Bologna process for EU countries - to make EHEA compe-
HE transformations:European Union (2)
• titive to American and Australasian HE, to have bigger
share in global market of international students
• current transformations of HE mean: highly skilled
professional workforce for the new „knowledgeeconomy”; comparability of educational outputs and
diplommas across Europe; mobility of graduates and
workforce; growing employability of graduates
• next moves: pan-European - accreditation schemes, quality
assurance, framework of qualifications, and descriptions of
educational outputs” and „competencies”
HE transformations: Central Europe (1)
• Three dimensions of wider social transformations relevant
for HE in transition countries:
– move from totalitarianism/communism to free, open democracies
– move from centrally-planned to market economies
– move towards integrated Europe and global economy
• Different degrees of the above in Central Europe, Eastern
Europe, and Balkans
• In CEE, mixed policy influences of the EU and
transnational/American developmental (USAID) and
lending (World Bank, IMF) agencies
HE transformations: Central Europe (2)
• Majority: welfare reforms closer to neoliberal
recommendations than to EU „welfare model” (healthcare,
pensions, higher education): development of private
provision, freezing of welfare expenditures, freezing of
public budgets as lending conditionalities etc
• Higher education in CEE witnessed:
– getting rid of politics from HE institutions
– huge increase in enrolments, accompanied by constant number of
faculty
– generally, (relative) pauperization of the academic profession
– diversification of levels and modes of study
– huge increase in a number of institutions
HE transformations: Central Europe (3)
– booming of the private sector (in some countries)
– steadily decreasing public funds for research and students’
assistance
– reform attempts along „Bologna lines”, including new laws on HE
– development of rigid accreditation procedures, both state and
independent (Rectors’ Conferences, business associations etc)
– highly increased exchange of students and faculty with EU
countries (EU projects)
– full access (for EU-accession countries) to EU research programs
– the net result of these transformations in shown in enrolment rates
below (Poland as an example from CEE):
Student enrolments (global
comparison)
90
80
70
60
USA
OECD
Poland
Kosovo
50
40
30
20
10
0
1995
2000
2003
Number of students per 100,000
(SEE)
4500
4000
3500
3000
Albania (580)
Kosovo (1053)
FYRoM (1350)
Croatia (2641)
Slovenia (4243)
2500
2000
1500
1000
500
0
2000
Number of students per 100,000
(CEE)
4000
Slovakia (1618)
Czech Rep. (1816)
Romania (1957)
Moldova (2292)
Lithuania (2562)
Hungary (2800)
Bulgaria (3045)
Poland (3670)
Estonia (3677)
Latvia (3900)
3500
3000
2500
2000
1500
1000
500
0
2000
Student enrolments - Kosova, in
thousands (1970-2003)
40
35
30
25
20
Kosova
15
10
5
0
1970
1978
1989
1999
2000
2003
Transition countries: agendas for
reforms (1)
• Two major agendas: transnational and EU
• Transnational reform agendas for HE set by the WB and
OECD, within wider reforms of the state
– the minimal state: provides an „enabling framework” for
functioning of the market forces and competition between (private)
providers
– privatization (in the long run) of major welfare services:
healthcare, pensions, (higher) education
– the burden off the state’s shoulders (and to users of services)
– to keep budget deficits as low as possible, lower taxes etc
– to downsize the public sector
– HE seen more as a private good, not a public good (also: WTO)
Transition countries: agendas for
reforms (2)
• EU reform agendas for EU accession countries similar to
the transnational agenda in general
• for HE, crucial role of Bologna process and ERA: towards
Europe of Knowledge, research for applications,
institutions for students employability
• traditional EU concerns about the „European welfare
model” generally irrelevant for EU-accession countries
• Bologna process crucial: new European framework for
reforms
• ERA crucial: access to research funds (16 billion EUR
2004-08)
Transition countries: agendas for
reforms (3)
• necessity: to combine transnational views of downsizing
the public sector (no resources available soon, growing
other social and economic needs; taxation) and European
views of HE crucial for economic growth (future common
European labor market)
• HE will be competing strongly with other sectors for
shrinking public funds. Private funds fo HE grew faster
than public funds in all major OECD economies
Reforming HE in transition / EU
countries: differences
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reforms in transition countries / EU countries are:
deep / part of an organic process of evolution
high speed needed to avoid collapse / moderate speed
part of overall reform agendas / relatively independent
structural, systemic / piecemeal, bit by bit
under severe budget constraints/ in still affluent societies
under pressure to increase enrolments/ no similar pressures
towards postindustrial societies / already in „knowledgesocieties”
Lessons learned
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HE systems in transition countries must:
successfully compete with other sectors for public funds (expect less)
radically differentiate its institutions and modes of delivery
develop the private sector (in the absence of accessible, adaptable
public providers)
radically reform curricula for the labor market needs
radically increase enrolments (high social and public returns from HE)
have clear accreditation schemes and quality assurance systems
closely follow European developments (Bologna and ERA) and adapt
what is best for local needs
see comprehensive reforms as a very long-term process
Thank you very much for your attention, let
us remember that:
• „Changing a university is difficult. It is like
moving a cemetary; hard work and there is no
internal support”, Clark Kerr