Higher Education Reforms in Malawi with Specific Reference to Equitable Access

One consequence of the hype around globalization and education and debates on global political actors such as the World Bank, IMF and WTO—is that there has not been sufficient attention paid by education theorists to the development of a rigorous set of analytic categories that might enable us to make sense of the profound changes which now characterize education in the new millennium. 1 This is not a problema confined to education. Writing in the New Left Review, Fredric Jameson observes that debates on globalization have tended to be shaped by “…ideological appropriations— discussions not of the process itself, but of its effects, good or bad: judgements, in other words, totalizing in nature; while functional descriptions tend to isolate particular elements without relating them to each other.” In this paper we start from the position that little or nothing can be explained in terms of the causal powers of globalization; rather we shall be suggesting that globalization is the outcome of processes that involve real actors—economic and political—with real interests. Following Martin Shaw, we also take the view that globalization does not undermine the state but includes the transformation of state forms; “…it is both predicated on and produces such transformations.”3 Examining how these processes of transformation work, however, requires systematic investigation into the organization and strategies of particular actors whose horizons or effects might be described as global.

Aiming at the problem of low confidence in the traditional model of higher education innovation and reform, this paper designs a model of higher education of innovation and Reform Based on hierarchical ordered probity in biotechnology. By mining the data of higher education innovation and reform, deleting the redundant features of higher education innovation and reform data, filling in the data null and noise points, the data preprocessing of higher education innovation and reform is completed. Based on the hierarchical probity, the model parameters are estimated by calculating the core indicators of the model, and the functional relationship between the independent variables and the dependent variables in the model parameters is determined. The experimental results show that the confidence of the model based on hierarchical ordered probity is significantly higher than that of the control group, which can solve the problem of low confidence of the traditional higher education innovation model. The rate of return on schooling is steadily falling as social competitiveness heats up. As a result, the positive impact of education on well-being is lessened. This study used a bivariate ordered Probity model under the educational field theory to examine the effect of higher education innovation on social class and residents' satisfaction. Higher education reform and innovation will have an influence on people' satisfaction, according to these findings. People's subjective well-being may be considerably improved by increasing their education level, and there are major disparities between urban and rural areas. This demonstrates the need of educational reform and innovation strategies with best practices.

From the Editorial Board Marketing the Future:Rebranding Public Education Torrie K. Edwards It is important to discuss the role of higher education and university structures in a journal that focuses on secondary education and research policy because post-secondary changes inevitably shape P-12 education policy. With political rhetoric around the policies for higher education becoming increasingly conservative across many states (in particular, those with notably progressive institutions), it is clear that the political right will gravely impact P-20 public education in two ways: first, by redefining the purpose of schools, thus changing coursework, university and P-12 school structures, standards, teacher preparation, and teacher compensation; and second, by privatizing schools, which—regardless of whether this is intended or not—will exacerbate existing race-based and class-based institutional inequities. Pervasive in the current rhetoric of public higher education is an emphasis on the job market and employability, as well as the repeated use of business language and terminology in program and institutional evaluation. Though current rhetoric emphasizes this neoliberal approach to education, public education has not always been conceptualized only in this way. The purpose of public education has often been understood as a mechanism by which we create civically active and knowledgeable participants in a democratic society. This idea of democratic citizenship is reflected in university mission statements, demonstrating both university and external community members’ moral and political understanding of the role of public higher education. A simple Google search of public universities’ mission statements elicits such examples of university purpose as “community engagement” (University of South Carolina, 2010), “new knowledge that can change how we all work and live” (University of Minnesota, 2014), and “the free and collegial exchange of ideas” (University of Virginia, 2014). These characteristics of higher education are similarly reflected in P-12 spaces. Historically, public education has been conceptualized as the means by which America can “survive as a democracy,” by “arm[ing] people with an intelligence capable of free and independent thought” that “helps people to build common ground across diverse experiences and ideas” (Darling-Hammond, 1996, p. 5). And, although the Common Core State Standards (2010) also emphasize competitiveness, that the standards identify educated citizenship and respect for the experiences of “widely divergent cultures” (p. 7) as important also echoes those university statements of purpose. Looking at these post-secondary missions and our current P-12 academic standards, it is clear that both parts of the public education community share the responsibility to promote excellence, academic quality, and a devotion to community. Despite these qualities of public education, in recent years, conservative political figures across the country have used their executive strength to encourage and supplement legislative policies that limit and change the purpose of public higher education. State leaders like Governors Scott Walker of Wisconsin and Rick Scott of Florida are attempting to institute efforts to limit and change public education by cutting public P-20 education funding and expanding voucher programs (Bosman, 2015; Kelderman, 2015; [End Page 1] Strauss, 2015). Often leaders who have slashed the public education budget and rearranged education systems have met resistance, and nowhere is the political tension around public education more apparent than in North Carolina, the home state of The High School Journal. In 2013, newly elected Governor Pat McCrory decried the intellectual elitism of North Carolina’s university system. Declaring his lack of support for public funding of liberal arts education in public universities, he argued that the system’s responsibility was to produce employable graduates who could fill the market’s needs; for instance students who wish to participate in liberal arts courses such as “gender studies” or “Swahili language” classes could, according to the Governor, “go to a private school” (Kingkade, 2015). McCrory’s statement, which elicited criticism from students, college professors, and even other conservatives (Kingkade, 2015), flies in the face of the University of North Carolina’s mission to maintain an “unwavering commitment to excellence as one of the world’s great research universities” and extend “knowledge-based services and other resources of the University to the citizens of North Carolina…to enhance the quality of life for all people in the State” (University of North...

Dans les universites nord-americaines, europeennes et oceaniennes les gouvernements ont impose aux universites une gestion tres rigoureuse des fonds de provenance publique et une ouverture au financement prive, ainsi qu'une vision de l'universite pourvoyeuse de ressources humaines sur le marche du travail. Les organisations internationales comme l'OCDE ou la Banque mondiale ont vehicule ces modeles de la mondialisation. C'est Roland Robertson en 1985 qui donne la premiere definition du mot mondialisation : un concept qui fait reference a la reduction du monde et a la prise de conscience que le monde forme un tout, cette mondialisation ayant differentes dimensions internationales : economiques, politiques et culturelles. C'est la dimension economique de la mondialisation qui a le plus touche les universites avec ses contraintes de performance et de gestion. L'etude relatee ici sur ces questions des pratiques mondialistes : criteres de performance et gestion universitaires a ete menee de 1994 a 1997 aupres de plus de 250 universitaires en Austalie et aux USA et completee par des entretiens au Canada et en Nouvelle Zelande. Les conclusions plaident pour une forme de responsabilite universitaire qui ne repose pas seulement sur des criteres de performance, la responsabilite democratique ayant ete negligee au profit de la responsabilite financiere.

The article presents the results of research on the discursive models of academic relationships that come to the fore in the academic discourse on the reform of higher education in Poland. The aim of the research was to capture the ways of formulating knowledge about the reform of science and higher education and its subjects (i.e., academic teachers and students). The research material comprised 17 Polish academic monographs published in the years 2011-2014 (immediately after the introduction of the higher education reform in Poland). The direction of the analyses was emergent and inductive and was in line with the assumptions of post-Foucauldian discourse analysis. The theoretical basis was determined by the set of categories that constitute the phenomenon of the “formation of knowledge.” The main research problem was expressed by the question about what "truths" about the reform of science and higher education, its main subjects (academic teachers and students), and the relationships between them emerge from the analysed discourse. The research has led to the reconstruction of discursive models of academic teachers (traditional professor, docile workhorse, and hopeless practitioner) and students (student sensu stricto, client, disobedient citizen).

In this paper, we explore the delegitimation of contemporary student protest against market-oriented reforms in higher education. Theoretically, we draw on an extended version of the Public Nuisance Paradigm, a theoretical paradigm that emphasizes the role of mass media discourse in the delegitimation of social protest. We illustrate our argument in a case study of the 2014 student protest against a market-oriented reform in Flemish higher education, that is, higher tuition fees. We identify four specific discursive strategies underlying the delegitimation of this student protest through mass media discourse: authorization, rationalization, moralization and predication. The major contribution of our study is that it extends the Public Nuisance Paradigm that has been introduced in the recent higher education literature focused on student movements, by zooming in on the micro level of analysis.

The purpose of this article is to describe, from an Islamic perspective, the urgency of bureaucratic reform in higher education. Important aspects of bureaucratic reform pertinent to Islamic higher education are highlighted in this article. The research methodology employs qualitative methods and a literature-based strategy. This article is based on a comprehensive analysis of the relevant literature, with references to primary sources such as the Qur'an and Hadith, as well as academic references on bureaucratic reform and higher education. This article's findings indicate that bureaucratic reform in higher education is crucial for enhancing the quality of education and services. The Islamic perspective emphasizes the importance of fairness, equity, transparency, accountability, professionalism, competence, participation, consultation, ethics, and integrity in the implementation of these reforms. Implementing Islamic values in bureaucratic reform can bolster the Islamic higher education system and provide greater benefits to society and Muslims in general. This article provides a better comprehension of the urgency of bureaucratic reform in higher education from an Islamic perspective, as well as a solid foundation for more effective and sustainable reform initiatives.

What Does Globalization Mean for Educational Change? A Comparative Approach

Cet article examine a quel point l'enseignement superieur a Hong-Kong et a Singapour a ete affecte par un aspect de la mondialisation, la force du managerialisme, en particulier dans les mecanismes et systemes de direction et de gestion qu'ont adoptes la City University of Hong-Kong et la National University of Singapore en reponse a une vague mondiale d'assurance de la qualite.

Reforms in Swedish higher education The Swedish educational system has undergone a continuing series of transformations since the 1950s. A nine-year comprehensive compulsory school and an upper secondary school which integrates theoretical and vocational study programs have gone into operation. Adult education has been expanded. Then in 1975, following extensive studies by government-appointed commissions, the Swedish cabinet presented a bill setting forth guidelines for reforms in higher education. Parliament approved this cabinet proposal and in 1977 passed the additional proposals needed to implement the reforms, including a Higher Education Act. The new higher education system went into effect the same year. In 1975 Sweden had a Social Democratic cabinet, in 1977 a non-socialist one.

Malawi’s demographic dividend remains low with a population that is young, comprising 46% below the age of 15. The majority of the population is involved in agriculture, which is the backbone of the economy; however, there has been limited investment, especially in agriculture higher education. There remains a big gap between higher education and development. A study was therefore undertaken to understand current status and identify challenges and opportunities in higher education, with special focus on agriculture. Literature was reviewed and the public, private sector and civil society were consulted using checklists. Findings show that Malawi has four public universities and sixteen private universities registered with the National Council for Higher Education. None of the universities is highly ranked in the global ranking systems for higher education instituons. This is as a result of limited research and publications, limited funding, poor infrastructure, non-industry oriented curriculum and compromised quality of education. Therefore, universities should intensify interaction with industry to improve research, curriculum design and delivery and graduate training and research quality. The National Council for Higher Education in Malawi and line ministry should develop a national qualifications framework, in reference to international standards, to guide and regulate quality of university programmes. Overall, the government and development partners should prioritize investing in the young generation to advance to higher education in order to reap a significant demographic dividend and foster development. Key words: Agriculture, demographic dividend, investment, University ranking

The article studies the phenomenon of institutional traps resulting from modern reforms in public sector and higher education in Russia in the context of New Public Management. The research methodology embraces theoretical patterns and approaches of institutional economics. The research methods include interpretative, narrative and content analysis of opinions and expressions of actors retrieved from various mass media. The ideology of New Public Management is viewed as a result of neoliberal discourse which has become increasingly popular in the past few decades all over the world. Neoliberal reforms were first initiated in the United Kingdom and a number of other developed countries in the 1980s – 1990s in many sectors, including the public one. These institutional traps are sustainable forms of the lock-in effect in the context of path dependence theory. The authors focus on primarily two types of them – the metrics trap and the bureaucracy (administrative) trap – and analyse them theoretically and empirically. Within the framework of theoretical analysis, the traps’ relevance is due to social laws such as Campbell’s law and Graeber’s “iron law of liberalism”. These laws illustrate some negative fallout in social and economic activities focused on specific indicators in the public sector. Empirically, we explore these institutional traps using narrative analysis of mass-media reports, interviews and online discussions and citations. It characterizes the way in which the reforms implemented in higher education are perceived. The authors conclude that there is the interrelation between the problems in reforming higher education and the ideology of New Public Management, which causes the need for rethinking the strategy and ideology of modern reforms in higher education.

The Ministry of Education published a series of important documents to map out higher education reform. The document states that to carry through National Education Outline, national educational system pilot reforms should be developed in certain areas and schools. It announces instructional opinions on fully enhancing the quality of higher education. The document promotes to carry out Plan 2011 . The South University of Science and Technology of China is the landmark of China's higher education reform. Shenzhen University was established as the experimental college for institutions of corporate governance structure by Guangdong Provincial Department of Education. With 228 national higher education reform pilot projects and a series of continuing special reforms, higher education reform has made some progress. The pilot program of national education reform requires Exploration of New Liberal Education Model . The top-level design of higher education reform is still in need of more comprehensive and practical considerations. Keywords: Exploration of New Liberal Education Model ; higher education reform; Ministry of Education; National Education Outline ; Shenzhen University

Since the 1970s, Malawi has been a host to asylum seekers fleeing from liberation and civil wars in Mozambique, Rwanda, Burundi, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Somalia, and the Zaire/Democratic Republic of the Congo (Makhema, 2009). As a signatory to international legal instruments governing refugees and asylum seekers, Malawi, whose constitution advocates for education rights for all, is obligated to host the refugees and provide for their needs such as pre-primary, primary, secondary and higher education, health, and security. In this chapter, the authors discuss the history of refugee flows into Malawi and refugee education policy within the national education policies in Malawi. In particular, the authors argue that refugees are part of Malawi’s social and demographic reality and their education needs and rights should be factored into the country’s higher education policy and annual national budgets. The authors further make proposals for extending equitable higher education access to accommodate refugee applicants. The authors conclude by recommending that, in order for Malawi to live by its commitments to serve all humanity without segregation, it should reserve a quota for refugees in public universities, or at least welcoming refugee applicants on local fees terms.

The article presents the results of the analysis of the main directions of the reform of higher technical education of the USSR in the 1930s and their features in Belarus. On the basis of archival materials introduced into scientific circulation for the first time, the specifics of the development of the higher technical school of Belarus are revealed on the example of the Belarusian State Polytechnic Institute (Minsk) and the Belarusian State Mechanical Engineering Institute (Gomel). It is noted that the short period of restructuring of higher education on the principles of Western European approaches soon showed its inconsistency in the USSR. Huge territories, large-scale projects of industrialisation and collectivisation required not a narrow specialist, but an engineer capable of solving complex problems. Agricultural engineering already in 1930 began to abandon the use of Western European models of equipment, which, due to their orientation to the farmer in conditions of the huge size of collective farms and state farms, were unproductive and ineffective. These circumstances contributed to the change in the concept of higher education, which was oriented in 1932 to the consolidation of universities and specialties. The reforms carried out were enshrined in the USSR Constitution of 1936, which allowed the higher school to acquire those features that distinguished it in a favorable light in the world – accessibility, democracy and fundamentality. The liquidation of the All-Union Committee on Higher Technical Education in the same year and the creation of the All-Union Committee onHigher Education meant the completion of the process of building a higher school in the USSR.