Higher Education Opportunities Research Articles

Factors Influencing Advanced Level Students' Choice of Technology Stream

“The Stream of Technology” was introduced as the fifth subject at the G.C.E. (A/L) in Sri Lankan schools in 2013, based on the concept of developing competent human capital for the modern workforce through technical knowledge. The primary objective of this introduction was to increase the number of students choosing technology stream while reducing those opting for arts stream. However, this goal was not met as anticipated. Consequently, this research has been conducted with the main aim of identifying the reasons behind this outcome. This study was conducted using a quantitative research approach and a descriptive survey design. The Batticaloa Education Zone in Batticaloa District, one of the districts in Sri Lanka, was selected for the study, and three schools with a technology stream at G.C.E. (A/L) were chosen. A total of 165 students were selected as samples using simple random sampling techniques. Data were collected through questionnaires and documents, and analyzed using descriptive statistical analysis methods. The study revealed that factors related to career and higher education opportunities have significantly influenced students’ choices in the technology stream. However, a lack of guidance during G.C.E. (O/L) insufficient societal awareness, and minimal encouragement from parents and peers contribute to students’ reluctance to pursue the technology stream. It is essential that adequate guidance is provided to both students and parents through the school career guidance unit at G.C.E. (O/L) Specifically, effective guidance should emphasize the importance of tertiary education and the N.V.Q. certificate. This approach will help dispel misunderstandings and misconceptions within society, including among students and parents, regarding the technology stream.

The Relationship of Zakat Management Organization (ZMO) to the Effectiveness of Higher Education Management

This research aims to analyze the transformation of zakat management as a construct for the development model of independence in higher education institutions in Indonesia. Identifying zakat management includes differences in religious interpretations, regulatory ambiguity, and management ineffectiveness . The research adopts a qualitative descriptive survey method conducted at the Islamic University in Medan, North Sumatra. The study highlights the symbiotic relationship between zakat management organizations and educational institutions, emphasizing the important role of zakat in supporting financially disadvantaged students. Through collaboration, universities can actively identify deserving recipients and promote social responsibility. Zakat institutions emerge as financial entities and development partners, empowering beneficiaries towards economic independence. The research findings also indicate the effectiveness of zakat distribution through several means, including providing scholarships, improving educational infrastructure, enhancing education quality, and promoting equal opportunities in higher education. This study advocates for integrating justice, transparency, and sustainability in zakat operations, positioning these institutions as pillars supporting economic and social development in Islamic society. This research identifies current challenges in the zakat management system and proposes solutions to enhance its effectiveness in Indonesia, a Muslim majority country.

Special Issue of Industry & Higher Education “Cultural and creative industries and the challenge of sustainable development: Opportunities for higher education, businesses and communities” Introduction by the Guest Editors Prof Elisa Salvador and Prof Roberta Comunian

<b>Special Issue of Industry &amp; Higher Education “Cultural and creative industries and the challenge of sustainable development: Opportunities for higher education, businesses and communities” Introduction by the Guest Editors<i> Prof Elisa Salvador and Prof Roberta Comunian</i></b>

Digital facelift

The rapid development and proliferation of synthetic media and AI-generated avatars present both challenges and opportunities for higher education. Increasingly, educational institutions must navigate complex ethical and pedagogical considerations, as well as adapt to the latest AI technologies (Siemens et al., 2022). Ethical and pedagogical principles to guide AI use are urgently needed in education (Bozkurt et al., 2021). In this presentation, we share a practical perspective, framed by a specific case-study: the development and implementation of a large-scale, interactive business module featuring AI-generated ‘Guest Lecturers’ The AI-generated video content, along with other online activities, were designed to stimulate critical reflection and discussion about the ethical implications of AI in business. Now in its second iteration, the project represents a significant trial and evaluation of synthetic media to present educational concepts in a cohort of over 700 students. Fundamental ethical and pedagogical questions surfaced during the development and implementation of this learning media. How transparent should educators be about the processes and tools they adopt in producing content, for example (Pataranutaporn et al., 2021)? When does human presence add value in recorded video, be it in a pedagogical or parasocial sense (Beege et al., 2019)? And what forms of learning might benefit (or not) from automating video content (Li et al., 2016)? Based on evaluation data from focus groups and video analytics, we explore these questions and the potential affordances and limitations of synthetic media. We also reflect on the tools and techniques that were used to create the project, and implications for educational institutions as they seek to build capacity for AI content creation within traditional production ecosystems. An emergent typology for AI in educational media is explored, to help educators design for teaching and learning based on learning purposes and modes of delivery. Finally, we discuss how student feedback might inform the design, production and delivery of learning media, and future directions for student co-creation and agency.

Artificial intelligence in higher education: a bibliometric analysis and topic modeling approach

ABSTRACT Artificial intelligence (AI) has brought unprecedented growth and productivity in every socioeconomic sector. AI adoption in education is transformational through reduced teacher workload, individualized learning, intelligent tutors, profiling and prediction, high-precision education, collaboration, and learner tracking. This paper highlights the trajectory of AI research in higher education (HE) through bibliometric analysis and topic modeling approaches. We used the PRISMA guidelines to select 304 articles published in the Scopus database between 2012 and 2021. VOSviewer was used for visualization and text-mining to identify hotspots in the field. Latent Dirichlet Allocation analysis reveals distinct topics in the dynamic relationship between AI and HE. Only 9.6% of AI research in HE was achieved in the first seven years, with the last three years contributing 90.4%. China, the United States, Russia and the United Kingdom dominated publications. Four themes emerged – data as the catalyst, the development of AI, the adoption of AI in HE and emerging trends and the future of AI in HE. Topic modeling on the abstracts revealed the 10 most frequent topics and the top 30 most salient terms. This research contributes to the literature by synthesizing AI adoption opportunities in HE, topic modeling and future research areas.

Should open-book, open-web exams replace traditional closed-book exams in STEM? An evaluation of their effectiveness in different disciplines

The mass shift to Open-Book, Open-Web (OBOW) assessments during the pandemic highlighted new opportunities in Higher Education for developing accessible, authentic assessments that can reduce administrative load. Despite a plethora of research emerging on the effectiveness of OBOW assessments within disciplines, few currently evaluate their effectiveness across disciplines where the assessment instrument can vary significantly. This paper aims to evaluate the experience students across STEM subjects had of OBOW exams to contribute to an evidence-base for emerging post-pandemic assessment policies and strategies. In April 2021, following two cycles of OBOW exams, we surveyed STEM students across a range of subjects to determine their preparation strategy, experiences during the exam, perception of development of higher order cognitive skills, test anxiety, and how they thought these assessments might enhance employability. Overall, students from subjects that use assessment instruments requiring analytical, quantitative-based answers (Maths, Physics, Computer Science and Chemistry) adapted their existing study skills less effectively, felt less prepared and experienced higher levels of stress compared to students of subjects using more qualitative discursive based answers (Biosciences and Geography). We conclude with recommendations on how to enhance the use of OBOW exams: these include supporting and developing more effective study skills, ensuring assessments align with intended learning outcomes, addressing the issue of academic integrity, promoting inclusivity, and encouraging authentic assessment. Based on the outcomes of this study, we strongly advise that assessment policies that foster the whole-scale roll-out of OBOW assessment consider the inter-disciplinary impacts on learner development, staff training and workload resources.

Book Review: Students First: Equity, Access, and Opportunity in Higher Education

Book Review: Students First: Equity, Access, and Opportunity in Higher Education

Exploring inequity factors in higher education: Promoting equitable access and success in the US

The issue of equity in higher education has gained prominence as it has become increasingly clear that opportunities for higher education are not equitably distributed among different student groups. This paper provides a thorough understanding of the key components of equitable access and success in higher education, primarily in the context of the United States. It also seeks to explore the effectiveness of affirmative action, financial aid and scholarship systems, successful initiatives, cultural and sociological attitudes, and institutional structures and services in promoting equitable access and success in higher education. The paper uses a systematic review methodology to analyze academic and policy documents, program evaluations, and case studies. The analysis includes a synthesis of key findings and themes from the literature review, an examination of successful initiatives and programs in higher education institutions in the United States. The findings suggest that while affirmative action and financial aid programs have been successful in promoting equitable access and success in higher education, further efforts are needed to address cultural and societal attitudes that perpetuate inequities in higher education. Recommendations for future research include the long-term effects of financial aid and cultural barriers to building a more equitable education.

American Superiority, Democratic Idealism, and the Truman Commission: A Critical Discourse Historical Analysis of Higher Education for American Democracy

ABSTRACT In this critical historical analysis, Higher Education for American Democracy is considered a historical artifact, and its veneration as a landmark quest for equal opportunity in higher education is challenged. I argue that this report and the institutional expansion that resulted positioned the federal government to have a direct role in higher education, allowing presidential agendas and dominant ideologies to influence the course of college and university curriculum, access, and purpose. Through a discourse historical approach and a critical realist lens, the Truman Commission Report and President Truman’s public statements are analyzed to reevaluate ther report and its implications for the democratic purpose of higher education in America after World War II.

International Physician Migration: A Comparative Study of Healthcare in the US, UK, &amp;amp; India

Physician migration patterns are a phenomenon that affects the healthcare system within developing countries, but there is no strong evidence to show why doctors migrate to the West after getting an education from elite Indian medical institutions. This study aims to explain why physicians from India choose to leave given the different push and pull factors. Prior research shows that better opportunities for higher education, socioeconomic status, upward mobility, and equitable healthcare systems contribute to why physicians are attracted to the US and the UK. This leads to the next main question: which country do doctors prefer after moving away from India, the US or the UK? With further investigation through interviews, it becomes evident that there is no actual preference for one country. Each country has unique assets within the types of healthcare and lifestyles offered. Physicians note that social networks, support systems, and recruitment are all reasons for moving to the West. Female and lower caste/class doctors with adequate resources who left India discuss that they were able to feel more valued for their merit outside of the country. Some upper caste/class physicians were privileged enough to have more autonomy when deciding where to go; for them, the West was just another option. Upper-caste narratives also shed light on the politics they fled from, such as the medical education quota system for undergraduate and postgraduate institutions. To summarize: physicians didn’t worry too much about the destination. Rather, they just wanted to leave India.

Inequalities in higher education students’ academic performance

In the last decades, despite the implementation of policies aiming at the equality of opportunities in Higher Education (HE) and the improvement of the academic performance of the less privileged students, new forms of inequalities have been raised. This paper examines the factors that influence students' perceptions regarding the implementation of policies that contribute to the development of their performance. Drawing on the concept of "institutional habitus", this study presents results of a survey questionnaire of 322 students in two university institutions in Greece. The selected universities meet the criteria of different history, location and organizational structure. The findings show differences between institutions, which reveal the important role of institutional practices in students' academic performance. The findings highlight the importance of investigating factors other than social background when studying academic success and learning outcomes.

The Making of Smart Campus: A Review and Conceptual Framework

Smart campus is an emerging concept enabled by digital transformation opportunities in higher education. Smart campuses are often perceived as miniature replicas of smart cities and serve as living labs for smart technology research, development, and adoption, along with their traditional teaching, learning and research functions. There is currently a limited understanding of how the smart campus is conceptualized and practiced. This paper addresses this gap by using a systematic literature review following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) approach. The study uses four major domains of the smart campus, i.e., society, economy, environment, and governance, to classify existing research. These domains are each aligned to the central smart campus concepts of digital technology and big data. The analysis found little evidence of a comprehensive real-world application of the smart campus towards addressing all four domains. This highlights the infancy of the current conceptualization and practice. The findings contribute to the development of a new conceptual foundation and research directions for the smart campus notion and informs its practice through a conceptual framework. The findings reported in this paper offer a firm basis for comprehensive smart campus conceptualization, and also provide directions for future research and development of smart campuses.

Understanding the employment impact of neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder in the USA: Mixed methods.

Neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) is a rare and disabling neurological disorder, marked by recurrent attacks of the central nervous system. NMO has a high female predominance and disproportionately affects racial and ethnic groups who are under- and unemployed in the USA. Three focus groups, involving 20 working age adults with NMOSD in the USA, were convened via Zoom online, to discuss the topic of employment in NMOSD. Consolidated Criteria for Reporting Qualitative research (COREQ) were followed. Discussions were coded for major themes using an inductive approach. The following themes emerged: (1) Barriers due to NMOSD on employment including (i) visible and invisible symptoms, (ii) the burden of treatment, and (iii) time to diagnosis; (2) Mitigating factors when NMOSD affects employment; (3) Impact of COVID-19; (4) Impact on income; (5) Impact on new and future employment and higher education opportunities; and (6) Unmet needs that are pragmatically addressable, outside of major policy or scientific changes.

Educational Loan for Religious Minority Under Arivu Scheme

Objective: Education is the system of instruction designed to provide individuals with the tools they need to take part in day-to-day activities. It rejects ignorance and instils moral values in individuals. The functioning of the education sector is dependent upon the availability of different resources, most notably financial resources. Education funding comes from a variety of sources, including government spending, fees, educational loans by nationalized banks, cooperative societies, and others. Among these, educational loans have been identified as an alternative method of financing education. This study attempts to examine the Arivu loan Scheme's education loans for religious minorities. ABCD analysis was performed to determine its advantages, benefits, constraints, and disadvantages. Methodology: This study made use of secondary sources in order to have comprehensive evidence-based research on educational loan under the Arivu scheme. The semi-systematic review is carried out using various government publications and articles from newspapers, Google Scholar, Srinivas publications, Research Gate, SSRN, and other sources. Findings: A thorough examination revealed that in India religious minorities face challenges in the areas of social status, economic expansion, and higher education opportunities. Students from religious minority communities can pursue professional courses through the Arivu loan Scheme. This scheme benefited a large number of religious minority students and also found that Pupils are adversely affected because the government has ceased releasing funds for Arivu loan scheme during the Covid-19 pandemic. Practical Implications: This research will inform students about the state government-sponsored Arivu Educational Loan under KMDC, which helps students from religious minorities pursue higher education. It will also assist government officials in learning more about the funds allotted by the government and the total number of students in Dakshina Kannada who benefited from the Arivu educational loan scheme, which improves minorities' educational standing. Originality/ value: As a secondary data-driven study, it may provide an overall perspective on Arivu Educational Loans under KMDC. This Arivu loan will improve the status of the religious minority community, but the concept of the Arivu education loan by KMDC can also be better understood by conducting a primary survey, which serves as the study's limitation. Paper type: Case study

Questioning merit-based scholarships at nonprofit private universities: Lessons from Turkey

By employing multiple correspondence analysis (MCA), this study reveals the similarities between students’ socioeconomic status at five nonprofit private universities in Turkey. This research analyzes qualitative characteristics such as students’ fathers’ occupations, high school types, programs of study, and tuition fee paying status. The results demonstrate that children from relatively low-income families do not sufficiently benefit from the merit-based scholarship programs at nonprofit private universities. To ensure equality of opportunity in higher education, the researchers advocate for redesigning merit-based scholarship programs, which holds key implications not just for Turkey, but also for other higher education systems that rely on merit-based financial aid.

Digital Design and its Prospects in Higher Education

Digital design has emerged as a transformative force in higher education, reshaping the way students learn and educators teach. This abstract highlights the significance of digital design in higher education and its potential prospects for the future of learning Digital design encompasses a wide range of visual content creation using digital tools, such as graphic design, web design, animation, and multimedia production. digital design offers personalized learning opportunities, enhances engagement, and prepares students for success in a technology-driven world. Despite its potential, challenges remain. Digital literacy among faculty and students, technological infrastructure, quality assurance, and data security are critical considerations for successful implementation in higher education. In conclusion, digital design holds tremendous promise for higher education, offering opportunities for innovation, cost-effectiveness, and improved learning outcomes. Embracing digital design can prepare students for a technology-driven world and equip them with essential skills to thrive in a rapidly evolving job market. As higher education institutions invest in digital design, they can create the way for a transformative and inclusive learning landscape, shaping a brighter future for learners and educators alike. In this study, we will use critical and content analysis to uncover challenges and opportunities in higher education for digital design course implementation. Using a questionnaire of 200 students taking this course at their university and 200 students not taking the digital design course, the study will aim to identify the advantages and disadvantages of both two. We also explored the advantages of universities that have this course in them

Effects of campus dining sustainable practices on consumers' perception and behavioral intention in the United States.

Sustainability has become one of the top priorities in the foodservice industry. With an increase in consumer interest in sustainability and educational opportunities in higher education, it is important to know what sustainable practices are implemented in campus dining and how sustainable practices affect consumers' responses. This study aims to identify the key sustainable practices in the campus dining context, and investigate the relationship by applying the stimulus-organism-response framework to determine whether the key sustainable practices influence consumers' perception and behavioral intentions. The self-administered online survey was distributed to college students in 8 dining halls at a large southeastern university in the United States from September 20-October 10, 2019. A total of 382 valid questionnaires were collected, and factor analysis and multiple regressions were utilized to test the research model. This study identified 4 dimensions of campus sustainability with a total of sustainable practices: sustainable food, waste management, energy/water conservation, and recycling/reuse. Three dimensions of sustainable campus practices (i.e., sustainable food, waste management, recycling/reuse) played a significant role in consumers forming a perceived value while energy/water conservation did not significantly influence the consumers' perceived value toward the campus dining. Waste management was identified as the most important practice to enhance consumers' perceived value (β = 0.330). Using sustainable food and recycling/reuse were ranked second and third, respectively (β = 0.262, β = 0.154). The findings confirmed the significant positive relationship between perceived value and revisit intentions. The findings support the inclusion of dining sustainability as a critical component in explaining college students' perceived value and revisit intention toward campus dining. Furthermore, this study provides practical implications for university administrators and foodservice operators to consider the key sustainable practices to meet the consumers' value and revisit intentions.

Examining Dialogic Opportunities in Higher-Education: Lessons Learned from Dialogue Courses for Jewish Students

Examining Dialogic Opportunities in Higher-Education: Lessons Learned from Dialogue Courses for Jewish Students

Why do you choose this program?-A decision-making model of medical students based on grounded theory.

This study aims to investigate the reasons behind the decline in the number of applicants and dropouts from N University's reformed program, which includes increased research experience, an optimized curriculum, and other benefits. The ultimate goal is to identify areas for improvement and make the program more appealing to potential students. This study utilized the Grounded Theory approach, conducting semi-structured in-depth interviews and applying data collection, coding, and the constant comparative method. As a result, a decision-making model for college students was constructed. Following the initial stages of individual expectation formation, which include inducement and self-efficacy, and the subsequent stage of value assessment, individuals reach a decision. Throughout this process, the individual's circumstances and surroundings continue to influence their decision-making. Additionally, the decision-making procedure follows a Hierarchy Pyramid of Educational Needs. Our findings show that job prospects and continuing education are the primary factors influencing interviewees' decisions. However, it is important to note that individuals may place varying levels of importance on these factors. Additionally, the preferences and priorities of teachers, such as their commitment to research guidance, curriculum development, and maintaining fairness in examinations, can also play a role in shaping these decisions. To attract more talented individuals to research-oriented programs, universities should provide more job and higher education opportunities, reform the curriculum thoroughly, and enhance teachers' teaching devotion.

Higher Education Opportunity and the Choice of Vocational vs. Academic High School

Higher Education Opportunity and the Choice of Vocational vs. Academic High School