Suchergebnisse

Have you ever explained to someone that you write university policy and then watch him quickly turn his attention to someone else? Do you struggle to share excitement about your assignment to craft policy? Do you share the perception that policy writing is boring and dull? But should it be?

Higher education contributes to economic innovation. This study measures and compares the extent to which national governments' policies foster this contribution across Europe. The study stresses the relevance of policies which are 'empowering' for higher education institutions, or in other words provide them with appropriate resources and regulatory environments. The assessment relies on quantitative scores, based on the contribution of policies regarding funding and autonomy to higher education performance in education, research and economic innovation, using non-arbitrary weights and eighteen policy indicators across 32 European countries. A large number of countries belong to a 'middle group' in our overall assessment, indicating a relative cohesion in Europe. Yet, substantial variations exist in terms of higher education policy in Europe, each European country having room for policy improvement.

This article analyzes three reports on higher education, research and innovation policy in Iceland by using a Foucauldian discourse analysis approach. The reports were released in 2009 and 2012, emphasizing the simplification of the research and innovation system in Iceland. While on the surface the reports include practical recommendations, the study reveals a strong moral stance in the reports which express concerns that too many universities and two small institutions spread efforts too widely. Suggestions to reorganize the system tend to be presented by simply stating that it is important to do so, but sometimes such assertions are also interwoven with arguments for larger and more powerful universities and research institutions. There is a focus in the reports on innovation and the creation of economic value. Research, science, and innovation are firmly combined with the goal of economic growth. There is the undertone that it is relatively easy to define what is good research or even quality research; and the chief criterion seems to be that good research is research that is useful for business and industry. Academic freedom, on the other hand, is rarely discussed in the reports.

For at least a decade now, the University of Winnipeg (U of W), an urban institution on Treaty One land in the heart of the Métis Nation, has challenged existing academic models and practices, and has incorporated strategies that address the social divide between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples in order to more effectively serve the learning needs of its surrounding community. This article demonstrates how an inner-city university has used internal policies and programs to help support the self-determination of Indigenous peoples. Six community learning initiatives were recently evaluated for impact. This article will provide an overview of the positive outcomes of these learning initiatives on a community of underrepresented learners.

Este trabalho analisa, teoricamente, os efeitos do Programa Universidade para Todos (ProUni), introduzido pelo governo federal do Brasil no ano de 2005, sobre a qualidade da força de trabalho formada nas universidades privadas. Esse programa concede isenção fiscal para as universidades privadas que, em contrapartida, fornecem bolsas de estudo para alunos provenientes de famílias de baixa renda. A análise sugere que a qualidade da força de trabalho pode aumentar ou diminuir dependendo de duas variáveis-chave: o formato da curva de oferta do setor universitário e o nível de preparação para cursar a universidade dos bolsistas vis-à-vis aos não-bolsistas. ; This paper analyzes theoretically the effects on the quality of the labor force of the introduction of the program called ProUni (Programa Universidade para Todos), adopted by the Brazilian government in 2005. This program consists of giving tax exemptions to private universities that provide scholarships to students coming from low income families. The analysis suggests that the quality of the labor force can either increase or decrease depending on two crucial variables: the shape of the university sector's supply curve and the level of preparation to face university studies of the students who are targeted by the program vis-à-vis the non-targeted ones.

This paper analyzes theoretically the effects on the quality of the labor force of the introduction of the program called ProUni (Programa Universidade para Todos), adopted by the Brazilian government in 2005. This program consists of giving tax exemptions to private universities that provide scholarships to students coming from low income families. The analysis suggests that the quality of the labor force can either increase or decrease depending on two crucial variables: the shape of the university sector's supply curve and the level of preparation to face university studies of the students who are targeted by the program vis-à-vis the non-targeted ones.

Purpose. To test the effects of a population-based self-efficacy message card campaign on compliance with a tobacco-free campus policy. Setting. This study was conducted at a large public university in the South. Subjects. Three hundred twelve observational periods at 39 campus sites. Intervention. The message card campaign, based on the Theory of Planned Behavior, consisted of distributing approximately 6000 efficacy-enhancing cards over 3 days. The intent of the cards was to increase awareness of the policy and resources available to help individuals stop smoking or remain comfortable while on campus. Measures. Policy compliance was measured using the Tobacco-Free Compliance Assessment Tool. Field notes were used to assess campaign reaction. Analysis. Mann-Whitney U-test was conducted to compare number of cigarette butts in hot spot areas before and after the intervention. A rate ratio was also calculated using Geographic Information System (GIS) mapping software to compare cigarette butts collected per day before and after the intervention at each of the study sites. Results. The median number of cigarette butts per day after the intervention was significantly lower than before the intervention (1.9 vs. 4.7, χ2: 8.1, p = .004). Eighteen sites (66.6%) had a post-pre ratio of .11 to .75, indicating a decrease in cigarette butts per day. Conclusion. An efficacy-enhancing message card campaign shows promise in improving compliance with tobacco-free campus policies.

Following its newly won independence, Lithuania at first experienced a substantial decline in the per capita GDP. However, from there on Lithuania has been part of the "convergence" machine of the European Union, meaning that its economic growth rates are much higher than those of the richer European countries. However, if Lithuania wants a convergence to continue, then a serious overhaul of the system of higher education is required. It should focus on the employability of graduates. Universities can only engage in this overhaul if they are empowered – financially and managerially.The labour market has drastically changed over recent decades in all countries. The supply of graduates increased markedly, yet the demand increased faster, with the result that in most countries graduates have had a larger wage increase and a lower relative unemployment than those with less education. Under the cloak of increased demand for graduates, there is also a shift in the types of traits graduates need in order to function well in society. So how best to reinvent universities, to take on board the principle of graduates with the twenty-first-century skills as their prime output? Lithuania should have its own strategy, and it will not be easy to get it implemented, because educational change is perhaps among the most difficult to achieve.Continental European higher education is for the most part publicly provided and financed. The role of government in determining the organisation and performance of universities has been the focus of the NGO Empower European Universities, which has compared thirty-two European countries. The study found that in 2008, in comparison with the other countries, Lithuanian universities had much less financial autonomy, a slightly lower level of policy autonomy, and higher than average organisational autonomy. Funding in the Lithuanian higher education is currently insufficient to retain qualified teachers and to provide sufficient room for student–teacher interaction. Research funding as a percentage of GDP is low when compared internationally. Lithuanian rates of participation in higher education, and of graduation, are above the European average, but the percentage of foreign students is low (1.3 per cent with a European average of 5.9 per cent). Some 84.8 percent of graduates were employed within three years of graduation in 2010. This is above the European average of 82.9 per cent. 22.4 per cent of the enrolled students graduated in 2010 (above the European average of 21.2 per cent). On these measures Lithuania does well. This is a marked contrast to its academic research, which is far below the European average according to all parameters we have introduced. These include the presence of Lithuanian universities among the top five hundred in the Jiao Tong ranking, the number of publications in top journals, the number of Marie Curie fellows, cooperation with the private sector, and ERC awards. Lithuania has a low level of labour productivity (a little more than half the average European level), a low percentage of knowledge workers and a corresponding low GDP per capita. This is likely to be in part due to the low level of university research.Our policy recommendation is that the ties between the ministries of education and science and of economic affairs should be strengthened. A serious attempt should be made to bring Lithuanian research up to world standards. The latter may require a considerable increase in investment. The challenge for Lithuanian higher education is to be more focused not only on what society needs in terms of graduate skills and in research but also on how this can be done with the limited resources available. The Lithuanian system of higher education should be diversified so as to match students' potential talents with the university offerings. In Europe, almost eighty per cent of graduates feel that they work in an international environment. This calls for English to be used at least in Masters programmes, as well as for some internationally oriented Bachelor studies. Rather than spend money in political and economic cooperation on translators, we need to produce graduates who are fluent in English next to their mother tongue. A wider usage of the English language in university studies will create more favourable conditions for teacher and student exchange and will encourage young people from abroad to enter Lithuanian universities. ; Professorial Fellow of International Economics of Science,Technology and Higher EducationUnited Nations University Maastricht Economicand Social Research Institute on Innovation and TechnologyAddress: Keizer Kareplein 19, 6211 TC Maastricht, the NetherlandsTel. (31) 043 3884439E-mail: Ritzen@merit.unu.eduProfesorius socialinių mokslų (edukologijos) habilituotas daktarasVilniaus universiteto Edukologijos katedraUniversiteto g. 9/1, tel. (370) 5 266 76 26El. paštas: rimantas.zelvys@f.vu.ltStraipsnyje nagrinėjami Lietuvos universitetinio aukštojo mokslo politikai iškylantys iššūkiai ir kintamas universitetų vaidmuo, formuojant XXI amžiuje absolventams būtinas kompetencijas. Aptariamos šiuolaikinių absolventų įsitvirtinimo darbo rinkoje galimybės ir studijų pertvarkymas, siekiant formuoti reikiamas kompetencijas. Tam būtina suteikti universitetams didesnių finansinių ir vadybinių galių. Nevyriausybinė organizacija "Didesnių galių suteikimas Europos universitetams" analizuoja valstybės vaidmenį, lemiant universitetų struktūrą ir veiklą. Pagal šios organizacijos 2008 metais atliktą vertinimą, Lietuvos universitetai, palyginti su kitomis Europos šalimis, turėjo daug mažiau finansinės autonomijos, šiek tiek mažiau politinės autonomijos ir kiek daugiau nei vidutiniškai organizacinės autonomijos. Palyginti su kitomis šalimis, Lietuvos mokslui skiriama BVP dalis yra maža. Moksliniai tyrimai nėra koncentruojami tose srityse, kur Lietuva galėtų būti sąlygiškai konkurencinga. Studijuojančiųjų aukštosiose mokyklose ir įgijusių aukštojo mokslo diplomą procentas Lietuvoje yra aukštesnis už Europos vidurkį. Kita vertus, užsieniečių, studijuojančių Lietuvoje, procentas yra nedidelis. Lietuva taip pat pasižymi mažu darbo produktyvumu (šiek tiek daugiau negu 50 proc. vidurkio), mažas yra intelektinės veiklos darbuotojų procentas, ir atitinkamai mažas BVP, sukuriamo vienam gyventojui, procentas (maždaug trečdalis vidurkio). Straipsnio pabaigoje pateikiama Lietuvos universitetinio aukštojo mokslo politikos tobulinimo siūlymų.

The Lithuanian system of higher education should be diversified so as to match students' potential talents with the university offerings. In Europe, almost eighty per cent of graduates feel that they work in an international environment. This calls for English to be used at least in Masters programmes, as well as for some internationally oriented Bachelor studies. Rather than spend money in political and economic cooperation on translators, we need to produce graduates who are fluent in English next to their mother tongue. A wider usage of the English language in university studies will create more favourable conditions for teacher and student exchange and will encourage young people from abroad to enter Lithuanian universities.

The Lithuanian system of higher education should be diversified so as to match students' potential talents with the university offerings. In Europe, almost eighty per cent of graduates feel that they work in an international environment. This calls for English to be used at least in Masters programmes, as well as for some internationally oriented Bachelor studies. Rather than spend money in political and economic cooperation on translators, we need to produce graduates who are fluent in English next to their mother tongue. A wider usage of the English language in university studies will create more favourable conditions for teacher and student exchange and will encourage young people from abroad to enter Lithuanian universities.