MANAGEMENT AND LEADERSHIP TRAINING
PROJECT
Phase One
African Higher Education in a Globalizing World
NATIONAL COUNCIL FOR HIGHER EDUCATION,
UGANDA
2011
1
TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
3
PART 1
4
GLOBALIZATION
1.1
WHAT IS GLOBALIZATION?
1.2
OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES OF GLOBALIZATION
1.3
WHATS THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN GLOBALIZATION AND HIGHER EDUCATION?
1.4
HOW DOES GLOBAL POWER RELATIONS INFLUENCE HIGHER EDUCATION?
1.5
SUMMING UP
PART 2
INTERNATIONALIZATION OF HIGHER EDUCATION
2.1
INTRODUCTION
2.2
EFFECTS OF THESE ELEMENTS OF HIGHER EDUCATION IN DEVELOPING NATIONS
1. The explosion in higher education
2. The growth in the importance of the English language
3. The need for internet and other forms of ICT
4. The emphasis on research and publications
5. Cross-border higher education
6. Concern with the ranking of universities
2.4
WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS OF INTERNATIONALIZATION?
2.5
THE CHANGING UNDERSTANDING OF HIGHER EDUCATION
2.6
SUMMING UP
10
PART 3
IMPLICATION OF GLOBALIZATION AND INTERNATIONALIZATION ON HE SYSTEMS
3.1
INTRODUCTION
3.2
POLICY MAKING IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
3.3
THE ARRIVAL OF NON-TRADITIONAL HIGHER EDUCATION PROVIDERS
3.4
THE GATS AND BORDERLESS EDUCATION
3.5
HORSE TRADING
3.6
PRIVATE HIGHER EDUCATION – A FOLLOWER OF MARKET FORCES.
3.7
EMERGENCE OF PRIVATE HIGHER EDUCATION PROVISION IN UGANDA
3.6
SUMMING UP
23
PART 4
UNIVERSITIES FOR THE 21ST CENTURY
4.1
PERSPECTIVES ON TEACHING AND LEARNING
4.2
LIFELONG LEARNING AND ADULT EXPERIENCE
4.3
LEARNING AND WORK
1. Adult learners in higher education
2. Vocationalisation
3. Outcomes-based, or competency-based, curricula
4.4
SUMMING UP
33
APPENDIX
HIGHER EDUCATION IN UGANDA: THE SUB-SECTOR IN 2007 AT A GLANCE.
44
REFERENCES
47
2
INTRODUCTION
In this module, you will be introduced to globalization and two other related concepts;
internationalization and cross border education whose influence in Higher Education has
been enormous in the 21st Century. As a university manager, you need to understand and
plan to exploit the benefits as well as mitigate the challenges that come with
globalization.
AIM:
To enable participants gain an understanding of globalization and its influence on nation
states generally and Higher Education in particular.
MODULE OBJECTIVES:
By the end of module, you will be able to:
 Explain the concepts of globalization, internationalization and cross border
education
 Analyze the influence of globalization on developing nations
 Discuss the opportunities and challenges of globalization in relation to their
institutions
 Evaluate the impact of internationalization on institutions of Higher Learning in
developing countries.
 Analyze the ways in which globalization enhances the interests of powerful
nations.
 Appreciate the ways in which curricula in institutions of Higher Learning have
been affected by global influences.
LEARNING OUTCOMES:
At the end of the module, you will demonstrate ability to:
 Describe the characteristics of globalization
 Describe the relations between globalization and liberalization
 Analyse the socio-political forces defining liberalization of higher education
 Outline the advantages and disadvantages of globalization
 Appreciate the important contribution that globalization and internationalization
have on higher education.
3
PART 1
GLOBALIZATION
In the first part of this module, we will see what is meant by ‘globalization’,
especially in terms of its influence on the development of higher education.
The focus here is very much on understanding globalization as a new force or
power in the world that presents opportunities - as well as ‘challenges’ to
those who manage universities.
By the end of Part 1 of this module, you will be able to:
 Explain the concept of globalization
 Discuss the opportunities and challenges of globalization
on nation states and universities, and
 Analyze the relationship between globalization and higher
education.
1.1
WHAT IS GLOBALIZATION?
The term “Globalization” has attracted enormous interests from various scholars for a long period
of time. Enders and Fulton (2002) for example, state that, “Globalization is primarily the
processes of increasing interdependence, and ultimately convergence, economies, and to the
liberalization of trade and markets. In addition and as an observable consequence, globalization
has a strong cultural component, which tends to encourage the establishment of a usually
(Western) global-brand culture, although in principle it can also support the diffusion of more
indigenous traditions”. Ifeany (2011) argues that, “globalization is the process by which more
emphases are laid on economic, political and cultural relations among the diverse and different
peoples of the world whereby trade barriers are broken down and market integration encouraged
among different nations of the world”. Other scholars such as Ohuabunwa (1999), views
globalization as, an evolution which is systematically restructuring interactive phases among
nations by breaking down barriers in the area of culture, commerce, communication and several
other fields of endeavor. Globalization is thus a process of interaction and integration amongst
people, institutions, and governments of different nations, a process driven by international trade
and investment and aided by information technology. This process has effects on the
environment, on culture, on political systems, on economic development and prosperity, and on
human physical well-being in, societies around the world.
Irrespective of how one puts it, the term globalization is not a new phenomenon in the world
scenery, as documented by Hirst (1997). For thousands of years, people have been traveling and
exploring new vistas. Indeed, only in recent years have we learned about the great Chinese
explorers who found their way to the shores of East Africa in the 15 th century. In earlier times,
the term ‘Internationalization’ was used instead to refer to relations across national borders. It
referred, for example, to relations of state – or in the sphere of higher education - of visiting
students and scholars, exchange programmes where students and staff travelled to other lands in
order to study. Internationalization is an older form of institutional connectedness but with very
4
limited aims, areas and purposes. It does not refer to the emerging concentrated integration of
peoples, communities and ideas which characterize globalization.
Policy and technological developments of the past few decades have spurred increases in
migration, among other things, so large that many observers believe the world has entered a
qualitatively new phase in its social, political and economic development. Since 1950, for
example, the volume of world trade has increased by 20 times, and from just 1997 to 1999 flows
of foreign investment nearly doubled, from $468 billion to $827 billion. Distinguishing this
current wave of globalization from earlier ones, author Thomas Friedman has said that today
globalization is “farther, faster, cheaper, and deeper.”
While there are many positive aspects to the “farther, faster, cheaper, and deeper” world order,
there is also an aspect that some choose to ignore. It is market forces and nation states acting in
combination that drive globalization. Powerful nations in combination with their strong
corporations, institutions and agencies, drive globalization. In the economic sphere, globalization
is enhanced/created by the production of both private and public goods exhibited in two major
components:
 the creation of a worldwide integrated global market sustained by corporations,
 located in powerful nations operating globally across borders using a partially integrated
financial system.
These are utilizing an emerging global system of communications, knowledge, culture and
language; all sustained by a global market. Territorial empires where powerful nations controlled
the political and economic states of weaker nations are no longer necessary. Conditions of a
globalized world enhance the interests of powerful nations.
1.2
OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES OF GLOBALIZATION
Globalization is viewed as a phenomenon that presents a number of opportunities to
countries because of its constructs that provides independence in or geographic location.
This is important since nations can strategize and diversify on its developmental
opportunities. Companies or organizations are also able to compete internationally
without any restrictions. According Pologeorgis (2010) globalization brings the
reorganization of production, international trade and the integration of financial markets,
thus affecting capitalist economic and social relations via multilateralism microeconomic
phenomena, such as business competitiveness, at the global level. It is worth noting that
globalization has fostered and transformed the world into a global village because of
increased interconnectedness and interdependent. This is because technology has
transformed peoples’ abilities to communicate in ways that would have been
unimaginable several years ago. According to Burande (2011), globalization increases the
economic prosperity and opportunity in the developing world. The civil liberties are
enhanced and there is a more efficient use of resources. All the countries involved in the
free trade are at a profit. As a result, there are lower prices, more employment and a
better standard of life in these developing nations. It is feared that some developing
regions progress at the expense of other developed regions. However, such doubts are
5
futile as globalization is a positive-sum chance in which skills and technologies enable
the increase of living standards throughout the world. Liberals look at globalization as an
efficient tool to eliminate penury and allow the poor people a firm foothold in the global
economy.
There is a general consensus among scholars on the challenges of globalization on
nations, especially the developing ones. It is fair to state that globalization has a number
of drawbacks and they tend to affect each country in a different way due to such a
nation’s individual history, traditions, culture and priorities. Research studies have
highlighted a number of factors that can be viewed as the downside of globalization such
as:
1. Insecurity: Security concerns, terrorism and high crime levels have to a large
extent been attributed to the forces of globalization. The implications of this
notion is such that many countries who feel threatened by the new inhabitants
within their countries, have to adopt strategic policies to combat such threats
including:
a. countries are forced to spend quite substantial amounts of money on
security initiatives;
b. Countries become tough on their immigration laws that have
consequences on the number of students/staff entering their countries. In
this instance, the consequence can be huge to both the developed country
and the developing nations, in that the developed nation will miss out on
some of the best brains who would have done high-level research in that
country. While developing nations also suffer when their students are
denied the opportunity to attend renown learning centers.
2. Globalization has also been blamed for undermining institutional authority and
stability. For example, the destruction of traditional values and morals as
technology relays new lifestyles without much control. The resultant effect on the
communities is the erosion of traditions as people adopt new ways of doing
things. Ironically, within the developing nations, not everyone is able to access
the necessary services due to income inequalities.
1.3
WHAT’S THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN GLOBALIZATION
AND HIGHER EDUCATION?
The relationship between higher education and globalization is intimate. An OECD
publication summarizes globalization and higher education as follows:
Higher Education drives and is driven by globalization. Higher education trains
the highly skilled workers and contributes to the research base and capacity for
innovation that determine competitiveness in the knowledge-based global
economy. It facilitates international collaboration and cross-cultural exchange.
Cross-border flows of ideas, students, faculty and financing, coupled with
developments in information and communication technology, are changing the
environment where higher education institutions function. Cooperation and
6
competition are intensifying simultaneously under the growing influence of
market forces and the emergence of new players. (Summary of the OECD, 2009,
p.13).
Elsewhere in the OECD document, it says: “Globalization breaks down national barriers
and connects universities to one another across the world, facilitates knowledge flows,
values and culture. Universities are thus major agents of globalization.” It goes onto
describe higher education as the “core to emerging systems of knowledge,
culture/language and trains mobile labour force in business, professions and science.”
With globalization, policy formation has shifted from being made only internally by the
state and higher education institutions to a triple source: university + state + global. As a
new generation university manager you must take this into account as you make your
strategic plans. In addition you must also take note of the following:
I.
Universities are not only victims of globalization, they are also its agents. They
are linked to various knowledge and production centres of the world;
II.
Globalization in higher education does not manifest or affect institutions in a
uniform way. However, no university, weak or powerful can seal itself from the
influences and impact of globalization. While powerful institutions from powerful
nations can exert curricula and knowledge supply influence, small weak ones
cannot escape consuming global ware from institutional giants.
III.
Globalization affects state/university relations by linking the university to the
international supply of knowledge, labour and way of conducting business.
National governments cannot, without lowering the quality of universities,
sideline the demands of globalization. Universities have to compete globally and
therefore must respond to global forces. In this way, globalization can enhance
institutional autonomy or the chains of the state.
IV.
The nation state is still the context in which the university is located.
Governments may devolve but cannot legislate themselves out of higher education
regulation. While in the past they managed, globalization has forced states to
regulate rather than administer, higher education. Moreover, international
agreements such as WTO/GATS that influence higher education are signed by
states. Nations have to fund basic research, the bottom-line of knowledge
production. Managers of institutions of higher learning must carefully cultivate
the symbiotic relationship of states and university institutions.
1.4
HOW DOES GLOBAL POWER RELATIONS INFLUENCE HIGHER
EDUCATION?
Power is the determinant of levels of global influence on higher education systems.
Minor universities in weaker nation lose all the above through economic asset transfers,
7
brain drain and consumption of out of date knowledge. The ability of institutions to
benefit from globalization depends, very much, on size and wealth of the economy, the
resources at the disposal of the government, culture and language, skills of the people, the
GDP and GDP per capita. This is exemplified by “the hegemonic role played by
American higher education, led by the powerful American research/doctoral giving
universities” (see: Marginson and der Wender, p.34).
The United States of America has 17 of the World’s top 20 research universities and 53
percent of the top 100 universities. The USA attracts doctoral students, researchers,
academics and funding not only from within the USA but also from all over the world. In
fact, some writers have asserted that globalization in higher education could be referred
to as Americanization, or an Anglo-American process.
The points to note are:
 American dominance of global higher education is driven by American private,
and not public universities or the American state;
 Although these top universities are private, they receive massive government
research funds;
 These universities are institutionally very free from external powers: the freer the
university the more the chances of attaining quality;
 These institutions are brain gainers from all over the globe; (i.e. in 2001, 41
percent of USA doctoral students were foreigners; in 2005, the USA had 41
percent of citations in the world scientific output. It is estimated that 70 percent of
foreign doctoral students stay on in the USA to work.); and
 The rise of the European Higher Education Area, China and India as competitors
in global higher education supply might change global higher education relations
for instance: China now accounts for 50 percent of Research and Development
expenditure of non-OECD countries.
1.5
SUMMING UP
Globalization is a fact of life that has had, and is having, a very strong influence on the
shaping of universities. We cannot escape from it. In developing countries the influence
of globalization, while not so obvious to many around, is as strong as that in developed
countries. How we respond to the influence of globalization, and ‘react’, will determine
the future of universities in the region.
REFLECTION QUESTION
Reflecting on your institution, how can you do the following: produce
cutting edge knowledge, retain their best academics, convince their
8
governments to allocate more resources to research and position their
institutions to compete?
Notes
(1) Figures from Shangai Jiao Tong University Institute of Higher Education, (SJTUIHE,
2007). The (SJTUIHE) annually publishes data from 500 top research universities.
American universities dominate the top. For example in 2005, the USA housed 4031 of
HiCi researchers compared to Germany 260, 258 Japan, 185 Canada etc (Table 7).
9
PART 2
INTERNATIONALIZATION OF HIGHER
EDUCATION
In the second part of this module, the concept of internationalization in higher
education will be considered. This is contextualized under six signs:
1) The explosion in higher education;
2) The growth in the importance of the English language;
3) The need Internet and other forms of it;
4) The emphasis on research and publications;
5) Cross-border higher education; and
6) Concern with the ranking of universities. In so far as we can, we will
illustrate some of these signs of globalization in reference current
developments in higher education in Uganda.
Specific Objectives
By the end of Part 2 of this module, you will be able to:
 Explain internationalization,
 Differentiate between internationalization and globalization,
and
 Discuss the impact of internationalization on nation states
and higher education institutions in developing countries.
2.1
INTRODUCTION
Internationalization of higher education is becoming one of the most critical facets of the
21st Century. With it, comes the movement of students, lecturers and programmes across
nations. Salient to this phenomenon is also the notion of proliferation of nontraditional
providers such as: corporations operations, publishing houses think-tanks, professional
associations, research institutes amongst others. According to OECD (2004), Higher
education has become increasingly international in the past decade as more and more
students choose to study aboard, enroll in foreign educational programmes and
institutions in their home country, or simply use the Internet to take courses at college or
university in other countries. Kishun (2004) asserts that the ‘market’ for international
students is one of the most dynamic of all world markets. The statement is supported by
Kemp (2007), who confers that the last ten years has seen such unprecedented growth in
international students that governments from a range of countries now prioritize
involvement in this market through their own Ministries of Education or dedicated
international education promotional agencies.
Internationalization of higher education can therefore be viewed as a strategic area of an
institution’s future planning, and is of greater and growing importance to higher
education leaders. To this effect, the notion of internationalization of higher education
10
needs to be taken in a holistic view and should embody a number of factors.
 A number of students are now moving in search of new knowledge both
regionally and across the globe.
 Lecturers or teaching staff, have also been involved in the game where they have
moved internationally in search of better teaching facilities and rewards.
 Many educational providers have also adopted a strategy of starting training
programmes in various international destinations.
 Finally, nontraditional providers such as corporations,, publishing houses thinktanks, professional institutions and research institutes amongst others, have all
joined the bandwagon.
2.2
EFFECTS OF THESE ELEMENTS OF HIGHER EDUCATION IN
DEVELOPING NATIONS
First, students will opt to move from their home countries to those countries they deem
will provide quality education. Unfortunately, the socio-political landscape in most
African States experienced a great deal of turmoil for several decades, although in the
past decade or so, the situation seems to have come to normalcy. The consequences of
these endless periods of wars meant that, most of the African States were not able to
focus on the developmental issues such as the construction of roads, schools and
hospitals. As a result, Africa would not be a preferred destination for students in search
of quality education. However, in the East African region, statistics show that Uganda has
attracted one of the highest numbers of foreign students in the last decade.
As students leave their homelands and move to other states, the eventual the host country
benefits due to the student contribution in terms of fees and payment towards their living
costs. Conversely, the host nations’ socio-economic structures such as hospital services
tend to be burdened as a result of this influx. It should also be pointed out that when
students arrive in their intended places of study, they in most cases, experience a number
of problems such as the differentiation in cultures. To this effect, there is no substanaical
literature or research highlighting this subject.
Secondly, when staff moves in search of greener pastures, they surely leave their
respective home nations with a shortfall of the needed intellectual capital. According to
Woldetensae (2007), massive brain drain has posed serious challenges to African higher
education and socio-economic development. On the contrary Meyer (2003) observes that
brain drain and brain circulation pose major consequences for public policy, namely that
mobility of highly skilled manpower should be seen as a normal process that should not
be stopped, and that the real challenge is therefore to manage it as well as possible.
Thirdly, institutions of higher learning have adopted the idea of shifting programmes
from their host nations to such places where their demand is high. In other words,
programmes are now tailored to suit the forces of demand and supply across nations. One
of the key implications of this kind of arrangement is the determination of quality in the
provision of higher education. A fundamental challenge presented is the sanction of
11
regulatory measures to ensure quality.
Fourthly, there is the proliferation of nontraditional educational providers such as,
cooperation’s, publishing houses, think-tanks, professional associations and research
institutes into the higher education market driven by the assumed economic benefits. The
inevitable challenges paused by this new phenomena can be catalogued as ethical,
professional and to a large extent operational. When a think-tank suddenly begins to
package itself as a training provider, the role and identity of the concept of what a
traditional university is raises all sorts of questions. However, the onus is on the
practitioners of higher education to recognize this paradigm shift and refocus their
strategy to design policies relevant for the 21st Century.
1. The explosion in higher education
In order to appreciate the effect of internationalization of higher education, a brief
background of the evolution of higher education in recent times can be presented thus
follows. In 1999, there were 93.1 million higher education students, (of whom 44.2 were
females). By 2006, there were 114.1 million students, (of whom 71.9 were females), a
growth of 51 million (GUNI 2009). In 1980, there were some 32,000 degree-awarding
institutions in the USA. In 2004 there were 42,000 with an enrolment of sixteen million
(Manicas, 2005). In India in 1950 there were 370 colleges and 27 universities. By 2002,
there were 8,737 colleges and 272 universities. (www.ugc.ac.in). The greatest
enrolments have been in Asia. China’s massification illustrates these phenomena. In
1949, there were 205 higher learning institutions in China of which 123 were universities
(Wanng Yibing, 2009). The total registration was 120,000 students. By 1965, there were
434 institutions with 680,000 students. From 1999 to 2002, enrolments increased from
8.79 to 16 million students. By 2007 the figure had reached 27 million students. The
growth rate of enrolment was 32 percent. China is now the largest higher education
centre in the world. The massive growth in the demand for universities has also affected
Africa. In this continent, there were 20 universities in 1960 but, by 1996, there were some
60 institutions. More than 100 hundred private universities now operate in Africa.
Student enrolment grew more than ten-fold in Africa from 120,000 students in 1960 to
over two million in 1995, (Reddy, 2000, World Bank, 200). By 2008, registered students
in the African tertiary sector had reached four million, (Harvard Africa Higher Student
Project: www.arp.harvard.edu). Despite these growth in numbers, the tertiary gross
enrolment ratio (GER) is still 6 percent and. Although it is the lowest amongst continents,
the number of registered students in tertiary institutions doubles every five years in
Africa.
In Uganda itself, the growth rate of enrolment between 2001 and 2006 was 14 percent per
year, slightly less than the sub-Saharan average of 15 percent. However, with resources
not growing at the same rate as population growth, the Uganda state was not able to
increase funding to higher education to match growing numbers due to lack of money,
commitment of SAPs and the subtle influence of donors who considered higher education
a luxury. Since 2001, the state has spent no more than 0.30 percent as a percentage of
GDP each year on its public universities and 0.38 percent on the whole tertiary subsector. Worse, the state has not been funding basic research making universities operate
12
like high schools: teaching institutions. The sub-sector has received least funding from
the Ministry of Education and Sports in comparison with the other two levels of
education. Further, funds were released to universities according to government
procedures, financial capacity of the treasury, and timing, all of which were not
necessarily in harmony with universities needs and behaviour. Many stakeholders have
called for the tapping of sources, other than government, to supplement state funding of
Ugandan universities (Eisemon et al., 1993, Mayanja, 1998, Kajubi, 1992).
2. The growth in the importance of the English language
As the movement of students and instructors increase, the need for a common language to
facilitate communication among peoples becomes paramount, thus the growth of English
language.
English has become the global language of science, research and academic publications.
Indeed, “English stands at the very centre of the global knowledge system”, (Held et al,
1999). The Anglo-America bloc within the world economy enhances the utility of the
English language. Other facilitators of English are:
 The Anglo based cultural industries (cinema, movies etc);
 The Internet, whose major medium is English; and
 The power of American, British, Canadian, Indian and Australian universities
whose communication is English.
English is spreading as a medium of instruction in non-English speaking nations such as
China and Europe. Although more people speak other languages such as Chinese, the
geographic spread of English enhances its use. However this is not to say that it will
remain so in the future, as the following table indicates:
Table 1: Spoken languages with more than 100 million voices worldwide
Language/language group
English
Putonghua (“Mandarin”)
Hindu/Urdu
Spanish/Portuguese
Russian
Arabic
Bengali
Malay-Indonesian
Japanese
French
German
Source: Linguasphere Observatory (2006)
Number of voices (millions)
1,000
1,000
900
450/200
320
250
250
160
130
125
125
3. The need for internet and other forms of ICT
Higher education institutions are now believed to be more networked than other social
institutions. However, the ability of an institution to connect is conditioned by the size
and efficiency of the national economy and social organization. Access to the web has
improved student-centered learning where students can study by themselves any topic the
lecturer advises them to do so. Many teachers now create class webs where both teachers
and students can upload and download information – one outcome of this is the rise in the
13
use of problem-based learning. Table 2 indicates the connectivity levels around the
world:
Table 2: World Internet usage and population statistics
World Regions
Population
( 2010 Est.)
Internet
Users
Dec. 31, 2000
Internet
Users
Latest
Data
Penetration%
(Population)
Growth
2000-2010
Users
%
of
Table
Africa
1,013,779,050
4,514,400
110,931,700
10.9 %
2,357.3 %
5.6 %
Asia
3,834,792,852
114,304,000
825,094,396
21.5 %
621.8 %
42.0 %
Europe
813,319,511
105,096,093
475,069,448
58.4 %
352.0 %
24.2 %
Middle East
212,336,924
3,284,800
63,240,946
29.8 %
1,825.3 %
3.2 %
North America
344,124,450
108,096,800
266,224,500
77.4 %
146.3 %
13.5 %
Latin
America/Caribbean
592,556,972
18,068,919
204,689,836
34.5 %
1,032.8 %
10.4 %
Oceania / Australia
34,700,201
7,620,480
21,263,990
61.3 %
179.0 %
1.1 %
WORLD TOTAL
6,845,609,960
360,985,492
1,966,514,816
28.7 %
444.8 %
100.0 %
As can be seen from the respective internet users listed above for each continent, Africa
is by far the poorest. This has had a knock-on effect on the quality of research and level
of publications issued by African universities – an issue we will now turn to.
4. The emphasis on research and publications
Globally, higher education is seen not only as a transmitter of knowledge, but most
vitally, as a producer of knowledge. Starting in the US, universities are seen as the major
producers of knowledge and leaders of national innovation systems. Indeed, almost all
major ranking of universities are based on research output. Global ranking of universities
enhances this trend. It is therefore important for university managers to come to terms
with global change. Teaching is a major component of university academic management
but research is taking priority.
HiCi Researchers
The number of high citation (HiCi) researchers, that is, researchers in the top 250-300 in
their fields as indicated by citations is used as measure of research capacity. This is
reflected in the Thomson-151- measured citation performance. Universities that dominate
research also dominate the knowledge market. Their ideas are imported into universities
all over the world as the basis of curriculum content causing what is almost ‘intellectual
imperialism’.
There is an undeniable relationship between economic power and university research
capacity. American universities dominate HiCi basic research, reflecting the size of the
American economy. In a recent ranking, the USA has 17 of the top 20, 54 of the top 100
and 167 of the top 500 global research universities with Harvard in the first place,
(Margison p.20). The USA is the home of university-based research projects, and houses
3876 out of 4,472 HiCi World researchers, as the Table 3 and chart shows:
14
Table 3: Researchers with citations in the top 250-300 in their field, Thomson-ISI,
2007
USA
Japan
Canada
Australia
New Zealand
China Hong Kong
Chinese Taipei
3876
249
179
106
17
14
9
Russia
China
Singapore
Chile
Mexico
Korea
Philippines
6
4
4
3
3
3
1
Brunei
Indonesia
Malaysia
Papua New Guinea
Peru
Thailand
Vietnam
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Where to find the HiCi researchers
As shown in Table 3, Africa produces the least knowledge. It produces only 0.3 percent
of global science knowledge and spends only 0.4 percent of world GDP on research,
(Teferra, Damtew (2003).
Most of the knowledge cited in Africa is produced elsewhere because Africa is peripheral
to global knowledge production, (Altbach 2003). Virtually all-African scholars agree on
the need to have African-centered knowledge produced by scholars with a knowledge and
experience of the African condition. External conceptual models that are said to be
applicable to all nations and transferred to Africa without scrutiny are believed to be one
of the major causes of the slow development of Africa, (Okolie, 2003). African farmers,
for example, can embrace only agricultural technologies consistent with their beliefs and
way of life, that are affordable (in most cases small scale), safe for sustainable food
production, and applicable to local weather patterns. But most of the curricula in our
agricultural faculties and colleges are based on Western agricultural practice (often
15
mechanized, large-scale and commercial farming). The agricultural experts we produce
are afraid of soiling their hands.
It is within this context, as well as the dearth of funding, that Ugandan low research
outputs can be understood. In Uganda, science-based and technology faculties of public
universities are at Makerere University and Mbarara University of Science and
Technology. Gulu and Kyambogo are building foundations for research but have not yet
taken off. Makerere University Business School has not broken deep ground in research
except consultancy researches. Bidemi Carrol (2005: 176) lists a number of citations by
the Institute of Scientific Information (ISI) which show that 95 percent of the citations
from Uganda were: 1,019 citations for science, 151 for social sciences and 2 for
Arts/Humanities. External support of science-based faculties and the focus on money
driven teaching by Humanities/Arts based faculties are given as the major cases of
research outputs from the sciences and lack of it respectively.
5. Cross-border higher education
Cross-border tertiary education is the “movement of people, programmes, providers,
curricula, projects, research and services in tertiary (or higher) education across national
jurisdictional borders”, (Jane Knight 2007). Cross-border tertiary education has been
increased by globalization – increased interconnectedness of the globe. Cross-border
education has the following components:
1. The movement of people, (students, professors, scholars, or experts). Students can
take whole degrees in another country, become involved in exchange
programmes, or simply register for a semester abroad; and staff can teach,
research or visit academic institutions abroad.
2. The movement of university programmes themselves. A programme can be
delivered by distance, face-to-face or mixed mode; franchised out to another
country, or take all delivery responsibilities and reward their own degrees using
someone’s programme. In some cases, an arrangement can be made where
providers in different countries collaborate to offer programmes that students
from both countries can receive qualifications from each provider or joint award
from collaborating countries.
3. The education providers: when universities deliver higher education outside of
their own country. The delivering institution, in question, can either establish a
‘branch campus’ or they affiliate a local institution so that it can award degrees in
their name. They might also use distance-learning modes to connect with their
overseas’ students. Such providers can include private and public, for-profit or
non-profit educational or commercial institutions.
It is important to note here that the growth in the number of ‘rogue providers’ and
‘degree mill’. While established institutions are accredited by their source nations, there
are many fly-by-the night providers that are not accredited by their home nations, and
give sub-standard education to foreign students across borders. (Rogue providers are
often accredited by self-accrediting groups and they rarely participate in research
activities.
16
Another thing to look out for a so-called ‘study centres’ or ‘teaching sites’, purporting to
represent a foreign university. Most of these are in Uganda illegally. Here an institution
establishes a learning site not an institution, either in a home country or in a different
country or – as in Uganda in a different region of the same country. The study center
almost always lack the facilities under which university education should be given. They
are a disgrace to higher education.
4. The mobility of students: the Global Student Mobility Report predicts the demand
for international education to increase from 1.8 billion in 2000 to 7.2 billion in
2025, (Bohm, A. Davis; D. Mears and D. Pearce, (2002).
Table 4: Cross-border student flows: Exports and imports, tertiary education
(includes non-degree), 2004, OECD
Students in
EXPORTS
10,778
Students out
IMPORTS
98,103
Japan
117.903
61,437
United States
572,509
46,547
30,407
42,054
Canada
132,982
39.278
Russia
75,786
38362
1892
24,498
166,955
9377
5207
7668
68,904
6604
Korea
Malaysia
Mexico
Australia
Chile
New Zealand
Comparable export data
not available for:
China
Students out
EXPORTS
381,330
China Hong Kong
36,816
Indonesia
33,877
Thailand
24,677
Singapore
21,163
Vietnam
17,089
Peru
12,213
Philippines
8161
Brunei
2016
Papua NG
940
17
6. Concern with the ranking of universities
Ranking of universities is a global trend and is done globally but has impact on virtually
all university institutions. The following have been the most known ranking organizations
in the last ten years:
1)
Shangai Jiao Tong Institute of Higher Education, (SJTUIHE)
2)
The Times
3)
Newsweek
International students choosing foreign universities, policy makers, the media,
universities themselves and funding agencies, all pay attention to these rankings. Every
university wants to lift its league position in global ranking and to prove its worth.
The Jiao Tong (SJTUIHE) ranking methods are now considered the most credible. Jiao
Tong ranking are based on research, publications, citations and noble prizes and Fields
Medals in Mathematics. The weighting are given as illustrated in Table 6:
Table 6: Jiao Tong rankings: weightings
Criterion
Weighting
Alumini of institution: Nobel Prizes and field medals
10%
Staff of institution: Nobel prizes and field medals
20%
High citation (HiCi) researchers
20%
Articles in Nature and Science
20%
Articles in citation indexes in science, social science, humanities
20%
Research performance (compiled as above) per head of staff
10%
Total
100%
Source Marginson, 2007
Rankings, economic capacity and investment in research and development
One global factor that is evident in being at the top of the league is the relationship
between the economic capacity of nations, their universities, the ability and levels of
investments in research and development and the ability of institutions to exploit
opportunities. Universities located in countries with massive economic power, good
investment in research and development, and traditional of giving institutional autonomy
to their universities make it to the top in global rankings. In 2007, the United States had
54 of the SJTIHE top 100 research universities, led by Harvard. The UK with eleven
(including Oxford and Cambridge) was number two, Canada (four), number three and
Australia (two) number four. Al these institutions were from the English speaking world
indicating the rise of English as a global language of communication research and
science. Table 7 shows the relationship between global economic power and institutional
ranking:
18
Table 7: Countries share of the top 500 and 100 research universities as measured
by SJTUIHE compared to their share of world economic capacity
United States
UK
Germany
Japan
Canada
France
Sweden
Switzerland
Australia
Netherlands
Italy
Israel
Austria
Finland
Denmark
Norway
Russian
Federation
China
Spain
Korea
Belgium
China Hong
Kong
Gross National
Income (GNI)
Population
Gross
National
Income (GNI)
per head
Share of
world
economic
capacity
Share of top
500 research
universities
Share of top
100 research
universities
2006
USD.PPP
(billion)
13.195.7
2,037.2
2,692.3
4195.9
1,184.4
1,974.9
311.7
305.9
702.5
620.0
1,704.9
168.1
298.4
174.7
196.7
233.3
1814.9
6119.1
1,244.2
1113.0
357
268.9
2006
Million
s
299.4
60.6
82.4
127.8
32.6
61.3
9.1
7.5
20.7
16.3
58.8
7.0
8.3
5.3
5.4
4.7
142.5
1311.8
44.1
48.4
10.5
6.9
2006
USD PPP
2006
%
2007
%
2007
%
44.070
33.650
32.680
32.840
36.280
32.240
34,310
40840
33940
37940
28970
23840
36040
33170
36190
50070
12740
4660
28200
22990
33860
39200
41.1
4.8
6.2
9.7
3.0
4.5
0.8
0.9
1.7
1.7
3.5
0.3
0.8
0.4
0.5
0.8
1.6
2.0
2.5
1.8
0.9
0.7
32.9
8.3
7.9
6.5
4.4
4.6
2.2
1.6
3.4
2.4
4.0
1.4
1.4
1.0
0.8
0.8
0.4
2.8
1.8
1.6
1.4
1.0
53.5
10.9
5.9
5.9
4.0
4.0
4.0
3.0
2.0
2.0
0.0
1.0
0.0
1.0
1.0
1.0
1.0
0.0
X=included in another row
*=China Hong Kong is listed separately
**=population and GNI data include Chinese Taipei
World economic capacity is measured as an aggregate of the individual nations’ economic capacity, defined as GNI
multiplied by GNI per head. All nations without any top 500 research universities are treated as one unit.
Source: Marginson and der Wende.
2.4
WHAT
ARE
THE
INTERNATIONALIZATION?
IMPLICATIONS
OF
It is clear that, globally, we are moving towards a new concept of university in the world
today. Many of the signs of change we have considered are signs that 21st Century
societies expect universities to provide in terms of supply and demand. We might
disagree with some of these things that people want, but universities have also to see
themselves as ‘service providers’ and our students as ‘customers’. In summing up those
changes in higher education - from the demand side, as well as the impact of
globalization, (remembering that globalization affects all), the key ‘facts’ to take note of
are as follows:
19







mass higher education (HE) in developed societies is already with us and
universal HE in the twenty-first century will be the norm;
knowledge workers have emerged as crucial players in economic performance
and well-being;
the ‘graduate job’ is disappearing, and nearly all worthwhile jobs will soon
demand high level skills and qualifications;
lifelong learning is about investment in personal learning and growth, and this is
compatible with corporate investment and growth;
older divisions such as the academic versus the vocational are dissolving as are
distinctions between further and higher education institutions;
local and global divisions are dissolving in many instances – a common culture of
knowledge with shared aspirations is emerging;
part-time and work-related learning opportunities are moving from the periphery
to the centre of concern for many individuals and their employers, and for the
providers of education.
2.5
THE CHANGING UNDERSTANDING OF HIGHER EDUCATION
In different parts of the world, for different reasons, we are witnessing a breakdown of
traditional continuity; what some have call a ‘disembedding’ of personal life from social
life and roles and the emergence of a world of ‘multiple authorities’ where traditional
commonalties and structures break down.
Whichever perspective we adopt, it is increasingly clear that learning is becoming ever
more central to the growth and health of modern economies and social systems.
Continuous or lifelong learning, it will be argued, joins the personal needs experienced
by each one of us with the imperatives of the labour market and makes nonsense of the
old divisions which separated life, learning and work into compartmentalised spheres and
phrases of existence. Conditions of change are demanding a more holistic response from
learners, from teachers and from providers of the whole range of educational services and
opportunities in those societies which have adopted mass further and higher education.
A central question to be addressed is – what kinds of knowledge and learning are
emerging from innovatory sites at which education is delivered? The focus of the answer
is on how across time and geographical space, personal learning, previously strongly
connected with personal development, is now beginning to be seen in the growing
demand for universities to provide a wider more professional learning, that is related to
the workplace.
A fundamental theme within this focus concerns change in what may be termed the
construction of the authority of knowledge. What counts as learning and knowing can be
seen as contested terrain and is subject to challenge over time. This theme has become
significant in relation to key developments in open learning and ‘action learning’ applied
20
to non-traditional and emergent sites of learning which have in recent times come to
include the workplace. (An example of this trend is seen in the fact that several
universities in Uganda now offer degree courses in microfinance studies.)
Fundamentally, two contrasting viewpoints can be outlined with respect to how we think
about knowledge:
 Older view: Cognitive and foundational understandings of knowledge assume
both the objectivity and externality of knowledge. External reality and objective
facts exist and are complemented by a second cognitive entity that we commonly
call the subjective self or the inner world.
 Newer view: This relies on the assumption that knowledge has no absolute
foundations, internal or external. People construct knowledge out of the
paradigms or languages available to them whether they are spoken languages or
symbolic languages such as algebra or computer languages or paralinguistic forms
such as music and dance. Knowledge is seen as neither absolute nor universal; it
is local, historically changing and has to be re-constructed time after time on the
basis of lived, individual and social experience. Knowledge is understood
therefore to be constructed and the ‘wheel of knowledge’, as it were, has to be reinvented by every generation wishing to use it.
The implications for learning and teaching are significant. For example, if we assume
education or learning is ‘given’ to people, teachers help students to assimilate and absorb
knowledge. Students perform to arrive at pre-determined answers which are validated by
the disciplinary paradigm or knowledge community to which the teacher belongs.
On the other hand, if we assume teachers help students to construct or re-construct
knowledge, there are no pre-determined answers. Learners, therefore, can begin to break
the dependency on received wisdom and a received curriculum.
This has profound implications for how we conceive lifelong learning. It must now be reconnected with experience and the curriculum must reflect the ‘real time’ and ‘real place’
and ‘real problems’ and needs of learners. Students must be trusted to perform in ways
not determined ahead of time by teachers. Their knowledge must not be disconnected
from experience.
It is the argument of this part of the module that such experience can be characterized as
moving historically from closed to open systems and from a monopoly of knowledge
(held by the academic disciplines and their practitioners) to a shared and collaborative
system of knowledge production.
Adult learning opportunities have historically been focused on content-laden, closed and
‘objectivist’ views of what counts as learning, and have later come to be focused more on
the processes of learning, on multiple levels of experience, on open systems of access and
on the recognition of learning achievement whenever and wherever it occurs.
21
The sub themes through which this account evolves are descriptively framed and embrace
a number of initiatives and perspectives, ranging from teacher views of pedagogy to the
growth of ‘access’ courses with their emphasis on adult experience as the fulcrum on
which learning turns. Modular schemes and qualification frameworks are becoming more
widespread and influential in terms of their impact on the wider learning culture and
growth of mass higher education.
2.6
SUMMING UP
This part of the module has explored the concept of internationalization in higher
education from six different perspectives: 1. The explosion in higher education; 2. The
growth in the importance of the English language; 3. The need Internet and other forms
of it; 4. The emphasis on research and publications; 5. Cross-border higher education;
and 6. Concern with the ranking of universities – and how, each has had an impact on
higher education institutions in developing countries.
REFLECTION QUESTIONS
1. Which of the ‘signs of change’ are, in your view, signs that higher education is
getting better in the overall sense of the word?
2. Which of the ’signs’ listed do you feel are ominous, regarding the future of HE in
Uganda?
3. Regarding the emergence of a ‘learning society’ that expects different things of
HE in the 21st century, do you think this is as evident in the developing world, as
that of the world’s leading economic nations?
22
PART 3
IMPLICATION OF GLOBALIZATION AND
INTERNATIONALIZATION ON HIGHER
EDUCATION SYSTEMS
The third part of the module explores the impact of globalization and
internationalization on higher education systems from the perspective of
policy-making in developing countries; the arrival of non-traditional higher
education providers; the GATS agreement and borderless education; and the
very real pressure of market forces.
Specific Objectives:
By the end of Part 3 of this module, you should be able to:
 Discuss the importance of a clear education policy in setting
a pace for educational development in a country;
 Examine the opportunities and challenges of the entry of non
traditional players in education provision; and
 Analyze the implications of the GATS agreement on higher
education in developing countries;
 Examine the impact of some of the above in terms of the
current situation of higher education in Uganda.
3.1
INTRODUCTION
Globalization and Internationalization are two related phenomena, which have profound
effects on higher education both in developed and developing countries. For the
developed countries, they occurred in the eighties and nineties but with stable national
higher education systems, which were, generally speaking, better prepared to deal with
the resulting challenges and problems. Globalization, as earlier said, is a process which
assumes the occurrence of qualitative changes towards a system in which national
education systems must be taken up and re-articulated with the global system through
international processes and transactions. The general implication, therefore, has been a
re-definition of higher education systems with its diverse institutions in order to respond
effectively to the pressures imposed on them by the global forces.
The story in developing countries has been very different. First of all, most countries
most especially those found in Africa do not have stable higher education systems upon
which to build and respond effectively and efficiently to global forces. Higher Education
institutions remain fragile and suffer from chronic under-funding, which threatens to
wipe some of them completely. Second, even the general school system from the
elementary to high school is unstable and for over 40 years since the attainment of formal
23
independence, the struggle everywhere has been to carry out reforms, which have
remained elusive.
Thirdly, higher education in developing countries is mainly supported by peasant
economies, which continue to be marginalized in the growing international trade. The
revenues from agricultural exports cannot fetch significant amounts of money required to
finance higher education and other services needed by a rapidly growing population.
Given this situation, the key question is whether, or not, it makes sense for these
countries and their higher education institutions to aspire to be “competitive” in a world
economy dominated by industrialized countries. In Africa, the national education agenda
for many countries is still unclear and there is no consensus among the different
stakeholders on the direction which education ought to take in order to achieve national
development and social harmony.
It is quite different in developed countries which over the years have been able to
establish strong national identities and regional cultures that are able to provide adequate
funding to support research in higher education systems.
Then there is the dilemma, which arises from the relationship between education
“experts” from the industrialized countries moving around developing countries with
development derived from their own experience different from what is obtained in
Africa. The issue, therefore, is how to establish a balance between Globalization and the
needs of indigenous populations and their institutions. Decision-making, therefore,
remains a complex matter conducted under rapidly changing conditions and where
economic conditions are deteriorating fast.
3.2
POLICY MAKING IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
There is no doubt that any country that fails to provide a high education policy, which
captures the realities the population is doomed to fail in mitigating poverty and
underdevelopment. We need policy to inform the actions to be undertaken by the
different stakeholders in the higher education sector. Without a good policy, confusion
with regard to aims and goals for higher education and how it to be provided could easily
arise and, therefore, every government must see to it that there is one in place, which is
understood by all. A good policy also ensures that scarce resources are wisely invested to
achieve the goals of national development.
The first thing a country must be clear about in order to make a sound policy in higher
education is its goals and aims. In Uganda, as in many other African countries, there does
not seem to be a shared understanding of the contribution which higher education is
supposed to make to national development. Policy-makers make often conflicting
statements especially when problems such as unemployment are noted. What do
universities exist for and why should they be supported by the state?
24
According to most governments, public expenditure on higher education is defended on
the grounds that we need university graduates for economic prosperity. It is not clear
however whether education can lead to economic prosperity.
Historically, it has been the other way round; a nation gets rich then uses some of those
riches to endow more universities not as engines of economic growth but as centres of
piety, learning and thought. This was the case in the United Kingdom- the nation became
wealthy then encouraged the expansion of higher education. In other words, do we need
more education in order to get our GDP growing or can we grow it by some other means
rather than higher education?
Thus, what is the justification for the rapid growth in higher education in this country?
According to the higher education policy, ‘Higher education is a good investment for
stocking the economy with highly productive workers.’ But can we get any evidence to
suggest that university graduates are more productive than non-graduates? Do people
with degrees contribute more to the GDP than those without?
Then there is the question of how we can know whether education makes people more
productive or not. In what ways does a degree earned in Hospitality Studies or
Cosmetology make the holder more productive?
We bringing forward such questions in order to demonstrate the importance of a national
consensus on what constitute education, its aims and goals for the different players.
A clear policy framework is important for another reason. It serves as a guide to those
who work in universities in terms of providing them the basis for sound strategic
planning which today has become the norm. They need to know the aims and goals of
higher education, how it is to be funded, what are prescribed as ways of training
graduates for the economy and other issues of a general nature, which are pertinent for
good governance of the institutions. Without a clear policy framework, universities
would be grappling in the dark not knowing how to move forward in an uncertain
environment.
The strategic plans that would be generated would then be used by faculties and
departments which generate academic programmes.
Reflect on your university in regard to the following questions?




Is the Strategic Plan of the Ministry of Education as well as that of university
synchronized and are they part of your induction after the first appointment?
How regularly is the Strategic Plan of your university reviewed and discussed in
faculty and departmental meetings?
How much collaboration is evident between your university and others in the
selection of students and utilization of staff?
Is there a systematic policy guiding the development of academic programmes in
your university to avoid duplication and poor programmes?
25



Is there a policy on teaching and research, which is closely adhered to and
monitored? Between and within faculties and departments?
Are there other sources of funding apart from fees contributed by students?
Does your university have Intercultural/International Education programmes to
cater for the needs of the diverse composition of students?
All the above questions require that there are policies at institutional level to guide the
various activities. Important as they are, they can only be accomplished if the institutions
know and understand the role played by sound policy ensuring that resource are utilized
well to achieve the goals of the institutions.
In summing up, although policies might exist at the national level, they may not reflect in
the plans of individual universities. This may be partly because academics choose to pay
little attention to them especially if they are opposed to them. It may also be that
institutional constraints such as lack of funding may force institutions to deviate from the
agreed policies in which case the goals are not achieved.
Since many private providers have arrived in the higher education scene, national
governments must state their stand on how they can provide higher education. In what
follows, an account about these institutions is provided.
3.3
THE ARRIVAL OF NON-TRADITIONAL HIGHER EDUCATION
PROVIDERS
Following the liberalization of higher education, there has been significant proliferation
of different providers including non-traditional ones which today offer stiff competition
to traditional universities. In the North, Apollo Group own Phoenix University and
universities in Netherlands, Germany, and Brazil. Sylvan operates on a similar basis in
Europe but is also active in Chile and Mexico where it has bought several private
universities. Adtech is a major player in South Africa whilst Annet has a major operation
in China. There are also corporations which offer partial services to universities such as
IT capability e.g. Skillsoft and so forth.
In addition there are professional associations such as the Association of Certified and
Cost Accountants, The Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS), The
Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT) Institute of Chartered Secretaries
and Administrators (ICSA) plus many others which are active throughout the globe.
There are also think-tanks constituted by a few individuals, research Institutes,
consultancies and major publishing houses that have joined in the competition with
traditional universities.
There are three clear trends emerging from these developments:
26



The notion of the “public good” which has been the driving force for the existence
of universities for many years has clearly come under attack.
This global trend where universities are moving to offer educational services
outside their countries of origin is escalating under the General Agreement on
Trade in Services (GATS) which has decreed education as a commodity to be
traded globally, and global corporations and others which are turning this claim
into reality.
The development of e-learning technologies is greatly assisting the process.
What does the entry of non-traditional providers mean for universities? First, their
appearance on the scene has introduced competition with the traditional universities in
the generation of knowledge, which according to the GATS, ought to to traded globally.
It has also placed a demand on universities to provide a definition of its mission in these
changing times. For example, since knowledge is now seen as a commodity, a university
that formerly was viewed as “in society” carrying out its business as desired is now
increasingly viewed as being “of society” which is keen to scrutinize all its operations.
Therefore, there is no hiding place for traditional universities as they must subscribe to
increasing scrutiny by students, parents and national governments for the continued
support they are receiving.
The arrival of non-traditional providers has also posed problems to Quality Assurance
Agencies which, in the context of Africa, have weak regulatory mechanisms and are
poorly funded. This issue will be discussed in detail later under the GATS. And finally, in
the last few years, traditional universities that have seen their mission to be that of
promoting academic thought increasingly have seen vocation/technical education sitting
side by side with academic programmes. Today, a Professor of Tourism or Beauty
Studies must sit side by side with one of Physics and History which was not the case
before in traditional universities. As will be shown later, the proliferation of programmes
of vocational nature has in part been prompted by the inability of most institutions of
higher learning to generate sufficient funding.
27
3.4
THE GATS AND BORDERLESS EDUCATION
The World Trade Organization (WTO), was established on January 1, 1995 replacing
GATTS at the Uruguay Round. In 1995, the WTO, through its General Agreement on
Trade in Services (GATS) recognized education as a commodity.
This agreement is an instrument of business which has two components: (1) The
framework of agreements contains 29 articles and (2) a number of annexes, Ministerial
Decisions etc., as well as the schedules of commitments undertaken by each Member
government which bind them to allow market access and remove any existing restrictions
to market access. This agreement in general covers all services including Education. It is
a multilateral agreement with enforceable rights to trade in alls services. Only the
services provided entirely by government do not fall under the GATS rule.
As a Member of WTO, Uganda is definitely bound by the agreements and as result, we
are asked to accept to view that education is a commodity to be traded in the open
market. In terms of regulation especially of higher education, we cannot restrict entry of
any private provider who chooses to come over to provide education services in the
country.
Consequently, the idea of the “public good” introduced earlier is beginning to disappear
and education is subjected to the pressures of the marketplace. This development is
likely, therefore, to affect higher education at several levels, for example:



The higher education policy, programmes and its implementation
The structure, functions and structure-function relations
The accreditation and assessment of higher education
This calls for the restructuring the entire higher education to cater for both the new set of
international regulations as well as the international market place. This essentially means
that countries are to guarantee market access to educational products and institutions of
all kinds. The WTO is expected to facilitate academic institutions and other providers
without controls to set up branches in countries other than their own, export degree
programmes, award degrees and certificates with almost no restrictions, and establish
educational institutions and training programmes through the distance mode of learning.
Copyright, patents, and licensing regulations would be strengthened to become the
avenue through which educational products can be exported. The international tribunals
would also become useful for those who wish to take part in exporting such products. It
is likely to become very difficult for regulatory bodies like the National Council for
Higher Education to regulate higher education. It is not clear yet what the reactions of
academics, students groups and others to such development in higher education will be.
3.5
28
HORSE TRADING
While some will criticize the increased access that cross border education guarantees,
many are worried that “horse trading” education will have disastrous consequences. All
round the world, academics, student groups and national governments have expressed
their worries about the GATS, which is fast gaining ground in the field of education. In
Iberia and Latin America, where the Porto Alegre Declaration was signed in 2002,
academics there allege that it will lead to deregulation of the education sector with the
removal of the legal, political, and fiscal quality controls and fear drastic public financial
support cutbacks. For the British Association of University teachers, it will threaten job
security, professional autonomy and status, academic quality, and will have a negative
impact on academic freedom, intellectual property rights and access to education.
Other critics around the world charge that treating students as consumers which is at the
bottom of the GATS, negates the importance of education as a social tool and runs
counter to the notion of a knowledge-based economy with democratic, tolerant and active
citizenship. It is also likely to exacerbate social inequalities.
Many national governments in Africa are fearful that once universities are regulated by
WTO, they would be swamped by foreign institutions and programmes aimed at earning
profits and not achieving the objectives of national development. They fear that what has
already happened in Asia where Australian universities have a very high presence
offering higher education through “offshore campuses” will also come here. The major
reason for this advance into Asian countries, most notably China, India, South Korea and
Malaysia has been purely to make money for domestic universities, which limping
economically and cannot run their affairs smoothly. According to the Australian Bureau
of Statistics, in 2009 international education activity for Australia contributed $17.2
billion in export income, up 23.2 percent percent from the previous financial year,
making education services the largest services export industry ahead of personal travel
services which contributed 11.7 billion.
3.6
PRIVATE HIGHER EDUCATION – A FOLLOWER OF MARKET
FORCES.
Global forces based on increased belief and implementation of free market ideologies
accelerated private higher education. The general impact of privatization was (i) the
reduction of state funding to university institutions; (ii) privatization of components of
public institutions; and (iii) emergence of non-profit and for-profit institutions. These
developments impacted on management of institutions of higher learning and altered the
purposes for which higher education was delivered and sought.
Private higher education refers to education provided by private sources as opposed to
government provision. It includes the marketization of formerly publicly delivered
services such as education or health. Whole institutions or parts of them could be
29
privatized. Privatization therefore leads to the application of private sector or market
principles in the operation and management of institutions of higher education” that could
still be either in government hands or sold off to entrepreneurs (Varghese, 2004).
Private institutions are therefore those entities owned and controlled by individuals or
organizations other than the government. Although governments may fund private
institutions, as is done in many OECD countries, through research grants, tuition from
state-funded students, endowments or tax waivers to donors supporting education, an
education institution is private as long as non-government owners control and determine
the policies of the institution and have the power to appoint officers who manage that
institution. In many countries, including Uganda, private higher education institutions
generate their own funds through fees, donations, endowments or income from business
outlays.
At the global level, a “two-tier” higher education market has developed (see Marginson
2007, p3). It consists of:
(i) A “super-league” of universities such as Harvard and Oxford, mostly in the
USA but also a few in the UK. They are wealthy institutions but they compete
on the basis of prestige, for leadership in research and doctoral training, not
on a commercial basis. Almost all of these institutions are non-profit in the
sense that dividends or profits are deposited with the institutions.
(ii) “The commercial market in vocational degrees which include both non-profit
and for-profit institutions, ranging from the university of Phoenix and
commercial e-learning to the Malaysia private sector and the British and
Australian universities. In Asia full price tuition constitutes the main form of
international” education.
In most countries, for-profit institutions can transfer profits and dividends to their owners
(or other second parties). The non-profit institutions reinvest or use their profits or
dividends for the benefit of their subject institutions. By 2005, the For-profit industry in
the USA was valued at $15.4 billion and registered 8 percent of the 20 million students
then enrolled in 6000 degree awarding institutions, (Chronicle of Higher Education,
January 2007)
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3.7
EMERGENCE OF PRIVATE HIGHER EDUCATION PROVISION
IN UGANDA
Up to 1988, when the Islamic University in Uganda was founded, and 1992/3 when
private fee-paying students were admitted at Makerere University, the state was the only
provider of university education. With the exception of religious training institutes like
seminaries, most of the non-university tertiary institutions were also owned and
maintained, by government.
However, by 2005/6, the government owned only five out of the twenty-seven licensed
universities and less than 30 percent of the more than 100 non-university tertiary
institutions. Private universities enrolled almost 40 percent. Government sponsored (or
paid-for) students constituted only 19.8 percent (11,786) of the 59,592 students in public
universities. The rest, 80.2 percent (47,806), were privately sponsored (i.e. paid for by
non-government sources). Government contribution to the running of public universities
for the last ten years was a mere 0.3 percent as a percentage of the GDP. Decreasing
contribution of the state means decreasing government influence. The number of students
participating in online and cross-border higher education was increasing, but the exact
figures are difficult to compute. By all means, this was a phenomenal growth of private
higher education in a period of only twenty years. Despite the market, the state will stay
but its power over public and private universities has been moderated by global forces.
Institutions are engaged with the state and global arena.
The impact of market forces and higher education can be best illustrated by the case of
Makerere University and it’s marriage with these forces. Much has been written about the
consequences of Makerere’s innovation or reform in attracting private monies (Court,
1999; Musisi and Muwanga, 2003; Carrol, 2005; Mamdani, 2007). Court, Musisi and
Muwanga have listed the positive outcomes of the exercise. Makerere was able to fund
new buildings, finance research, staff development programmes, top-up staff salaries and
boost the morale of staff. Further, the ability of the University to raise private monies
impressed Western funding, agencies, who began to finance Makerere’s various projects
(Coleman and Court, 1993, Court 2000, World Bank, 2002). However, Carrol and
Mamdani demonstrate that the unplanned way the private-entry scheme was implemented
undermined quality, research and the values for which universities have stood: teaching,
the disinterested search for the truth, and community service.
They further show that the uncontrolled market in the academy led to the expansion of
student numbers beyond the ability of staff to teach and facilities to offer a learning
environment. The privatization at the institution was not controlled nor entirely
understood. It was limited to fees and a few money-generating areas. Student housing,
health and other welfare components that other privatized institutions usually abandon
are still the responsibility of the university. Mbarara University of Science and
Technology, which did not admit as many students as would exceed its staff and facilities
capacity, has maintained a high level of respect in the privatization exercise.
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3.6
SUMMING UP
The third part of the module explored the impact of globalization and internationalization on
higher education systems from the perspective of policy-making in developing countries; the
arrival of non-traditional higher education providers; the GATS agreement and borderless
education; and the very real pressure of market forces. We saw that the landscape, in terms of
the development of higher education in countries such as Uganda, is fraught with challenges as
well as opportunities.
REFLECTION QUESTIONS
1. What is the value of a clear education policy in setting a pace for educational
development in a country?
2. Do you believe that the entry of non-traditional players in education provision
is, in the main, a good thing for a developing country?
3. What are some of the challenges and opportunities regarding the GATS
agreement on higher education in developing countries?
4. How can a country, such as Uganda, retain a commitment to providing
quality higher education when market forces seem so strong an influence on
the growth of university provision?
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PART 4
UNIVERSITIES FOR THE 21ST CENTURY
The fourth, and final, part of the module will deal with the application of the
challenges posed by Globalization to universities, as seen in the emergence of
need for a dynamic curriculum, capable of meeting and defining the learning
needs of a new century and new generations of learners. (1)
Specific Objectives
By the end of Part 4 of this module, you will be able to:
 Understand what is meant by paradigms for teaching and
learning;
 Appreciate the growing importance of lifelong learning and
adult experience in terms of constructing university
programmes;
 Discuss the impact of ‘vocationalization’ and competencybased approaches to curriculum development in higher
education institutions.
4.1
PERSPECTIVES ON TEACHING AND LEARNING
Our list of starting points suggests a plethora of fruitful themes which are contributing to
the shaping of the modern university. However, to grasp how lifelong learning is
beginning to be a reality for a mass population of learners who will be prepared for the
new and ever evolving communications technologies, we need to briefly explore how
open learning and open systems of knowledge are merging. It is these open systems and
the kind of knowledge they sponsor which are at the heart of the transformation of
teaching and learning.
For lifelong education, debates covering the validity and nature of knowledge and how it
is to be transmitted have had profound implications for the curriculum. This has been
especially the case where formal, classroom-based, didactic methods have been
challenged by self-managed, action learning paradigms. The characteristics of one of
these conceptions of teaching have been variously described as ‘student centred’,
‘progressive’, or as ‘open’ pedagogy. (The term ‘pedagogy’ refers here to the principles
and methods of teaching – the ways in which a teacher carries out the task of presenting
new knowledge and experience and generally manages the learning environment.)
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Paradigms For Teaching And Learning: The Closed And The Open
Two contrasting perspectives or paradigms can be identified and used to inform debate
on this issue. The traditional paradigm has fundamentally an objectivist orientation which
focuses on the products of learning. The second paradigm is much more orientated to the
subjectivity of the student and focuses on the processes of learning. In their
organizational forms they are sometimes described as ‘closed’ and ‘open’ types of
pedagogy.
These concepts refer not simply to the classroom structure in which learning takes place,
but also to the boundaries between subjects and areas of teaching responsibility. In other
words, they have contrasting perspectives as to what constitutes the ‘proper’ basis for the
curriculum and for what counts as knowledge.
Underlying each of the paradigms are different psychological assumptions, different
conceptions of curricular knowledge and different vocabularies and beliefs about the
status of the student in the interaction of the classroom. They contain different
conceptions of teaching and learning. They also offer very different possibilities for
learner identity.
The Closed or Conventional Paradigm
Within this paradigm, ability is viewed as the result of a number of prior ‘factors’ in the
genetic make-up and personality of individuals. What these are is not really known, but
their effects it was thought could be ‘scientifically’ measured through intelligence (IQ,
intelligence quotient) tests which, it is provide an ‘objective’ supposed, measure of
ability. An IQ is not necessarily static, it is generally conceded and it may vary over a
limited range.
Under the premises of this paradigm, achievement is defined in terms of mastery of
specific bodies of knowledge which are mapped out to coincide with particular stages of
the learning career. It is the task of the teacher to arrange and present these bodies of
knowledge to his/her students. The focus of interest of the teaching tends to be in the
products of learning – not in the process. Learning is thought to be most effective when a
teacher-expert who knows the subject matter and its structures of knowledge imparts it to
those who do not. The higher status of the teacher is maintained during interaction by a
teacher’s taken-for-granted definition of what shall count as ‘worthwhile knowledge’ and
the right to exclude what is not.
The classroom interaction which embodies the principles of this paradigm reflects an
‘objective’ view of both knowledge and the student. The teacher imparts knowledge to
recipient learners. Learning is collective in the sense that a nominal pace, sequence and
structure for the subject content of a lesson are imposed on all the students in the group
together.
The Open Paradigm
In opposition there has emerged a different paradigm, one version of which is rooted in
the social sciences and takes as its central concern the power of the mind to organize
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experience and meaning. This paradigm emphasises an active rather than a static notion
of the mind. The processes of thought are not taken to be reducible simply to the
possession of ‘intelligence’, nor to the performance of standardised routines characteristic
of, for example, IQ tests. They are, instead, seen to be part of a highly complex personal
system of interpretations, intentions and recollections. This paradigm upholds a view that
cognition is a growth process and that the mind is capable of unlimited development.
The main focus of the open paradigm is on the processes of knowing and the learner’s
organization of meaning into larger schemes of knowledge and experience. This kind of
enquiry has led to a view of learning in which the structuring of knowledge and the
processes by which it is acquired are seen to be fundamental to the development of
understanding. For the teacher, the essential problem is to understand the logic of the
learner’s processes of knowing – to understand how the learner interprets and
accommodates new knowledge. The relationship between the structures of meaning
which the learner habitually uses and the structures which are presented by the teacher is
critical.
Implications of an Open and Learner-Centred Perspective
The learning and teaching interaction which follows from an acceptance of a broadly
conceived ‘phenomenological’ paradigm is likely to allow the learner more control over
structuring the learning process and experience than is the case with the alternative
‘closed’ paradigm. The teacher is more of a guide than an instructor. Expertise is seen to
reside in the ability to stimulate learning rather than communicating the body of
knowledge. Thus, the individual is given or takes increased responsibility for his/her own
learning.
Applying The ‘Open’ Paradigm
The belief that alternative methods of teaching and learning were particularly appropriate
to adult learners has found expression in several different yet related contexts. The work
of Malcolm Knowles and Carl Rogers focused on adult learners’ own projects for
learning; R. Spady developed the criteria for understanding what is known as ‘outcomesbased education’; the British Open University gave impetus and organizational form to
mass ‘open’ higher education; and the concept of independent learning connected with
the notion of ‘access’ emerged. This wide process, embracing many streams of change,
involved essentially a de-constructed curriculum which questioned the authority of
traditional knowledge and asserted that knowledge was something to be constructed
interdependently, between learners and teachers. Above all, these developments chart the
recognition of the fact that there is now in existence what is now referred to as the
‘dynamic curriculum’.
This curriculum embraces the open paradigm; its pedagogy is similarly open to student
experience and it insists that knowledge is crafted from learning experiences, wherever
they may be acquired. Lived experience and critical reflection upon it figures ever more
centrally in accessing and applying lifelong learning.
35
4.2
LIFELONG LEARNING AND ADULT EXPERIENCE
Having briefly reviewed open and closed pedagogies and learning styles, we would argue
that an alternative and radical view of adult learning associated with the concept of
‘andragogy’, is required to take forward our thinking on educational change and
innovation.
There are of course a great number of theories claiming to explore and analyse the nature
and processes of adult learning. Gagne and Wilson have evaluated those theorists who
seek to ascribe learning processes to biological factors and mechanical ‘conditioning’.
Others such as Bruner have concentrated on the manner in which learners organise their
conceptual, cognitive and perceptual experiences and there are other schools of thought
which focus on personality and social pressures as critical to learning.
In addressing a specifically adult context of learning it may be valid to suggest that all of
the above viewpoints are valid as orientations giving different emphases rather than
yielding distant categories of learning. It seems clear that adult learning can be viewed as
a process whereby groups and individuals are able to assess the realities they experience
and change their behaviour or experience or perceptions as a result. Adult learning is,
therefore, concerned with questions of social and individual change.
Following Knowles’ work we can identify four major assumptions which distinguish
adult learning from childhood learning:
1. Adults have strong needs to be self-directing. As we get older the self concept
moves from dependency on others to self-direction and autonomy.
2. Maturity brings experience, which is a resource for learning.
3. As life proceeds readiness to learn becomes associated with a person’s social role.
We, therefore, internalise learning needs in response to our need to know – not
because we are told to learn.
4. As a person grows older and matures problem or project-centred learning takes
over from subject-centred learning.
The concept of knowledge embodied, therefore, in adult and lifelong learning insists that:
1. thinking and understanding develop as people interact, consciously and critically
in their social context.
2. there is no fixed or final stage of development and that the teacher-learner
relationship is changed within an andragogical approach to learning.
There are thus hugely significant implications for continuing learning and higher
education when we consider that knowledge quickly becomes out-dated and that the
context in which it applies rapidly changes. Where there is continuous change, there must
also be continuous learning and the learning society which is emerging will enjoin us,
actively and consciously, to lead these developments, as subjects in the process, rather
than as objects in a process beyond and outside our understanding and control. If the
36
learning society is to deliver its promise in full, it must surely do so through an open and
innovative set of values and practices which are of concrete use and value to learners.
What follows attempts to chart the changes which are shaping what can be learned, what
is needed in a learning society and how it is being delivered. The themes concern learning
and work, the emergence of a learning framework and the need for lifelong learning
competence.
4.3
LEARNING AND WORK
The important and far reaching factors which have brought about change in the learning
opportunities for adults within higher education are dealt with in this section. Under that
rubric, three specific sub-themes of change are explored as a contextual underpinning of
what is turning out to be a general re-assessment of the position, role and function of
adult learners within universities. This involves:
 understanding the exponential growth of lifelong learning, secondly,
 charting the vocationalisation of learning opportunities and
 increasing our understanding of the changing nature of work in relation to
education.
1. Adult learners in higher education
The requirements of provision by higher education institutions have been the subject of
much speculation in many countries, including Uganda, What is not in doubt, however, is
the fact that participation by adults in all types of higher education has risen and has been
matched by a rise in attainments and in the legitimate expectations of mature adult
students for both qualifications and quality of provision.
A key objective has been an improved social result, by which is meant an increase in the
range and quality of students successfully entering institutions from all sections of the
community, but in particular from targeted groups such as mature students, women, and
employees needing re-training in the context of change in the organisation and
availability of work.
The higher education system is now able to offer a variety of contexts from which adults
can potentially benefit. Educational variety through an increased diversity of academic
programmes is available by subject, award, mode of study and location. Broader learning
programmes based on generic skills as well as academic subject knowledge are available,
as is a variety of staged awards achieved by students demonstrating effective
performance rather than by length of the period of study. Continuing education offers
opportunities for flexible and accessible study, more and more linked to accredited
courses. Educational mobility and exchange are now realities offering transfer between
levels of achievement and across the learning experiences of differing sectors of
provision and institutions and even, as we have already seen, across national boundaries.
37
This means a radical change for many higher education institutions which must reshape
and re-conceptualise even their conventional courses. The current situation which
universities need to take cognizance such facts as:
 The number of students in African universities has doubled in recent years;
 Private universities far outnumber public ones and must operate on a business
model if they are to remain open;
 The proportion of older people wishing to complete a degree programme in ways
other than by attending full-time study courses is growing.
The important question is how the current system, founded on rationed supply and
selective entry, can be adapted to meet the growing demands of students and society
alike, while preserving what is good about existing provisions.
Unless there are significant reforms – embracing among other issues those of course
content and qualifications, student funding, research and staffing and the provision of
continuing education – there can be no successful transition to a mass system, let alone to
a universal system of higher education, towards which the most advanced industrial
societies appear to be moving.
The response of universities in developing countries has been varied. Among some of the
signs, (some of which we have already referred to) of this shift in identity are:
 the de facto mainstreaming of adult and continuing education is an acknowledged
reality;
 the emergence of the university’s role as a centre of recurrent learning and
teaching;
 the variable pacing of study and range of flexibility in course provision it offers to
its students;
 the widening of entry provision via ‘access’ schemes;
 the development of credit accumulation and transfer (CATS);
 the modularization of courses enabling greater student choice; and
 the onset of new technologically based learning systems such as that offered by
the Internet.
All of this has occurred in the context of new inter-institutional consortia and franchising
of higher education courses to the vocationally oriented further education sector.
Both the rise in attainments and the legitimate expectations of mature adult students have
been matched by a growth in the number of students requiring qualifications and/or other
formal recognition of their learning achievements.
Many such students, in the world of continuing education, are almost exclusively offcampus in terms of their physical or geographical location, studying in local
neighbourhood centres and have, up to very recently, been viewed as a marginal cohort of
university students.
2. Vocationalisation
38
Can there be any doubt that the awareness of need for greater social and economic
advancement through educational opportunity has been a major factor in forcing through
educational change? Following the American experience in the 1960s and 1970s, higher
education in Britain in the 1990s has come to be regarded as a fundamental entitlement
for a mass client group rather than as a select privilege for a few. As in the American
case, however, we cannot be certain that the promises of achievement and success can be
met and the hopes of minorities and disadvantaged groups fully realised.
The changes we are now experiencing in higher education exemplify the assertion that
general and liberal education is no longer at the centre of our higher education system.
Rather, academic specialisation and technical training hold the centre stage.
This is of course no new development and the correspondences with an earlier epoch,
such as the Industrial Revolution of the 19th century which led to the appearance of the
first modern departmentalized research-based universities.
The agenda for change has been set in relation to the increasing value placed on science,
technology and the growth of specialist expertise in education and in work. These
concerns have been at the centre of recent curriculum-led changes and can be understood
as indirectly related to the same socioeconomic forces which produced specialization and
vocationalisation in higher and further education.
The process is of course part of a larger and longer term shift of profound character in our
social life with more and more of the world’s population living in cities, as well as the
inexorable growth of science and technology as part of modern social life - most clearly
seen in the popularity of the mobile phone.
In relation to the question of how we understand educational change, the growth of a
mass entry high education sector stretching across post-compulsory institutions is an
expansion based on increasing vocationalism and specialisation. As such, it is one that
challenges previous conceptions of the university’s role. It does this by incorporating a
broad range of learners at several levels of previous education and thereby brings into
question the idea of binary divisions between providers; one that has already been
seriously eroded by government policy.
This new provision is for people well beyond the traditional age and qualifications
categories. This is a response which corresponds to the changing nature of employment,
leisure and social patterns which are themselves contingent on the evolving division of
labour and our understanding of the nature of work and its availability. The arena of work
and education is of course a contentious one. We most frequently mean paid work when
referring to work but if we were to use the term to encompass the more general notion of
productive life it would be possible, arguably, to view work as ‘a potentially progressive
principle for curricula’. The argument here is that the tendency to ‘vocationalise’ the
curriculum and favour traditional subject specialities in schools and colleges has led to a
narrowing of the academic curriculum and a stress on vocational training. This is an
education and training emphasising standards, discipline, attitudes and dispositions
compatible with employers’ views of the proper characteristics workers and employees
39
should possess. This vocationalisation of learning opportunity has become part of new
divisions of certification and at the higher levels of attainment has undermined the liberal
approach to higher education which favoured general and humanistic approaches or those
associated with an ‘open’ pedagogy. Our understanding of the developing needs of
employers and employees may, therefore, be enhanced if we can incorporate into this
discourse a real sense of the changes occurring in the relationship of work and education.
These changes demand new responses from educators; a flexible relationship between
work and education is called for which is more creative and less divisive than the
vocationalist perspective prevalent in the 1980s and 1990s. The imperatives of
modernization imply the coming together of education for personal growth and education
for work, since it is work which connects us with so many aspects of market-oriented,
consumer-driven society with its emphasis on personal satisfactions and life chances.
Academic and specialist subjects as we know them cannot, therefore, be the exclusive
basis for future routes to higher education since they no longer correspond to the needs of
the wider reality, including the economic ones. People must therefore prepare themselves
for a life of change and less for specific occupations and jobs. Vocation must come to
denote the acquisition of more than technical skill and knowledge; individuals must also
acquire critical thinking skills and knowledge to enable them to survive the inevitable
changes in technical production which can simply obliterate functional occupational
skills acquired in the past.
3. Outcomes-based, or competency-based, curricula
In connection with the vocalization of university education, has been the increasing use
of outcomes-based (OBE) or competency-based understanding of education - in terms of
designing curricula around a ‘national qualification framework’ (NQF) The justification
for designing a course around the intended outcomes, or competencies, expected of the
learner is because education is increasingly being understood at aimed at creating
teaching and learning environments that would bring about desired changes in learners whether to be more knowledgeable, better skilled or to influence their attitudes and
values positively. The essence of teaching and learning, according to OBE advocates, is
to plan teaching events (contents, strategies, etc) and to ascertain to what extent learners
have acquired the intended competences.
There is a good deal of common sense about this approach to organizing learning around
the notion of ouotcomes or competencies. Uncertainty about the desired learning
outcomes and failure to assess outcomes properly could end in a situation where learners
only attained pseudoknowledge, pseudo-skills, pseudo-attitudes and pseudo-values. On
completion of their studies these learners are awarded a certificate inherently implying
that they have attained certain competences whereas in fact they have not. (Malan: 2000:
22)
Outcomes -based education [OBE] is currently favoured internationally to promote
educational renewal and has been implemented in countries such as Canada, the United
States and New Zealand. In essence, a course is designed around six conditions that must
be fulfilled – if it is to have intended competency outcomes. They are as follows:
40
1. Explicit learning outcomes with respect to the required skills and concomitant
proficiency (standards for assessment)
2. A flexible time frame to master these skills
3. A variety of instructional activities to facilitate learning
4. Criterion-referenced testing of the required outcomes
5. Certification based on demonstrated learning outcomes
6. Adaptable programmes to ensure optimum learner guidance
William Spady is regarded as OBE's leading advocate and a few points he makes would
suffice. Spady (1994:1) defines OBE as a:
… comprehensive approach to organizing and operating an education
system that is focused on and defined by the successful demonstrations of
learning sought from each student. Outcomes are … clear learning results
that we want students to demonstrate at the end of significant learning
experiences … and … are actions and performances that embody and
reflect learner competence in using content, information, ideas, and tools
successfully (Spady, 1994:2).
Regarding the OBE paradigm, Spady (1994:8) states:
… WHAT and WHETHER students learn successfully is more important
than WHEN and HOW they learn something.
Among the benefits in adopting such a perspective when designing courses around
outcomes and competencies, we can list the following:
The benefits for learners are:
 Credit achieved can be used to access programmes leading to desired
qualifications.
 Credit achieved can be used as part of the total credit required for a
particular award
 Recognition of learning from experience, and the process of reflection
required often lead to increased confidence among learners.
 It helps develop independent study skills needed in rapidly changing
environment.
 Reflection of experiential learning improves the link between theory and
practice.
The Benefits of APL for employers/managers are:
 Accelerated path to qualification, those less time taken away from work.
 Less costly than fees for taught modules.
41

The process of reflection on practice could lead to innovation at the
workplace.
The Benefits for universities are:
 Encourages curriculum innovation as new assessment techniques are
developed.
 The process encourages study to be relevant to work, life and personal
development.
 Claims are made on the basis of recent experience and thus, often provide
opportunities for discussion and can stimulate research partnership
between universities and employers.
Where does Uganda stand with regard to the above issues? To be honest, educators,
students, employers and the general public are seriously lacking in awareness on the
forces which are impacting on the design of higher education courses and programmes,
the consequences of these changes for their lives and study options, the concept of OBE,
and most other issues which are being discussed passionately abroad about the direction
education ought to be taking. Those who show a degree of awareness are few and
scattered and often dismissed by the more powerful players in the institutional
bureaucracies. It does not help the situation that certificates, diplomas and advanced
diploma given under the British National Qualifications Framework are frowned upon for
admission to university degrees as result of lack of awareness and failure to comprehend
the growing linkages between professional vocational qualifications and those offered by
universities.
4.4
SUMMING UP
The movement from universities to ‘universe cities’ can be summed up as follows:
1. The university itself should have an organizational structure which sponsors the
continuous development of its students’ core competences. The core modules
which define competence could be combined according to each student’s needs
and be complemented by a customised cluster of competences for each client or
client group.
2. To meet the challenges outlined so far, it has been argued that new tasks and new
ways of operating require new skills on the part of teachers and learners. It is no
longer enough to be an expert in a subject discipline and thus students must be
multi-skilled as well as possessing a range of core skills and competences.
3. There is a growing acceptance of the concept of open learning systems which
seek to offer learning opportunities at all ages and stages of life. Continuous
learning is the focus of discourse rather than the language of phases and stages.
Learning experience is sought as opposed to immersion in a sequence of taught
lessons.
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REFLECTION QUESTIONS
‘At the heart of this enterprise is the concern to match the needs of students to a
new set of possibilities for learning and personal achievement.’ Explain what is
meant by this.
2. What is meant by the term the ‘vocationalisation of higher education’?
3. What are the signs of the shift taking place from universities being ‘teaching’ to
‘learning organisations’?
4. What are your views on outcome-based, or competency-based, education forming
the basis for redesigning university curricula in Uganda? Should it be a
nationally agreed project, or left up the universities themselves to implement?
1.
Notes
(1) Much of the material in this part of the module is derived from the article: ‘The Virtual University: A
Learning University’ by David Davies; Journal of Workplace Learning , Volume 10 · Number 4 · 1998,
175–213).
43
APPENDIX
HIGHER EDUCATION IN UGANDA: THE SUB-SECTOR IN 2007
AT A GLANCE
Although 2007 saw no dramatic changes in the higher education sub-sector, there were continuities and
changes that policy makers need to make note of especially the ICT sector as well as enrolments in science
and technology. In addition, there was continuing under-funding of higher education inputs that continued
to adversely impact on the delivery of quality higher education, reductions in middle level institutions in
favour of un-facilitated universities and a continuing loss of academic staff through brain drain and early
retirement. In 2007, National Council noted the following:
1. Institutions:
The total number of institutions was 145 up from 139 from that of 2005/6. Their
distribution by region was in the same proportion as in the previous academic year
2005/6: the central region (48%), western (25%), eastern (19%) northern (9%).
2. Enrolment
The total enrollment in 2006/7 was 154,023 which represented an increase of 12.3%
over the 2005/6 academic year when the number of students was 137,190. The gross
enrolment ratio improved from 4.57% in 2005/6 to 4.97% in 2006/7.
The enrolment in all Universities (both public and private including affiliated
colleges) was 107,728 or 69.5% of total enrolment in institutions of higher learning.
This number was higher than that of the previous year of 92,605 by 15,123 reflecting
a 14.0% increase of students into universities. This time, Public Universities alone had
53,845 (34.7%) enrolment lower than in 2005/6.
3. Enrolment by gender
Overall, there were 87,954 male and 66,254 female students constituting 57% and
43% of all students. In the universities alone, there were 59,976 (55.7%) male and
47,752 (44.3%) female students of all the 107,728 students. The enrolment in all
“Other Tertiary” (non-university institutions) was 46,295 comprising 27,793 (60%)
males and 18,502 (40%) females. In Technical Colleges alone there were 1,960,
which is only 1.3% of the total enrolment. This is a sad state of affairs that need
government intervention.
4. International students
There were 8,287 (5.3%) international students composing 4,839 (3.1%) male and
3,448 (2.2%) female students of all 155,082 enrolled students. These numbers were
lower than in 2005/6 when 12,930 (9.4%) foreign students composed of 8,150 (5.9%)
male and 4,780 (3.5%) female students of all 137,190 students enrolled. Uganda is
gradually losing its competitive edge in the region due to the inferior quality of its
higher education.
5. Enrolment in illegal institutions
The number of students in illegal institutions was 4,145 which are 2.7% of the total
enrolment. The National Council for Higher Education is not funded sufficiently to
clean up the system. Lack of staff and other facilities has led to inability to eliminate
all illegal institutions and programmes.
6. Programme relevance
The phenomenon of duplication of programmes still persists and has not been
squarely addressed although through self-evaluation, it is hoped that institutions will
address this question. The programmes offered do not place Uganda on the
44
international market and do not make higher education a sustainable export product
for Uganda. The relevance of programmes offered is still questionable and too many
of are theoretical. Memorisation rather than problem solving was the preferred and
widespread method of education delivery in 2006/7. Serious efforts to have field
attachments with the labour market and practical training in the world of work will
have to be made if the relevance is to be enhanced.
It is imperative for higher education institutions and the economy to develop
mechanisms for continuous and sustainable interface between institutions, R&D and
the market. Tracer studies were not being done by the institutions to establish what is
marketable and to adjust programmes accordingly. Business and industry were not
fully participating in training because current laws are believed not to favour those
who host internship students.
7. Research and Publications
Most of the research was linked with the pursuance of higher degrees and not many
people pursued disinterested research in the higher education system. Generally, the
level of research was low across the higher education spectrum, partly because of
inadequate funding. Institutions have not fully fulfilling their knowledge creation
functions. Most of the Uganda’s universities are, unfortunately, teaching institutions
for little knowledge is created due to lack of research funds.
8. Academic staff
The number of academic staff grew faster in 2006/7 than in 2005/6 but still remained
below the NCHE standards. From 6,465 in 2005/6 staff increased to 7,645 in 2006/7,
which represents a growth of 1,180 individuals or 18.3%. The staff/student ratio of
1:201 was an improvement compared to 1:24 in the previous academic year. It is vital
that quality and sufficiency of the academic staff match the expected outcomes of an
institution of higher learning.
The number of full-time staff dropped from 2999 in 2006 to 4022 in 2007. This
current staff figure represents only 52.6% of the total number of academic staff
needed in the sub-sector. The number of part-time staff was 3623 or 47.4% of the total
staff. Part-time staff represent too high a figure and often they do not participate in
core activities of institutions which is sad. Training of more academic staff in the subsector is not impressive. Only 433 academic staff were reported to be on training
programmes of different types.
9. Infrastructure
In 2007, there was no marked improvement in the physical infrastructure of most
institutions, especially public ones. Public universities are using colonial-built
infrastructure which is no longer adequate for the masses of students currently
registered. Non-university institutions saw an improvement but this was due to the
fact that a number of them either closed or had low enrolment leaving ample space
unused. Unfortunately in most public institutions, the lecture, laboratory and
dormitory spaces are inadequate and too old to create an environment conducive to
learning.
10. Education facilities
Since 2005, access to computer facilities, books and other learning materials has
improved but are still far from reaching ratios comparable to world standards. In
absolute figures, it is noted that the number of individuals in the sub-sector accessing
computers has risen from 5511 in 2005/6 to 8202 in 2006/7. The student/textbook
1
We have however note some cases of double counting where some staff appear as academic staff in more
than one institution which can only be isolated if detailed staff lists are obtained for all institutions.
45
ratio dropped from 19 to 13 but one should not forget the possibility of accessing
electronic reading materials which has indirectly brought greater access to reading
materials. A serious anomaly rests in the welfare components of education taking
more funds than core academic items or infrastructural developments.
11. Financing of higher education
Higher education in Uganda is financed by the government, the parents (students), the
private sector and donor agencies. Government institutions have access to
international donor and lender agencies while private institutions derive most of their
income from fees. Although public and private institutions have improved in
allocating priorities of their funds and in transparency in financial management, a lot
more needs to be done. Financial managers were not using modern methods of
accounting thus creating a situation where mischief could occur. Further, many
institutions have not calculated unit costs to know the gap between received income
and the cost.
12. Statutory obligations and waivers
Public and private universities are not protected against certain statutory obligations
which in other countries these institutions are. For example non-profit universities
should not pay corporation taxes and waiver of tax on donations is not in place.
13. Governance
Generally, governance of institutions is improving and the role of National Council is
becoming more accepted and the Secretariat was always in a better position to advise
institutions on this matter. But there were a number of governance disruptions in form
of strikes, misinterpretations of the law and problems arising out of contradictions in
the law.
The general governance of institutions improved as evidenced by fewer staff/student
strikes or other forms of commotion in 2007 than in 2006. Few universities reported
violations of their institutional autonomy, not many staff complained of interferences
in their freedom to search for the truth or unnecessary interferences in student affairs.
However, the great governance problem we are having include:
(a)
(b)
(c)
Failure to separate between ownership and management in all institutions,
public or private. As a result, there is massive interference in the institutional
autonomies of universities leading to a lot of management problems.
Mismanagement of institutions, particularly finances, the academic processes
and public relations.
Failure by virtually all institutions to organise data and information.
46
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