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This paper considers the utility of critical realism as an ontological foundation for the analysis of education policy in emergencies. By exploring the synergy between critical realism and a method to analyse policy known as Critical Policy Analysis, the paper argues for the use of conceptual analytical tools when examining education policy in conflict-affected contexts. It illustrates the value of theory-informed analysis by reflecting on a recent study of Afghanistan's higher education strategic planning, and advocates for critical engagement with broader cultural, political, and economic factors in the analysis of education policies during conflicts and crises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses the approach to systemic educational reform in the Arabian states of the Gulf and the central role within that of the Global Education Industry (GEI). Initially the authors identify the commonalities of their approach; subsequently they compare the approaches in Bahrain and Qatar. They demonstrate how the GEI is embedded in all stages of policy making, delivery and monitoring which revolves around the selling of 'best global practices'. They argue that the outcome is a commercial model of applied 'comparative education' designed for 'selling to the other' and it is both distinctive and of limited effectiveness; it also provides a vision of the future as educational policy making is increasingly outsourced to the private sector. They conclude with a discussion of the conditions which facilitated this approach and of what others might learn from the experience of the Gulf. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the impact of internationalisation on the professional identities of lecturers at three international universities in Vietnam, Thailand and Malaysia. Higher education in Southeast Asia faces significant pressures to change because of the potential dissonance between emerging forms of global competition between higher education institutions and established conceptualisations of higher education. The authors examine how, during focus groups, lecturers negotiated contested understandings of being an international professional; in all three institutions, they conveyed a pragmatic understanding of the relationship between financially driven internationalisation agendas, their own personal belief systems and the realities of their multilingual pedagogic practices. The extent to which being international was the primary normative identity for academics differed across locales and there were different competing sources of professionalism. The authors propose a 'cline of internationalism', which allows us to conceptualise restrictions placed upon academics' agency to pursue an actively international professional identity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Middle East and North Africa region has the world's lowest returns to education. This paper examines what the value of a degree is using nationally representative labour market surveys from Egypt (2012), Jordan (2010) and Tunisia (2014). Specifically, the authors estimate Mincer models for levels and years of schooling. They find that returns are highest in Tunisia and lowest in Egypt, although all three countries fall short of the global average. Higher education is where returns are greatest. They also analyse the returns by sub-groups: sex; age group; and sector. The returns are higher for women than men in Egypt. The younger generation has lower returns than the older generation in Egypt. The private sector in Egypt and Tunisia has lower returns than the public sector. One reason for the low returns is that many individuals are overeducated relative to position requirements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Colombia has joined the international movement of countries which, under the impulse of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), are looking to integrate global citizenship education (GCED) into their educational system. However, being a recently emerging initiative, the characteristics and possible effects of GCED have not been discussed sufficiently in academia, nor among policy makers. This paper presents a critical discourse analysis of the most recent antecedents of GCED to be found in Colombian education policy. It thereby contributes to the national and international debate surrounding the integration of GCED in contexts that differ from those of Western and 'developed' countries, which have been the main focus of GCED research and interventions to date. It is argued that, in the case of Colombia, educational initiatives that are based on critical approaches to GCED should be recuperated and strengthened, since these initiatives provide powerful clues for a truly transformative integration of GCED in the country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper considers the current status of academic performance and administrative leadership of women academics in Taiwan in the context of neo-liberalism. Emergent forces of higher education restructuring, including gender equity legislation have influenced Taiwanese universities to transition from authoritative state bureaucracies to more decentralised governance models. Qualitative research was used to frame and examine life situations, teaching and research, and performance of women academics. The study results showed that horizontal and vertical division of academic work, organisational roles and practices, and rewards and promotion are all gendered – which persistently disadvantages women as a group in terms of realising their potential and achieving leadership status. In conclusion, even with the presence of gender equity regulations, gendered power has been and is still relayed through teaching and mentoring responsibilities, research resources and opportunities, curriculum, organisational culture, tenure promotion, and management practices in Taiwan's universities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This cross-case analysis explores national level internationalisation of higher education (IoHE) policies in Singapore and Japan. Through comparison of the state level internationalisation strategies, this paper aims to highlight how each country's unique policy environment impacts their approach to IoHE. The analysis suggests that despite the differing national circumstances and ultimate approaches to internationalisation, both states use it primarily as a means to stay competitive in the twenty-first century global knowledge-based economy. This suggests that while IoHE does build bridges between nations, institutions, and individuals within and between regions, within these cases it is being driven by nationally-centred rationales. While some criticize a competition orientation in IoHE, even with such rationales it may still serve to drive greater collaboration and integration among East Asian higher education systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper examines the transfer of the Bologna Process (BP) outside Europe, focusing on its ‘external dimension’ and dynamics in global settings. It argues that the BP impacts on the internationalisation activities of universities, especially with regard to cross-border transparency of qualifications, transnational improvement of quality assurance and interregional mobility of students or scholars. However, the outcomes following the international transfer of the BP-model are unclear. As the BP-model makes its way to regional, national and local contexts, it meets existing policy discourses and practices, whose priorities may in fact differ from its postulates. The paper asserts that the non-linear conceptualisation of this model outside Europe is significantly affected by the socio-economic, political, historical and cultural context of each region. National visions, economic demands, political will, social objectives, administrative regulations, cultural traditions, ideological norms and philosophical ideals transform the BP-model as it is incorporated into each system of higher education. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper draws attention to processes of policy implementation in developing contexts, and to the unintended consequences of education policies that follow international policy scripts without enough consideration of local histories and cultures. Drawing on a study of teaching practices in Peruvian rural secondary schools after a period of comprehensive reform and the introduction of a new outcomes-based national curriculum, the paper highlights the way in which such reforms have led to a displacement of knowledge in rural schools that acts against an already educationally disadvantaged population. This is linked to the prevalence of highly performative and ritualised teaching practices that have emerged through a history of school expansion that has tended to follow imported scripts without much consideration for local knowledge. The paper suggests that policy makers, particularly in highly varied contexts like Peru, should attempt to understand local specificities and plan policies accordingly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Higher education institutions seem to be becoming increasingly flexible with different functions. Most universities' mission statements involve teaching, research and service, but while the teaching and research missions are clearly defined and located within certain areas of the university activities, service is less clear and more ambiguous, assuming an increasingly important and central catchphrase in many higher education institutions' publicity or 'marketing' strategies. As little research has come out to understand and locate the place of service in relation to the other core activities, an understanding of it could be useful in comprehending the wider implication of utilitarian-driven higher education policies and developing effective frameworks to rethink policy and practice. Based on two case studies, this paper argues that service, rather than being simply one of three functions, is a broad concept that covers the core activities and is influenced by the context of universities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The economic transition in China since the late 1970s has led not only to drastic social transformations but also to rapid advancements in science and technology, as well as the revolution in information and communications technology. In order to enhance the global competence of the Chinese population in coping with the challenges of the knowledge-based economy, the higher education sector has been going through restructuring along the lines of marketization, privatization and decentralization. Responding to the globalization challenges, the Chinese government has opened up the education market by allowing private/minban higher education institutions and overseas universities to offer academic programmes in China. This paper sets out in this wider policy context to examine the growing importance of the 'privateness' in higher education provision in China, with particular reference to the policy implications for quality assurance, the public-private boundary, and tensions between the state and newly emerging private/minban education institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]