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The European educational system stands in a unique position at the crossroads of training, research and innovation, in shaping sustainable and resilient economies, and in making its territories greener, more inclusive and more digital through culture and creativity. This paper is the result of a one-year collaboration between the Alma Mater Studiorum — Università di Bologna and the Jagiellonian University, under the umbrella of the EIT Culture & Creativity (EIT C&C), in the interim co-chairing of the Direction linked to the Action Program 1 Talent Scaler, to define activities and strategies for the operationalization of the Strategic Objective 1 about Education. This involvement opened up the possibility to activate a fruitful international cooperation with all the members of Una Europa, the alliance of Europe’s eleven largest leading research universities that aim to create a truly European inter-university environment, a University of the Future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The science of Foresight differs from the commonplace notion of what a science is because it is a metadiscipline – a logical type of science higher than the logical type of disciplinary sciences. It is practical, uses transdisciplinary processes that combine scientific disciplines and often examines counterfactuals in a scientific manner. This study aims to demonstrate that Foresight is a science, by presenting a number of best practices and potential innovations in higher education that could facilitate obtaining skills for Foresight science. Design/methodology/approach: The methods of scientific education that have served us well in the past are inadequate for metadisciplinary sciences such as Foresight. The paper discusses what metadisciplinarity is, using a variety of examples, and distinguishes it from disciplines and ways of crossing disciplinary boundaries. Understanding the essential characteristics of Foresight as a metadisciplinary science leads to identifying current best practices and possible educational innovations in undergraduate education that will facilitate obtaining Foresight skills. Throughout the paper, examples are drawn from the education and professional experience of the author in the USA and Europe. Findings: This paper demonstrates that Foresight is a science and presents a number of best practices and potential innovations in higher education that could facilitate obtaining skills for Foresight science. It identifies barriers to those innovations and approaches to overcome them. Originality/value: This viewpoint paper clarifies the meaning of the terms interdisciplinarity, transdisciplinarity and metadisciplinarity to identify the essential characteristics of Foresight as a science. Then, it identifies and advocates needed changes in North American higher education to provide earlier and more efficient opportunities for Foresight researchers and users to obtain the skills they need. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Learning design is growing in importance but is not yet widely adopted by teachers. This paper describes the development of a scenario‐led learning design process, divided into two stages, which was implemented with over 500 teachers altogether from 15 European countries. Activity theory is used to explore the contradictions that arose when such changes were introduced into the established activity system of lesson planning. Data were collected through interviews and questionnaires from a small sample of participants including national coordinators (stage 1: n = 8; stage 2: n = 13) and teachers (stage 1: n = 13; stage 2: n = 23). These participants perceived that the scenario‐led learning design process, involving a wide range of stakeholders, was collaborative, supportive and innovative (compared to previous lesson planning practices). However, a number of contradictions were identifiable between: (1) the shift to collaborative learning design from teachers preparing their lessons alone; (2) the new tools and the existing rules of the national/regional education systems; (3) the time required to both understand and implement learning design, and the impact of competing demands. This paper discusses the challenges faced when attempting to scale‐up European school teachers' development of digital pedagogy. The structured (yet flexible) approach was welcomed and the tools promoted teacher reflection but, as commonly noted, the complexity and time‐constraints were major issues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides an overview of open education in Europe, focusing on higher education. It begins by considering how the notion of 'contemporary open education' has evolved over time. It then reviews the various open education-related initiatives that have been promoted by the European Commission, from the institution of an open education framework to the current development of education policies. It also reports on specigc initiatives and makes a series of recommendations about policy design oriented to opening up education. It analyses the relationship between open education and the open science movement, specigcally the manner in which open education can be contextualised in the emergent paradigm of open science. Finally, the paper considers how academic libraries should be supporting open education and examines the inluence that information professionals can bring to bear in this geld. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Educación XX1 is the property of Editorial UNED and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The Liberal Arts model of undergraduate education within small, internationally- focused University Colleges is becoming increasingly popular in Europe. This trend is most notable in the Netherlands, where the liberal arts model is acclaimed as filling a gap in Dutch undergraduate education at conventional research universities. This paper explores the status of the Dutch University College as simultaneously continuing the liberal arts tradition of the US, with its civic and pedagogic values, and providing a truly modern education preparing students to find innovative and inter-disciplinary solutions to the complex problems which define contemporary society. It concludes that the traditional role of a liberal arts education in cultivating intellectual rather than vocation skills does not have to exclude its appeal as providing the skills necessary for professional success in global sectors of the 21 st century knowledge economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Language Policy Unit of the Council of Europe has been engaged in language planning for quite some time now. If, in the past, the unit's work was mainly focused on multilingualism - benchmarking, description and assessment - as in the development of the Common European Framework of Reference for Language (CEFR), it has recently taken on the task of developing proficiency descriptors for school subjects. Its aim is to contribute to the debate on the language deficit in many European education systems -in accordance with the Recommendation CM/Rec(2014)5 of the Committee of Ministers to the member states on the importance of competences in the language(s) of schooling for equity and quality in education and for educational success. This paper addresses the rationales, procedures and major concerns of the Language Policy Unit when creating an ideology of language(s) of schooling and developing tools for their study as a new paradigm in Europe, as well as describing the initiatives implemented to date: to find a common ground among different national traditions in discourse studies; to explore how subject teachers can interpret their courses in linguistic terms; to map subject genres for curriculum innovation; and to outline a discursive evolution that is coherent in all school subjects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a European Community supported project which investigated whether the use of electronic and mobile technologies in the hands of young learners might engage them in learning activities and start to change their attitudes towards learning. The mLearning system was implemented in a Europe-wide network of 14 schools with over 500 students and 46 teachers participating in the implementation. In the paper special focus is given to three different mLearning contexts/scenarios implemented within the setting of one of the Europe-wide network of schools. mLearning in einem Europaweiten Netz von Schulen Dieses Papier prasentiert ein von der Europaische Gemeinschaft unterstutztes Projekt, das erforschen sollte, ob der Gebrauch von elektronischen und mobilen Technologien in den Handen von jungen Anfangern diese im Lernen von Aktivitaten anregen und dazu fuhren konnte, ihre Einstellungen zum Lernen zu andern. Das mLearning System wurde in einem Europaweiten Netz von 14 Schulen mit mehr als 500 Schulern und 46 Lehrern durchgefuhrt. In diesem Papier wurde der besondere Schwerpunkt auf drei unterschiedliche mLearning Zusammenhange/Drehbucher gelegt, die innerhalb eines der europaweiten Netze von Schulen angelegt sind. Le mLearning dans un reseau d'ecoles a l'echelle europeenne Cet article presente un projet soutenu par la Communaute Europeenne qui a examine si l'usage des technologies electroniques mobiles mises entre les mains de jeunes apprenants pourrait les amener a se lancer dans des activites d'apprentissage et commencer a changer leur attitude vis-a-vis de l'apprentissage. Ce systeme de m(obile)-learning a ete mis en place dans un reseau trans-europeen de 14 ecoles avec une participation active de la part de plus de 500 eleves et de 46 professeurs. Dans l'article on met un accent particulier sur trois contextes/scenarios de m-learning mis en route au sein d'un reseau transeuropeen d'ecoles. El mLearning dentro de una red paneuropea de escuelas Este articulo presenta un proyecto apoyado por la Comunidad Europea en el cual se investigo si el uso de tecnologias electronicas y moviles por parte de jovenes alumnos pudiera conducirles a lanzarse a actividades de aprendizaje y empezar a cambiar su actitud con respecto al aprendizaje. Este sistema de m-learning fue aplicado dentro de una red transeuropea que incluye 14 escuelas con mas de de 500 alumnos y 46 profesores participando en la aplicacion. El articulo hace hincapie en tres diferentes contextos/guiones de mLearning aplicados dentro de una de las redes transeuropeas de escuelas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At the crossroads of current innovation policies towards a European Research Area (ERA) and a European Higher Education Area (EHEA) lies an important province of higher learning and research: doctoral training and the further careers of PhD graduates. A considerable number of higher education systems across Europe shift their paradigms for doctoral training away from the traditional so-called Humboldtian model towards the so-called professional model. On this background, the paper discusses (1) the German pattern of a strong link of the PhD to the labor market outside academe that is based on a traditional academic-disciplinary mode of apprenticeship training, and (2) approaches that argue for a new mode of knowledge production replacing an academic-disciplinary model of research training by a hybrid model that crosses disciplinary and organizational borders. The paper argues that a diversity of organisational and structural forms as well as different validation criteria and procedures will probably determine the future face of research training. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents information about several study programs and conferences. A new four-year program on European Management and Organizations in Transition has been approved by the European Science Foundation beginning in 1993. It will be directed by professor Anna Grandori and professor Richard Whitley. A conference on Educational innovation in Economics and Business Administration will be held during December 9-11, 1993 in Maastricht, the Netherlands. The central theme of the conference will be "Innovation in Economics and Business Administration Education: The Case of Problem-Based Learning". The conference is designed to bring together faculty members, policy-makers, and educational researchers to address issues which will emerge whenever faculty decide to implement new educational approaches or to improve educational quality. In addition to paper presentations and workshops, a meeting will be held to organize a Network of Faculties of economics and business administration. The general aim of the network will be to provide mutual support to member institutions that wish to adapt their curriculum to highly innovative programs.

This essay introduces CYANOTYPES, a collaborative multi-year research project that set out to explore and address how people across the creative sector — arts, culture, and design in all their manifestations — might organise learning in the (immediate) future, and outlines a creative agency model to facilitate the development of curricula and custom learning journeys, contending that especially in the context of the growing role of intelligent systems in the creative process, a focus on creative agency makes sense to frame the analysis as well as the design of learning processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper it is presented the evolution of schooling and education process in Europe from Antiquity to modern times. Education is one of the most important elements of social life, and it has a great impact on it. The article presents the main sociological theories of education which are the functionalist theory (Emile Durkheim) and the social conflict theory (Max Weber). The following chapter presents the historical evolution of educational systems in Europe from Antiquity till the modern times emphasizing on the most important stages and reforms. In this article there are presented the strong links between the process of education and the other aspects of social life and the way they influence each other. The emergence of public schooling systems and its evolution is presented along with the main reforms and public policies. The steps taken for the massification of education and the reforms that led to the increased access to schooling is presented in a strong relation with the social classes that had existed in different historical periods. The foundation and the evolution of higher education institutions - namely the Universities, are presented along with their impact on the social life in Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper discusses the role of basic science in the modern knowledge society and its relations to the applied research, development and innovation. The main conceptual models in this respect are also considered, as well as the evolution in science policy orientations of EU and USA. Further, the perspectives of so-called "frontier research" and "converging technologies" and their role for the "radical innovations" are presented. The conclusion is made that high quality basic research has the potential for future applications with great societal impact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of RIE: Revista de Investigacion Educativa is the property of RIE: Revista de Investigacion Educativa and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Despite decades of research exposing its limitations, transmission-based pedagogy is notably resistant to change. This paper argues that reform efforts will continue to be limited without a concomitant historical, dialectical analysis of the origin of such pedagogy. The paper locates the origin of transmission-based pedagogy in the economic and social transitions of seventeenth century Europe. It concludes by suggesting that only a dialectical understanding of this emergence can sensitise the education community to the possibilities for genuine transformation immanent in the current educational landscape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While it is common to claim that university reforms are based on universal and standardised ideas about 'modernising' the university, few studies have examined in a more coherent way how the combined external pressure for change with respect to the areas of education, research and innovation has affected the university. In this paper it is argued that one can identify three different sets of logics concerning the current external reform agenda, and that these logics together create new challenges as to how knowledge is created, diffused and governed by the university. In the conclusion, it is discussed whether the current pressure for reform might change the university as we know it, or whether new institutional translations might emerge from the process renewing the university while maintaining its identity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the innovative regulations, methodologies, and institutions involved in the development of the European Higher Education Area and their implications for teaching, research, and management of University Programs for Older People. It also identifies the main tendencies, creative dimensions, and ethical commitments implicit in the objective of educating older people as European citizens. Finally, the paper proposes avenues of research to be pursued for the quality evaluation of university programs for older people in Spain and the European Union. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Globalisation, together with readier access to capability-enhancing technologies and to technological insights once restricted to a few leading economies, are resulting in greater competition within Europe, and more widely within the developed world, for influence of all kinds (not just influence over the choices that foreign students make about the Higher Education courses on offer to them from Europe, but also influence of a more overtly imperialist kind, extending to the policies, incomes and futures of others). This article looks at trends in one important market for European Higher Education, the Middle East (particularly the GCC countries), which has many providers from North America and Australia. As observed by the late Edward Said, the USA is particularly forceful in the Middle East. Its technological superiority is accompanied by fervour to introduce American methods and curricula, and strong belief in their merit, reminiscent of the belief of the old French empire that ‘France had a “mission civilisatrice”, to civilize the natives”. The danger, highlighted in a recent UNESCO report ‘New Ignorances, New Literacies’, is that the natives will not be listened to. Is Europe listening more or less than the USA, and is it being listened to? Despite attention-gaining initiatives such as the proposed European Institute of Technology, EIT, and the commitment of EU governments to the Lisbon goals on competitiveness, there are indications of a drop in the influence of European Higher Education institutions in the Middle East. This paper explores the kinds of issues that may be at work, and the implications for European Higher Education policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article traces the impact of mass breakthoughts witnessed in the field of education at school and college level in 1960s on education in 1970s in various countries. In Europe, it is largely the "upper secondary" level which is likely to be impacted. The impact in the U.S. is likely to be different from Europe due to various reasons. The paper primarily concerns the mass elites of Europe and Japan. It analyzes how the whole situation might appear to an economist, and how the perceptions of recent and prospective changes are related to perceptions of the nature of people and their variabilities in potentials for learning and productive life. 1960s was a decade of fantastic world-wide expansion in educational establishments, both public and private. Educators offer a viewpoint which is different from economists. For them, one of the more interesting implications of the economist's way of thinking must be with respect to the use of student time even among pupils too young to participate in the labour force. Pupil time is inherently limited, and hence costly.

The paper advances current knowledge on factors affecting higher education institutions in their quest for innovation in education. Based on an analysis of ten institutional cases from five European countries, a comprehensive description and classification of barriers and drivers of innovation are provided. Results indicate certain “disengagement” in relation of higher education institutions and education policy makers, business, and students as well as between higher education institutions’ managers and their subordinates. Based on the findings, major innovation-related challenges in the higher education are discussed and related practical recommendations are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the design, development, and analysis of a MOOC entitled "Approaches to Machine Translation: Rule-based, statistical and hybrid", and provides lessons learned and conclusions to be taken into account in the future. The course was developed within the Canvas platform, used by recognized European universities. It contains video-lectures, quizzes, and laboratory assignments. Evaluation was through on-line quizzes, programming assignments assessed by means of a specific code evaluation, and peer-to-peer strategies. This MOOC allowed people from various fields to be introduced to the theory and practice of Machine Translation. It also enabled us to internationally publicize various tools developed at the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Within the field of history of education, there is a growing interest in the movement of influential actors and texts that have crossed national borders. One of the main driving forces for influence, knowledge, and innovation is comparison, a tool used within the governing of education in diverse ways and with different intensities, over time, to shape education systems. This article looks beyond dichotomies such as the national versus the European or the global, in order to focus on those governing spaces and practices that lie in between bounded, predetermined, and preconceived entities and education organisations. Our locus of enquiry is education actors and their practices as they use comparison to make governing happen. The article examines the case of Swedish education (its policy actors, governing elites, and education practitioners) to examine this relation between comparison, governing, and the transnational. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Educação is the property of EDIPUCRS - Editora Universitaria da PUCRS and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The United States government sought to foster peaceful and stable democracies in Europe following the Second World War, especially in conquered enemy territories. This essay illuminates the tensions underlying that project by examining an important element of American foreign policy during the war era—the reconstruction of educational systems in war‐torn Axis and Allied nations. American educators during the war years, led by Stanford University School of Education Dean Grayson Kefauver, successfully convinced the US State Department that democratic educational systems in Europe were a prerequisite for postwar international security, an idea that led to the founding of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Conceiving of education as a cooperative enterprise, however, Kefauver and his colleagues encountered a significant dilemma while championing their proposals: how to advance educational reforms in foreign nations, particularly fallen totalitarian states, without violating the democratic principles they claimed to promote. It is the author’s contention that educational reconstruction was ultimately undermined by its proponents’ inability to identify and institutionalize an acceptable alternative to coercion, one that would serve the causes of both diplomacy and democratic education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Open and Distance Learning (ODL) is much more than a didactic or technological issue. On the basis of contemporary approaches to culture, it is both an agent and a barometer of culture: culture influences the appearances, models and contents of ODL, but is influenced itself as well by the ODL phenomenon. Illustration of the point is made through an analysis of the historic roots of ODL in comparison with Europe's contemporary transnational and technology based ODL. The analysis results in an agenda for important cultural issues, such as the institutional character of ODL, its contribution to Europe's competitiveness, the shaping of a European citizenship, and the nature of European ODL in terms of its cultural barriers and cultural assets. The ambiguity of culture typically emerges when looking at language. European transnational, and especially technology based ODL, may be hindered by the multilingual societies of Europe, and remain so as long as language policies are imposed. It is advocated that language policies be replaced with language management, applied in a creative way (eg, by implementing appropriate technical solutions). The final question examined here, is whether these problems and solutions are particular to Europe, or whether there are good reasons for acknowledging the cultural origins, barriers and assets of a wider ODL model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discusses the role of the European Commission in the deployment of telematics-based education and training systems throughout Europe. Development from the DELTA Explanatory Action to the maturity achieved by the sector education and training; Trends towards Europeanization of the design, production and delivery of learning materials and services.

Copyright of Educar is the property of Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, Servei de Publicacions and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Higher professional education in Europe has changed from teaching-only institutes to hybrids of teaching and research. The purpose of this study was to examine factors that influence the judgements of lecturers about new organisational goals and perceptions of their new research-related competencies. Lecturers’ judgements of new organisational goals and self-efficacy related to newly expected competencies were modelled in a bio-ecological model. Findings show that lecturers’ perceptions of self-efficacy can be influenced by an open organisational culture, while lecturers’ judgements of new organisational goals can be influenced by decision-making systems. The professional development of lecturers through formal education and participation in research influences both self-efficacy and judgements. Hence, direct executive managers have three steering mechanisms by which they can influence lecturers’ perceptions during the implementation of new organisational activities: a) Educational Policy, b) Management Policy and c) Developmental Policy. Implications are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This chapter considers the ways in which CLIL is understood to promote learning processes that are often not fully addressed by traditional approaches. It will then focus on two case studies from secondary education that illustrate how the use of drama techniques and situated writing match the objectives of CLIL, enhance content learning and open new possibilities for language learning in the classroom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Pixel-Bit, Revista de Medios y Educacion is the property of Pixel-Bit, Revista de Medios y Educacion and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This article discusses 1:1 learning initiatives in Europe in the context of a mapping framework of ICT-enabled innovation for learning. The aim of the framework, visualised as a spider's web, is two-fold: (i) to provide a further understanding of the nature of ICT-enabled innovation for learning; and (ii) to depict the impact of existing and emerging innovative initiatives using ICT in the Education and Training context. We present 1:1 learning initiatives in Europe as a case of ICT-enabled innovation for learning with significant scale, scope, and impact at system level and being implemented in real settings. We identified and analysed 29 1:1 learning initiatives from 19 European countries reaching a total of approximately 620,000 schools and 16,800,000 students. The application of the framework to the case of 1:1 learning in Europe (implemented in multi-faceted educational settings) showed the current state of development and the emerging trends regarding the nature, the reach, the target groups and the impact of 1:1 innovation in learning. Regarding the nature of innovation, 1:1 learning strategies in Europe can be considered as mostly incremental. There is a need to progressively move the focus away from the devices and infrastructure to the learners and to 1:1 pedagogies. The framework can contribute (i) to policy interventions -at micro, meso and macro level- aimed at diversity and systemic implementation and (ii) to strategic planning by a multiplicity of actors such as policy makers, researchers and practitioners, increasing the impact of ICT-enabled innovation in Education and Training. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Right wing movements are a reality in many European countries. In spring 2011, a European Intensive Programme took place in Nuremberg where students and teachers from eight different European universities came together to discuss and work on the role of Social Work in addressing new right wing movements. Innovative approaches, learning and discussing in an intercultural setting, networking as well as linking the programme to civic society organisations were the main areas of focus. The topic reinforces the main values of the Social Work profession, as it is a profession based on human rights, which has to be actively promoted and established in the everyday work. Human rights are key principles in addressing, preventing and minimizing discriminatory tendencies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since its creation in 1958, the European Social Fund (ESF) has played a major role in supporting the development of vocational training in the Member States. However, compared to other, more recently launched, EU programmes and initiatives in the area of education and training, the ESF has not made a significant contribution to the debate about European cooperation in this field. This article argues that the ESF has made a mistake in this respect. It also seeks to illustrate and analyse the important changes that the ESF has undergone over the years in addressing the issue of vocational education and training (VET) and to demonstrate that it has substantial resources, in terms of money and experience, that can be used to adapt education and training systems to labour market requirements and to the needs of a knowledge-based economy. The article places a deliberate, though not an exclusive, emphasis on vocational education and training for young people and on the extension of transnational cooperation within the framework of the ESF. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Difficulty in extracting scientific and research findings from EU universities and placing such knowledge at the commercial disposal of innovation-dependent firms and industries is a cause for grave concern in many European states and regions. We take stock of the evidence from the perspective of knowledge-seeking firms and knowledge-generating universities, an exercise that reveals striking asymmetries: firms presently seek mainly public science outputs of academics, while universities encourage their academics to pursue proprietary science opportunities more heavily in their dealings with business and industry, pursuit of which may provoke other academics to oppose greater commercialization of university research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One element of the recent reforms of higher education sectors across Europe is the formation of new governance structures in universities. Supervisory boards are part of these reform processes. However, despite the importance of these boards, surprisingly little is known about their actual work. This article discusses the situation of boards in three European countries: the Netherlands, Austria and the UK. It compares the boards' constitutions with respect to composition, independence, accountability and transparency. Several problems and dilemmas come to the fore. The article concludes by indicating potential areas for improvement in the current board structure and working practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Universities are long-established organisations, and although they have reinvented themselves several times, major reforms are needed again, underpinned by systematic prospective analyses. A novel method is needed to take into account the wide-ranging and complex factors, shaping the future of the higher education system. 'Futures' should be devised in a multi-level structure as the bulk of trends and driving forces are international in their nature and universities are embedded in broader socio-economic systems. This new approach is demonstrated here by devising 'cascading' futures for the European Union (EU), the European Research and Innovation Area (ERIA) and universities. Several advantages can be expected from this type of prospective analysis: (i) the potential changes of these broader settings, in which universities operate, as well as their impacts on higher education can be explored; (ii) the huge diversity of higher education systems and individual universities can be reflected; and (iii) the likely impacts of different policy options can also be explored. It is also proposed to select foresight programmes from the 'prospective toolkit', given their specific features and benefits compared to other prospective methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a discussion relating to public policy and management programs in Canada, Europe, Australia, and New Zealand, which are compared with similar programs in the U.S. It was inferred that the comparing programs raises important questions as to whether developments within countries and across countries have been successful in creating education and training offerings that are fit for purpose. According to the author, the study of public policy programs indicates that there are several challenges ahead in terms of making good decisions on the form and content of programs that would add value to governments and citizens. Furthermore, the complexity of policy environments has major implications for the design and delivery of education and training programs in policy analysis.

This article presents elements of a future vision of learning in the knowledge-based society which is enabled by ICT. It is not only based on extrapolations from trends and drivers that are shaping learning in Europe but also consists of a holistic attempt to envisage and anticipate future learning needs and requirements in the KBS. The ‘learning spaces’ vision puts learners at the centre of learning, but, at the same time, conceives learning as a social process. The potential of ICT-enabled learning spaces can only be realised, however, if it is embedded in a social and institutional context that is open to innovation and supported by a favourable policy environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article focuses on the many requests for change which the University of Belgrade, as a university in a transition country, has been facing from its foundation to the present day. Over the last decade, the University of Belgrade has had to overcome a range of difficulties in an attempt to follow European trends in reforming higher education at the institutional level. Today, it is obvious that the outcome of higher education reform will depend entirely on the academic community, which must play an active role and enter the "knowledge business", as a prerequisite for the success of future generations of university graduates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What is changing in academic research? What has changed over the past decades and what might change in the coming ones? Could the research mission of universities be carried out in slightly or radically different ways in the medium term? This article aims to cast light on the trends and driving forces that can be observed in academic research over the past two decades in the OECD area. It gives an outlook of the main current characteristics of academic research at a macro level in terms of funding and activities in comparison with research performed by other sectors. It also highlights future challenges and sketches a few possible futures scenarios in a 20-year time frame. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article is concerned with regional disparities, the innovation gap and the polarization effects of innovation. The article proposes elements of an inclusive model of innovation. This involves a systemic view of innovation, learning and interactivity. It includes the concepts of learning, trust and social capital in the context of a dilemma between innovation and polarization at the territorial level. It describes the basic structure of a ‘new’ diamond model of innovation relevant to European Union (EU) regional policy, especially for the Accession countries. The German Land of Nordrhein Westfalen is taken as the laboratory for this new model. Problems arising from previous top-down approaches adopted to manage regional policy through innovation policy are commented upon, and the manner the new more inclusive model works is demonstrated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

‘Progress is shaped by the ability to question, to criticize and to enquire. Ensuring progress is one of the responsibilities of Academia’. Could there be any future for non-conformist, heterodox, non-marketable knowledge, next to transforming truth value into the market truth value of knowledge, as was the tendency over the last decades? And what will be its impact upon criteria of excellence? The enjoyment of academic freedom requires the autonomy of the university. European countries have witnessed exciting developments in achieving a common space of convergence in higher education and research. But to encourage creativity there is definitely a need for more differentiation among universities, rather than uniformity. Autonomy is that degree of self-governance necessary for effective decision-making by universities in relation to their academic profile, work and standards. However, self-governance must be consistent with systems of public accountability. Universities must show that they are responding to the needs of society and they must perform according to standards of excellence and creativity in teaching and research. However, the balance, if there is any, has to be questioned. Should a shift of the role of the State be envisaged and should different types of governance be developed in order to counter the statement that academic freedom of higher education staff has decreased? Does a new relationship between government and university require the establishment of a modest set of ‘principles of good governance’ to reduce the overdetailed university regulations? And how to ensure that the search for creativity will also strengthen academic integrity? These questions are decisive for the future mission of the University. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]