The dynamics of service of higher education: a comparative study

Abukari, Abdulai

doi:10.1080/03057920902831390

Cited by 13 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…And, as Scott (2006) argues, this triad is commonly reflected in the mission statements of most universities. However, Abukari (2010) maintains that while these statements generally provide a clear definition of what constitutes research and teaching, the service definition is not as clear and consistent. Perhaps this is related to the point that Neumann and LaPointe Terosky make about service being 'broad ranging, eclectic, and contingent on institutional "type" ' (2007, 283).…”

Section: Academic Workmentioning

confidence: 99%

A transnational comparison of lecturer self-efficacy

Hemmings

Kay

Sharp

et al. 2012

Journal of Further and Higher Education

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Benchmarking within higher education is now relatively commonplace, as institutions increasingly compete directly with one another to improve the overall 'quality' of what they do and attempt to establish and better their position among peers as measured against sector standards. The benchmarking of confidence among academic staff in relation to the skills associated with teaching, research and service tasks, at least as far as these three core functions are traditionally conceived and understood, is, however, an underdeveloped and somewhat sensitive field. In this article, findings from just such a self-efficacy benchmark study involving colleagues in the Education and Arts disciplines of one large Australian university and one relatively small English university college are presented for the first time. Responses were obtained from 132 participating lecturers across these institutions using a recently introduced 70-item self-efficacy questionnaire founded in social cognitive theory. Despite their obvious differences in size and cultural context, outcomes both within and between institutions/disciplines were remarkably similar in their apparent 'strengths' and 'weaknesses', particularly so in Education, with reported greater self-efficacy for teaching than for research and service tasks, which together lagged some distance behind. Within the various subscales and individual items of the questionnaire, particular challenges were observed in many of the more fundamental skills attached to research. As institutions which recognise the varied contributions their academic staff make towards achieving their missions, albeit with an eye on 'performance', the diagnostic value of the self-efficacy questionnaire as a transnational benchmarking tool is considered and outcomes are discussed in terms of their individual and departmental implications, particularly with regard to informing strategic decisionmaking in resource allocation and continuing professional development.

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Section: Academic Workmentioning

confidence: 99%

A transnational comparison of lecturer self-efficacy

Hemmings

Kay

Sharp

et al. 2012

Journal of Further and Higher Education

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“…To begin with, the mission of MUK is "To provide innovative teaching, learning, research and services responsive to national and global needs" (MUK, 2008, p.12). Thus, in terms of inclusion and clarity of definition, the mission statement does not spell out the term 'engagement'; instead, it uses the conceptually deficient, unstable and incoherent term 'service' (Abukari, 2010). By using such an ambiguous term, 'service', in its mission statement, MUK fails to affirm its commitment to CE.…”

Section: Missionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Institutional Commitment to Community Engagement: A Case Study of Makerere University

Mugabi

2015

IJHE

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Although the earliest medieval universities began as teaching-only institutions, the university as an institution has since experienced revolutions in the way its functions are conceived. Currently, the university embraces three functions: teaching, research and community engagement. Although the teaching and research functions of the university are much more established than its third function, the importance of community engagement is acknowledged in the academic literature and, to varying degrees, by governments, higher education agencies and universities. For example, a review of the mission statements of Ugandan universities shows that, besides teaching and research, the universities aspire to contribute to the socio-economic transformation of society. Unfortunately, such assertions reveal little about the actual commitment of the universities to community engagement because there is a dearth of literature about community engagement at African universities. Accordingly, the purpose of this paper is to examine the institutional commitment of Ugandan universities to community engagement. However, the discussion will focus on a single university, Makerere University. Data was generated through document reviews and qualitative semi-structured interviews. The review shows that the university (1) recognises community engagement as one of its core functions; (2) has integrated some aspects of community engagement into its curriculum and policies; and (3) has organisational structures and personnel to organise and provide community related activities and services. Nonetheless, community related activities remain largely unsupported and the contributions of the faculty to community engagement are insufficiently rewarded.

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“…One attempt was the University for Development Studies in northern Ghana, created in an arid and impoverished region of the country, with multiple campuses serving areas that had previously had no presence of higher education. The university has focused its taught courses in applied areas of science, health, and agriculture, and all students undertake placements in rural villages carrying out development projects at the end of each academic year (Abukari 2010). A new wave of public universities created in Brazil also adhere to this model, such as the Federal University of the Southern Frontier, again with multiple campuses outside metropolitan areas and engaging in extensive outreach work, in particular with communities of landless peasants.…”

Section: Developmental Impact In the Context Of Commodification And Umentioning

confidence: 99%

Universities and the post-2015 development agenda: an analytical framework

McCowan

2016

High Educ

104

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Higher education is increasingly acknowledged by national governments and international agencies as a key driver of development, and systems are expanding rapidly in response to rising demand. Moreover, universities have been attributed a central role in the post-2015 development agenda and the achievement of the sustainable development goals. Yet questions of institutional models and their differential impact on society have not received sufficient attention. This paper presents an analysis of the 'anatomy' of the university in order to identify the salient changes in the institution across time and location in relation to knowledge and relationships with society. A framework is proposed structured around three key dimensions: first, 'value'-the extent to which knowledge is treated as intrinsically or instrumentally worthwhile; second, 'function'-the role of the university in terms of storage, transmission, production or application of knowledge; third, 'interaction'-the flow of ideas and actors between the university and society. This analytical framework is then utilised to assess two dominant tendencies in global higher education: commodification and unbundling. Finally, implications are drawn out for universities' potential impact on development in lowand middle-income countries in the context of these contemporary trends.

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The dynamics of service of higher education: a comparative study

Cited by 13 publications

References 6 publications

A transnational comparison of lecturer self-efficacy

A transnational comparison of lecturer self-efficacy

Institutional Commitment to Community Engagement: A Case Study of Makerere University

Universities and the post-2015 development agenda: an analytical framework

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