Vocationalism In Mass Higher Education

This book addresses the complex issue of the growing need for vocational content to increase the employability of the graduates in the context of mass higher education. Today, in a rapidly changing and globalising economy, accompanied by a fast rise in new information technologies, there are increasing pressures on higher education systems all over the world to rethink knowledge production and learning. The last ten years or so have seen many efforts to reorganise universities and to realign the missions of mass expansion and ‘new’ vocationalism to meet the demands of the so-called globalised knowledge society. In some cases, major organisational and epistemological shifts in the forms of knowledge production and learning have occurred which have enormous implications for defining the role and mission of the university in modern day society and more important, new challenges for forging knowledge producing partnerships between the academy and industry in a climate of increasing marketisation of higher education. This comprehensive study documents the policy shifts towards more vocational content in mass higher education and the associated implications and challenges of new forms of knowledge production, and new forms of knowledge-producing partnerships between higher education and the labour market. It examines both the academic sector and the labour sector and presents innovative approaches and illustrative examples for those institutional and national decision-makers considering introducing or widening the vocational orientation of their study programmes.​

This book discusses mass higher education development in East Asian countries by means of three main issues: the strategy for higher education development; the way professors and students in the region are experiencing the rapid developments; and the challenges imposed by mass higher education. These challenges include the quality of education as well as structural changes in the rapidly developing systems, funding sources for supporting mass higher education, and job markets for college graduates. Part I discusses how the East Asian countries have accomplished or are in the process of accomplishing the rapid development of higher education. Japan, Korea, China, Taiwan, Malaysia, Singapore, and Hong Kong serve as case studies of mass higher education in the region. The case studies introduce and discuss national strategies to develop higher education, funding sources and mechanisms, and initiatives to assure quality of education in a period of rapid growth. Part II and Part III of the book focus on the phenomena of mass higher education in the region and the influence on academia. Mass higher education changes professors and students, who are different from those in elite higher education. Part III further discusses the challenges posed to Asian mass higher education. The Comparative and International Education Society Higher Education (HESIG) has awarded Mass Higher Education Development in East Asia the Higher Education SIG Best Book Award 2015.

This book is the first systematic attempt to analyse the growth of mass higher education in a specifically British context, while seeking to develop more theoretical perspectives on this transformation of elite university systems into open post-secondary education systems. It is divided into three main sections. The first examines the evolution of British higher education and the development of universities and other institutions. The second explores the political, social and economic context within which mass systems are developing. What are the links between post-industrial society, a post-Fordist economy and the mass university? The third section discusses the links between massification and wider currents in intellectual and scientific culture.

This book examines how major Asian cities have enhanced their global competitiveness by transforming their higher education systems to equip their graduates with global competence. It primarily focuses on policy implications and urban governance, especially comparing how governments are responding to the growing challenges of international connectivity and are managing the diversity of populations resulting from an increasingly globalized world.

Published annually since 1985, the Handbook series provides a compendium of thorough and integrative literature reviews on a diverse array of topics of interest to the higher education scholarly and policy communities. Each chapter provides a comprehensive review of research findings on a selected topic, critiques the research literature in terms of its conceptual and methodological rigor, and sets forth an agenda for future research intended to advance knowledge on the chosen topic. The Handbook focuses on twelve general areas that encompass the salient dimensions of scholarly and policy inquiries undertaken in the international higher education community. Each annual volume contains manuscripts on such diverse topics as research on college students and faculty, governance and planning, advances in research methodology, economics and finance, and curriculum and instruction. The series is fortunate to have attracted annual contributions from distinguished scholars throughout the world. It encompasses: Comprehensive reviews of contemporary and emerging issues in postsecondary education - Hundreds of citations in a wide range of scholarly journals, including all leading journals of higher education and many other social science and professional journals - An indispensable resource for administrators, researchers and policymakers - Published annually since 1985.

Many students across the globe seek further education for future employment opportunities. Vocational schools offer direct training to develop the skills needed for employment. New emphasis has been placed on reskilling the workforce as technology has infiltrated all aspects of business. Teachers must be prepared to teach these new skill requirements to allow students to directly enter the workforce with the necessary competences intact. As the labor market and industry are changing, it is essential to stay current with the best teaching practices within vocational education courses to provide the future workforce with the proper tools and knowledge. The Research Anthology on Vocational Education and Preparing Future Workers discusses the development, opportunities, and challenges of vocational education courses and how to best prepare students for future employment. It presents the best practices in curriculum development for vocational education courses and analyzes student outcomes. Covering topics such as industry-academia collaboration, student satisfaction, and competency-based education, this major reference work is an essential resource for academic administration, pre-service teachers, educators of vocational education, libraries, employers, government officials, researchers, and academicians.

A main staple of today’s world that has played a key role in the development of society is education and institutions of higher learning. An ongoing concern, however, has been the lack of access and resources to superior teaching in developing areas of the world. Student engagement and learning environments are just a few elements that play into the success of colleges in areas like the Coast Region of Kenya. Research must be done in understanding the correlation between the tools that these institutions are equipped with and the educational results of their students. Effects of Engagement and Resources on Learning Outcomes in Vocational Colleges: Emerging Research and Opportunities is an essential reference source that discusses the relationship between college resources and students’ learning outcomes as well as contributing factors in promoting quality education and training. Featuring research on topics such as research philosophies, teaching workloads, and student engagement, this book is ideally designed for teachers, deans, researchers, education professionals, administrators, policymakers, government officials, and academicians seeking coverage on the methods of acquiring and maintaining quality education in developing countries.

This book analyses the development of work based learning from a number of perspectives: critical, historical, philosophical, sociological and pedagogical. Its various contributors argue that work-based approaches contain much that is challenging to the university, and also much that could help to create new frameworks of learning and new roles for academics.