CHANGING TRENDS IN HIGHER EDUCATION IN THE PACIFIC AND INTERNATIONAL CONTEXT

ED401

Group: VygotskyPritika Reddy; Shirleen Swapna; Mohammed Naseem; Emmenual Reddy; Kabir Mamun

ABSTRACT

This presentation examines the impact of the new digital age

bringing about reforms in the Higher Education sector across the

pacific along with international context. It will also highlight some

of the shortcomings brought about by these reformers in the

teaching and learning field at the tertiary level. Learners will

encompass the 21st century skills to become active learners.

INTRODUCTION

HE landscape is undergoing a dramatic change. This change is seen both internationally and in the Pacific region. The impacts of globalization has changed the facet of the organizational structure of Higher Education Institutions (HEI) including their social, economic, cultural & governance practices and relationships in the delivery of their services. The advent of Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) has accelerated such transformation in revolutionizing through creating new pedagogical practices in teaching and learning at such level.

Current trends in Higher Education

Experiential learning which is student centered where they become masters of their own learnings

Tertiary Student Loan Scheme provided by Fiji Government

PDLP Goes online for Samoa

Current trends in Higher Education

(a) Model for curriculum development in Higher Education is faculty driven to meet programme goals and education objectives in demonstrating its commitment to excellence, innovation and sustainability (see Wolf, 2007)

(b) Shift in knowledge building from a transformative discourse & intentional learning i.e. a traditional classroom method to a more creative one which is seen as a progressive and a problem solving tool to acquire knowledge (see Bardamalia, 1987, 1991, 1993; Barr et al, 1995; Miller n.d.; Venkatasubramanian, 2002 )

(c) Shift from content driven to education system determined by market forces in being equipped with the relevant skills required in the job market (Venkatasubramanian, 2002)

(d) Shift from direct government grants toward student loan schemes. E.g in the United States, Asia Pacific region & so forth

Current trends in Higher Education meeting quality standards

Current trends in Higher Education meeting quality standards

Strengths Weaknesses

-High Quality Service as provided by universities in Asia Pacific Countries, Europe, the Americas and Africa-Quality Tertiary Institution driven by Information Communication technologies (ICTs) provides inclusive education for all example in More Developed Higher Institutions-With the advent of ICTs much learning is taking place outside the traditional classrooms-Cost effective courses offered long distance as facilitated by ICTs across the globe-Satisfying rigorous accreditation scrutiny-Programmes of acceptable standards which is bound to increase the student numbers

-Increasing costs of tuition fees-Stress on infrastructure in catering for increasing number of students enrolled-Failure of a university to have their accreditation renewed can jeopardize their reputation in society example University of Phoenix in 2013 had failed to meet certain requirements as revealed by the Accrediting body-Challenges in terms of resource constraints, accessibility, low enrolment and geographical setting are experienced in remote campuses as experienced in Developing countries

Current Trends in Higher Education; Internationalization and Diversification

Universities are forging alliances through cooperation and agreement. This can be seen through

-Internship opportunities

-Research fellowships-example the Nanjing Centre for Chinese & American Studies provides education through joint- venture research opportunities between Nanjing University in China and John Hopkins College in the US

-Inter-university collaboration such as UNITWIN/UNESCO chairs in various universities including USP

-Conferences example Asia Pacific World Congress (APWC 14) and organized by USP, UoF, iLab, IEEE, Academy Publisher where participants are invited from all over the Pacific to present papers. Kabir was a member of the programme committee of this conference and presented a paper in November, 2014 at Plantation Island, Fiji.

Current trends in Higher Education; Internationalization and Diversification

Strengths Weaknesses

-Higher returns from the intake of international students as they pay more fees when compared to local students example at USP in Fiji-Increase in diversity with cross border education-Competition for university costs example amongst UK’s prestigious universities

-Lack of tolerance example racist attacks example is an increase in attacks on Indian students in 2009 by white Australian students-Rivalries amongst universities example in Italy; University of Pisa and University of Pavia-Unstable political climate as in the case of Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea-Security and Safety concerns-Language barrier

The Table above shows the place of destination where students from developing countries prefer to pursue their tertiary education. Many of these students have preferred to go mainly to US, Europe and Japan.

ICT AND DISTANCE EDUCATIONAn academic revolution has taken place in higher education in the past half century marked by transformations unprecedented in scope and diversity. A massive transformation in terms of ICT has totally challenged the higher education institutes regarding the quality and method of delivery of the courses. Due to the innovative technologies the following trends is now seen at higher education institutes: Distance education has emerged as an extremely important option for higher education

expansion and delivery. It is supporting to meet the needs of growing and changing student populations.

The emergence of distance learning has also given rise to e-learning ,m-learning and blended learning.

Students at higher education institutes are now utilizing online blogs , forums and even social networking sites to form discussions to course related contents.

Traditional method of learning that is teachers centered approach at higher education institutes have faded away due to the technological advancements. Learning at Universities are more student-centered and peer coached.

Online assessments like quizzes, online discussion forums , satellite tutorials and online submission of assessments methods are the trends now.

APPLICATION TO UU100

UU100 , once used to be offered fully face to face. Being integrated to technology the course is now offered in blended mode,

meaning 75% of the course is online and the rest is face to face. Students are now engaged more towards doing the quizzes for the topics

online, there is also online discussion forums for each topics and assignment. Submission of activities and assignments is online. Students are provided online assistance by facilitating through online chats,

online discussion forums and emails. Distance offering is facilitated through satellite tutorials, online chats , emails

and discussion forums. Technology has also enabled the facilitators to make course videos for each

topic which the students can view and access once the topics are released. Students are provided with instruction for the topic and their expectations at the end of the week.

Current trends in HE at CFS USP

Creative arts through games, making bands and music to learn concepts in a Sociology tutorial

Social media interaction

E.portfolio is a feature of moodle used in a ED401 & 402

Impact of Online Presence in USP Course

In order to provide students with teaching materials which is easily accessible to them, all USP courses have teaching material present online.

With the help of easily available internet, students are able to find related materials which they use to understand a particular theory or content easily

Students are also able to access teaching material (notes, lab manuals) on mobile device (smart phones) which enable them to refer whenever required.

However, online presence of all teaching material leads to low turnout in lectures sometimes.

Online presence of information related to the subject being taught enables the student to be prepared what to expect and how to tackle the subject matter.

Online submissions (via Moodle) enable us to handle easily a big number of students assignment and lab submission. It enable us to easily mark the labs and enter their marks online which they can instantly see.

Implication of Integration of technology in Engineering course

In order to make engineering students ready for work life, different courses have introduced ‘Modern Tools’ (i.e. ANSYS-CFX, LabVIEW, SolidWorks, MatLab.

These software are very important tool for the students.

How to use the software is taught to the students and later they use it in their projects.

Project work foster dynamic teamwork and provides the platform to show their creativity and ingenuity with mastery of the software.

Conclusion

HE institutes needs to address and incorporate the changes occurring in the

educational landscape into the curriculum to meet the needs of 21st century.

Finally to conclude Higher Education is an important component valued by people in

society. The overarching impact of globalization has revolutionized the Tertiary

Education Institutions. This has been made possible through the introduction of ICT. We

have seen and witnessed these notable developments at USP. It is acknowledged that

there are shortcomings associated with these reforms and as a consequence future

education designers need to be equipped in addressing and adapting to these changes.

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