Implications for North – South Dialogue Globalisation and Higher Education
, UNESCO Mandate for HE in UN Universal Membership
, “That the wide diffusion of culture, and the education of humanity for justice and liberty and peace are indispensable to the dignity of man and constitute a sacred duty which all nations must fulfil in a spirit of mutual assistance and concern.”
, “For these reasons, the States Parties to this Constitution, believing in full and equal opportunities for education for all, in the unrestricted pursuit of objective truth, and in the free exchange of ideas and knowledge, are agreed and determined to develop and increase the means of communication between their peoples and to employ these means for the purposes of mutual understanding and a truer and more perfect knowledge of each other’s lives.”
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Truth is universal HE is international
Truth is universal HE is international Ideas always mobile
TRADING TO LEARN, LEARNING TO TRADE WHERE IS THE PUBLIC GOOD? Globalisation and Higher Education
Trading Higher Education: the Irony Free trade makes all richer
Trading Higher Education: the Irony Free trade makes all richer but some countries: Oppose free trade in agriculture
Trading Higher Education: the Irony Free trade makes all richer but some countries: Oppose free trade in agriculture Support free trade in services
Trading Higher Education: the Irony Putting HE within GATS is opposed by the HE community in some countries that support it
Trading Higher Education: the Irony The heat of debate is inversely proportion to the amount of date available.
Higher Education as a Public Good
‘Everyone has the right to education. Education shall be free, at least in the elementary and fundamental stages. Elementary education shall be compulsory. Technical and professional education shall be made generally available and higher education shall be equally accessible to all on the basis of merit’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights Article 26 (1)
Higher Education as a Public Good ‘ Higher education should be considered a public service. While diversified sources of funding, private and public, are necessary; public support for higher education and research remains essential to ensure a balanced achievement of its educational and social missions.’ World Conference on Higher Education 1998
…countries with a regime of tuition fees accompanied by bursary schemes enrol more students in higher education – and from a broader socio-economic base – than those where higher education is free. Degree completion is also higher.
, ‘PUBLIC’ and ‘STATE’ are not synonyms
DO NOT FEAR THE NEW: - distance learning - transborder education
DO NOT FEAR THE NEW: - distance learning - transborder education ‘through such developments web-based learning materials could become a free commodity available worldwide, giving a new meaning to the term ‘free trade’.’
, UNESCO Supporting the open source courseware movement
GLOBAL PUBLIC GOODS
- Mechanisms: accreditation/QA - Frameworks: open source courseware
Develop the REGIONAL CONVENTIONS
Develop the REGIONAL CONVENTIONS Strength: International instruments
Develop the REGIONAL CONVENTIONS Strength: International instruments Weakness: Currently too general
OPEN SOURCE COURSEWARE Is a framework necessary?
, UNESCO 1998 World Conference on Higher Education “owing to the scope and pace of change higher education must proceed to the most radical change and renewal that it has ever been required to undertake.”
Education for All
TRADING TO LEARN, LEARNING TO TRADE WHERE IS THE PUBLIC GOOD? Globalisation and Higher Education