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Earlier this month, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development published a sweeping report that investigated the state of PSE in 24 countries worldwide. The first comprehensive international overview of its kind ever undertaken, the Thematic Review of Tertiary Education (or PSE as it is known in North America) was released in Portugal at a conference attended by more than 200 educators, researchers, policy makers, and economists.
The 750-page report—referred to as a “PSE bible” by those on hand—contains a tremendous wealth of knowledge about the many initiatives being undertaken by countries around the world, from Russia and Australia to China and the U.K., to address issues related to their universities, colleges and apprenticeship programs. Although Canada did not take part in the OECD review, because of my interest in PSE I volunteered to be a member of an international team that reviewed Croatia’s higher education landscape. The process proved to be an enlightening one.
The final report is broad in its scope, but it can be boiled down to three main parts: global trends in PSE, challenges facing PSE and PSE policy recommendations.
The final OECD report shows that people worldwide are recognizing the value of a post-secondary education: between 1991 and 2004 global enrolment in PSE nearly doubled, jumping from 68 million to 132 million. This increase has been driven, in part, by the greater participation by women, mature students and those from diverse socio-economic backgrounds—all of which has resulted in increasingly heterogeneous student bodies.
But the changes have not been limited to learners. The institutions themselves have also undergone significant transformations; new types of institutions are emerging, existing institutions are expanding their offerings, the number of private providers is growing, and new and innovative modes of delivery (including e-learning) are being rolled out as part of a concerted effort to react to the changing needs of the 21st century student.
The OECD also found that as countries devote more public money toward tertiary education, there has been a subsequent increased focus on accountability and performance to ensure that these funds are being well spent. As a result, a growing number of countries are developing formal quality assurance systems for PSE.
In addition to identifying trends, the OECD also found that whatever their size or political persuasion, the countries studied for the report faced similar challenges.
Among these are the need for long-term, sustainable funding and improved access for all members of society. The report also underlined the importance of setting clear expectations for PSE institutions, and the need the find a way to align their goals with their nation’s wider economic and social ambitions.
Chief among these global challenges was the need for coherent PSE systems; one that would allow for quality assurance and the development of national expectations.
The report concludes with a series of policy directions, based on the work being done in the studied countries, which offer timely guidance for us all.
First and foremost among these is the need for countries to develop a strategic vision for tertiary education. The OECD suggests that in order to be effective this vision should be the result of a comprehensive advisory process. Consultation was seen as key to any national strategy since it would help build consensus, ensure that the correct goals are chosen, and ensure agreement across all levels of government.
The report also points to the need for reliable information, or data, and the means to collect it, as critical requirements for good policy making. Despite the report’s cogent recommendations, the authors are careful to stop short of proposing a single solution for everyone. As the OECD’s Director General of Education said in her closing address “There is no one-size-fits-all approach here. Countries need to devise their own approach, in light of their own goals and with due consideration for their circumstances.”
The OECD should be congratulated for initiating and conducting what I, and many others, believe is a landmark report in the field of post-secondary education. In its scope and intent, it stands as a valuable roadmap for anyone concerned with the future shape of higher education—and one that countries would be wise to follow.
In addition, it’s been reassuring to see CCL’s work in the PSE field validated on the international stage.The report’s recommendations mirror our recent call for better and more reliable data on post-secondary education, which is key to making the kind of informed decisions needed to steer the sector as a whole. And above all it echoes CCL’s recommendation for a country-wide strategy that would help set common goals and objectives for our universities, colleges and apprenticeships.
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