CCL Home > Reports & Data > Post-secondary Education > PSE 2006
Report resources
Almost all major industrialized countries have aggressive national strategies for post-secondary education and training to advance their national interests, especially in terms of employability, productivity, innovation and economic growth. These countries recognize that action in this area is pivotal to their success in a knowledge-based economy—a finding confirmed in the World Economic Forum’s 2006 report, which ranks countries according to their economic competitiveness. The report states: “Countries that, like the Nordics, are investing heavily in education are likely to see rising levels of income per capita, growing success in reducing poverty and an increasing ability to establish a presence in the global economy.”
Many of Canada’s trading partners and international competitors have conducted national reviews to assess how their education and training systems are performing relative to those of other countries. Based on these studies, some have launched major PSE reforms.
Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the 30 members of the European Union (EU) have all established national goals and benchmarks for post-secondary education and training. Almost all of their PSE systems—and the post-secondary institutions within them—are increasingly focussing on accountability issues and the need to provide an evidence-based analysis of performance, quality, progress and outcomes.
Australia launched an extensive review of its post-secondary system at the turn of the 21st century. The review, “Higher Education at the Crossroads,” resulted in a massive reform called “Backing Australia’s Future,” which includes a 10-year vision, a realignment of federal funding to support the reform measures and an implementation schedule for the first four years of the reform. The country has also established the Australia Universities Quality Agency which conducts regular (five-year) cycles of quality auditing and public reporting for all public post-secondary institutions, including the relative standards and international standings of the Australian system. The Institutional Assessment Framework has been introduced to provide a standardized accountability mechanism of public higher education institutions regarding funding arrangements between the Commonwealth government and the institutions.
The EU 2002 “Bologna Declaration” is a binding agreement among EU members to develop and implement a common framework for higher education to eliminate obstacles to student mobility, and increase access to, and the quality of, post-secondary education. The member nations have agreed to reform and align the structures of their higher education systems to make them compatible while ensuring the fundamental principles of autonomy and diversity are respected. There is an Education and Culture Directorate-General (DG) for the European Union, whose mission includes building a Europe of Knowledge, developing the European cultural area and involving citizens in European integration. The Education and Culture DG implements a wide variety of programs, with particular emphasis on mobility and transnational cooperation projects. Among other things, the European dimension of higher education includes cooperation on quality assurance, curriculum, inter-institutional cooperation, mobility schemes and integrated programs of study, training and research.
In New Zealand, the current arrangements for PSE have resulted from dramatic social and economic reforms designed in the 1980s to modernize the country’s institutions and processes. In PSE, the system has strongly defined roles for the various partners, with the government setting a system-wide framework of goals, standards and accountability. There is a strong accreditation system in place and an accountability framework tied to funding. New Zealand Qualifications Authority establishes and maintains the New Zealand Register of Quality Assured Qualifications, administers trade, vocational and school sector assessments and evaluates overseas qualifications for immigration and employment purposes. The country’s Tertiary Education Advisory Commission, which provides advice on the future of the country’s tertiary education system, developed a Tertiary Education Strategy for 2002–2007 that outlines national goals and key changes for the system that are important to help the sector realize the national goals.
The United Kingdom has had a Higher Education Statistics Agency since 1993 and the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education since 1997, to define and report on academic standards and quality. However, to address emerging challenges, in 2003 the government published “The Future of Higher Education” as a blueprint for major reform of the system. Based on it, in July 2004, the Higher Education Act was passed to accommodate the reforms. The goal is to increase skills and productivity and help adults and young people reach their full potential, as well as to introduce a new tuition scheme to improve access to PSE. It also established numerous bodies to oversee these changes, including: the Office for Fair Access, the Research Forum, the Higher Education Academy, the Leadership Foundation for Higher Education, the Office of the Independent Adjudicator and the Adult Learning Inspectorate. The most recent initiative in higher education in the U.K. is the commissioning of the Leitch Review to identify the optimal skill mix for 2020 “to maximize economic growth, productivity and social justice.” Lord Leitch filed an interim report in December 2005 that signals that the U.K. must urgently address a range of issues if it is to have a world-class skills base by 2020.
In the United States, the federal Secretary of Education created the Commission on the Future of Higher Education with a mandate to develop a national strategy for PSE to address America’s education needs. Public hearings were held across the U.S. to stimulate a national dialogue on questions such as: “What skills do students need for the 21 century? How can we make sure America stays the world’s leader in academic research? How can we make sure opportunities for quality education and best jobs are open to all students?” The Commission released a report in September 2006 to further the national dialogue. The report calls for changes to increase access, affordability, quality, innovation and accountability in the system. It is very critical of the current state of higher education in the U.S. and offers an extensive list of recommendations covering many topics—from an overhaul of the need-based financial aid system for students to better preparation of students for college. It also emphasized the need to collect better national data across the system and advocated the use of the College Learning Assessment Tool to test student skills gained in higher education as a measure to increase accountability of colleges with regard to student performance.
Top