 |
 |
Hi Aga (and those interested) Thank you for your comments. I find the following “readings” may be relevant to how we can improve “universities business performance”. You may want to read. Please see in attachments two TED Talks - Nick Marks from New Economics Foundation (NEF), on “The Happy Planet Index” (HPI) and Richard Wilkinson, “How economic inequality harms societies”. Nick Marks states the happiest place on our planet is Costa Rica, and Richard Wilkinson says if you want to live the “American dream”, go to Norway! I also found interesting, a recent publication by the NEF on “economic inequality” in the UK. Another perspective coming from the East through GIFT [Global Institute for Tomorrow www. Global-inst.com/ ]. Chandrin Nair (see his book on Consumptionomics), explains that “You don’t need to be a rocket scientist to know that 5 billion Asians in 2050 can’t live like Americans”, or, like people in the UK and Europe! He argues, “I want to help people move out of their denial and to create a new narrative. A narrative that essentially understands that 60 to 70 years after the colonial era - this part of the world, which contains 60% of the world’s population – is embarking on an economic growth model that is absolutely unsustainable because it is based on consumption growth”! Lawrence From: Practitioner-Researcher [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of aga yamin Sent: 14 November 2011 11:11 PM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: How can we improve universities' business performance? Dear Susan, Graham, Lawrence and All Susan Thank you for sending paper invitation. Lawrence Thanks for your account. As you mentioned: In order to improve what “we” are doing, we need to change our values and our ways of knowing (starting with preschool and on to schools and then to universities). Currently our values (the way we all think and act) are dominated by Neo Liberal Capitalism, and, our ways of knowing are dominated by Positivism – and both are very difficult to change. We value as Jack (1989) explains; I am taking such values to be the human goals which we use to give our lives their particular form. These values, which are embodied in our practice, are often referred to in terms such as freedom, justice, democracy, (Peters 1966) and love and productive work (Fromm 1960). We appreciate or disapprove Neo Liberal Capitalisms, It is just a market-driven economy and social policy that empowers private sector to determine economic priories of the country. It does not dominate our values but create tension ( “I”) between our values and financial practices. On the other hand, Epistemology focuses on validation and authentication of knowledge i.e. what is knowledge, how is knowledge acquired and how do we know what we know? It means we have freedom to choose either positivism or subjectivism as long as we satisfy epistemological requirements. However, we can still find out the ways of improving business performance of an educational organisation without sacrificing our values and research philosophies. Graham Thank you for your explanations. As you commented: So were are we? Trapped in an economic biased educational system where the core value is not education but immediate financial viability (not sustainability of the economy). Unfortunately we cannot ignore the significance of resources for our survival. We also cannot disregard the importance of education. In Sustainability, economy and ecology are intermingled. Immediate financial viability can provide a solid foundation to sustain long-term economy. Our output is millions of students who are capable of textbook knowledge and nothing else. In my point of view, It depends on an individual educator how he / she employs teaching and learning activities in the classroom and this is independent to an economic system or brand of an educational institute. As educators, we have freedom to generate textbook knowledge-based students or students with full capabilities of applying knowledge into practice and contribute in growing wealths. So where do I start? I focus on the individual and the need of the individual and teach in a manner that allows the text book knowledge to be transferred in a more economical way so that I can focus on the “higher order” skills. Why not use third years to mentor second years and those can mentor first years and you can teach the relationships between planning, monitoring and success through two sided debate rather than through one dimensional instruction I think this is an excellent idea to allow senior students to mentor junior students. I am sure both will receive benefits. Everything is measurable including behvaiour or even a conversation between two people. Furthermore, we are directly connected to the economy. Hence educational institutions performance has to be measured without compromising the quality of education. So what sort of model we need to introduce in educational institutions that facilitates the economic growth, social growth and environmental growth of the organization to provide job security and avoid funding-reduction activities. Regards Aga From: Susan Goff <[log in to unmask]> To: [log in to unmask] Sent: Sunday, 13 November 2011, 22:03 Subject: Re: How can we improve universities' business performance? Dear all Here is another development from Budd’s international network which looks like it has very strong resonations with this network. It asks questions that touch on some of Aga’s thoughts too. Cheers Susan Friends, The 5th International Living Knowledge Conference will take place in Bonn, Germanay, May 10-12, 2012. The Call for Papers requests any proposals to be in by November 30, 2012. http://www.livingknowledge.org/conference/call-for-papers/ This is a major international space for our work for both pioneers and newcomers. GACER will be meeting here to take stock and see what the next steps might be. Hope to see many of you there. Cheers, Budd Professor School of Public Administration Secretary Global Alliance on Community-Engaged Research University of Victoria PO Box 1700 STN CSC Victoria, BC V8W 2Y2 Canada Phone: +1 250 721 8062 Web sites: http://publicadmin.uvic.ca/aboutUs/FacultyPersonal/hall.php http://www.communityresearchcanada.ca<http://www.communityresearchcanada.ca/> - GACER On 14/11/11 6:18 AM, "aga yamin" <[log in to unmask]> wrote: Thank you Susan and All The community engagement strategy is an excellent idea that can flourish community-focused education and research activities, which in turn may bring enormous economic and social benefits. However, perhaps we need to establish the list of factors or some sort of key performance indicators against which we can assess the performance of universities. For example factors like: 1. Students’ Recruitment 2. Students Retention 3. Students Achievement 4. Research outcomes 5. Financial Health Should we consider such factors in assessing universities' performance? Are there more factors that needed to be considered? Do you think: measuring such factors will certainly enhance universities' performance? or there is an "X" Factor that needed to be identified. Regards Aga From: Susan Goff <[log in to unmask]> To: [log in to unmask] Sent: Sunday, 13 November 2011, 1:30 Subject: Re: How can we improve universities' business performance? Yes Connect with Budd Hall’s movement....See attached and below Media Release: Higher Education, Global Change and Democracy How should Universities respond to global pressures for social and economic change? GLOBAL COMMUNIQUE ON COMMUNITY / UNIVERSITY RESEARCH AND ENGAGEMENT A new communiqué setting out a range of measures to sustain university engagement with communities has been published following the most recent meeting of the ‘Big Tent’ group of community university engagement networks hosted recently at the University of Glasgow by PASCAL International Observatory. The communiqué urges universities around the world to respond to important global phenomena, associated with the emerging citizens’ movement, demands for post-secondary education, and for deep societal transformation in many areas of social and economic life to address issues of sustainability, poverty and social justice. Noting demands for an emerging knowledge democracy, the communiqué sees the university of 2030 including the currently ‘unreached’, promoting social responsibility in all its activities, developing inter-disciplinary networks to tackle deep-seated problems, and acting as centres of thinking and renewal, creating cultural and social capital and active citizenship. The communiqué urges universities to put in place structures and models to support this increased community engagement. These would include: • Developing large-scale collaborative structures for dialogue with community partners as the normal way of universities doing their business; • Community-based research units, science shops and similar arrangements to facilitate knowledge brokerage and action research engagement; • All students to have opportunities for experiential learning; • All staff to be trained in the principles of effective community engaged scholarship; and research funders to support projects with both scientific and social impact and projects with civil society partners. NOTES TO EDITORS This statement has been facilitated by the ‘Big Tent’ group of international networks and the in collaboration with: the Asia Pacific University Community Engagement Network <> , Centro Boliviano de Estudios Multidisciplinarios, The Association of Commonwealth Universities: Extension and Engagement Network, Research, Global, Living Knowledge Network, Participatory Research in Asia, PASCAL International Observatory <http://pascalobservatory.org<http://pascalobservatory.org/> <http://pascalobservatory.org/> > and the Talloires Network. For further information: New Delhi: Dr. Rajesh [log in to unmask], Glasgow: Professor Mike Osborne- Mike [log in to unmask] Victoria, BC Canada: Professor Budd Hall- [log in to unmask] Budd Hall Secretary Global Alliance on Community-Engaged Research University of Victoria PO Box 1700 STN CSC Victoria, BC V8W 2Y2 Canada Phone: +1 250 721 8062 Web sites: http://publicadmin.uvic.ca/aboutUs/FacultyPersonal/hall.php http://www.communityresearchcanada.ca<http://www.communityresearchcanada.ca/> <http://www.communityresearchcanada.ca/> - GACER On 13/11/11 6:34 AM, "aga yamin" <[log in to unmask]> wrote: Dear All We are suffering from financial crises and are uncertain about the economy. This provides us with a base to rethink sustainably by introducing a mechanism that enhances the business performance of a higher education organisation like university. How universities can improve their business performance? Any suggestions: Regards Aga ________________________________ "This e-mail is subject to our Disclaimer, to view click http://www.dut.ac.za/pages/22414"