Reimagining Indian Higher Education: A Social Ecology of Higher Higher-Education Institutions

Autor/inn/en	Tierney, William G.; Sabharwal, Nidhi S.
Titel	Reimagining Indian Higher Education: A Social Ecology of Higher Higher-Education Institutions
Quelle	In: Teachers College Record, 120 (2018) 5Infoseite zur Zeitschrift PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	0161-4681
Schlagwörter	Foreign Countries; Developing Nations; Higher Education; Postsecondary Education; Ecology; Educational Practices; Role of Education; Definitions; Educational Quality; Taxonomy; Responsibility; Data Analysis; India + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Ausland; Developing country; Developing countries; Entwicklungsland; Hochschulbildung; Hochschulsystem; Hochschulwesen; Post-secondary education; Tertiäre Bildung; Ökologie; Bildungspraxis; Bildungsauftrag; Begriffsbestimmung; Quality of education; Bildungsqualität; Taxonomie; Verantwortungsübernahme; Zuständigkeit; Auswertung; Indien
Abstract	Background/Context: Developing countries desire institutions ranked as "world-class," and want to increase postsecondary participation. Limited public monies require decisions that usually augment the welfare of one objective at the expense of another. An additional conundrum concerns the need for quality assurances. Research needs to be rigorous; students need to be well trained. The authors suggest that the social ecology of higher education has a crucial role to play in India. The challenges are whether to accommodate rapid expansion, how to improve the overall quality of the system, and invest in a research infrastructure. Purpose/Objective/Research Questions/Focus of Study: The article's purpose is to ask if the social ecology of postsecondary education that has been created in India is in its best interests. Social ecology refers to the universe of postsecondary organizations that account for the 35,357 institutions in India. Insofar as the ecology is "social," the citizens and government determine the shape of the ecology. The authors first offer a traditional definition of what has been meant by the public good and then turn to a consideration of India's social ecology of higher education. The article's purpose then, is specific to India and more generalized to postsecondary education in a globalized world. The text situates the institutions and systems of higher education into a social ecology that until recently has been framed by the idea of a public good. Setting: The study took place in India during 2015-2016. Research Design: The text is an analytic essay that utilized secondary texts pertaining to the structure and quality of the postsecondary system in India. Conclusions/Recommendations: The authors suggest that the '"alphabet soup" of institutional forms that currently exists in India does not serve the country well; the taxonomy tends to obscure, rather than clarify, roles and responsibilities. They argue that a new social ecology of higher education needs to be put forward that streamlines relationships, clarifies roles and regulations, improves data analysis, and focuses on quality rather than quantity. (As Provided).
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Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2020/1/01