Institutional Autonomy and Diversity In Higher Education

8/3/2019 Institutional Autonomy and Diversity In Higher Education

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INSTITUTIONAL AUTONOMY and DIVERSITYin HIGHER EDUCATION

STN ERGDERPROFESSOR EMERITUS AT SABANCI UNIVERSITYIstanbul, Turkey

PRESIDENT, MAGNA CHARTA OBSERVATORYBologna, Italy

1st Global Convention of UNESCO Chairs on HigherEducation

Diversification and Differentiation ofHigher EducationDubrovnikCroatiaOctober 14, 2011


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A Magna Charta Perspective:Institutional Autonomy and Diversity

A Historical look at institutional autonomyand its significance for higher education.

Will trace contemporary developments.Thoughts on impact on our institutions and

institutional autonomy.

An analysis of challengesExperiences as Rector of Bogazici

University, Istanbul, Turkey.


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THE UNIVERSITY: ONE OF THE OLDESTINSTITUTIONS IN THE WORLD

Clark Kerr, The Uses of the University. Harvard UniversityPress, Boston, 1963. p.115.

Abouteighty-five institutions in the Western worldestablished by1520still existin recognizable forms,with similar functions and with unbroken histories,including the Catholic church, the Parliaments of theIsle of Man, of Iceland, and of Great Britain, several

Swiss Cantons, andseventy universities. Kings thatrule, feudal lords with vassals, and guilds withmonopolies are all gone. These seventy universities,however, are still in the same locations with some of thesame buildings, with professors and students doing muchthe same things, and with governance carried on in much

the same ways.


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CENTRAL IMPORTANCE OF ACADEMIC FREEDOM ANDINSTITUTONAL AUTONOMY FOR THE IDEA OF

UNIVERSITY

The main idea behind the Humboldtian concept of university is thatsociety needs institutions dedicated to the search for truth andunderstanding where scholars and students work togetherin thepursuit of knowledge. (W. V. Humboldt, On the Spirit and theOrganizational Framework of Intellectual Institutions in Berlin.

Minerva, 1970

Michael Oakeshott in his Idea of a Universityemphasizes thecommunitarian aspects of learning: What distinguishes a universityis a special manner of engaging in the pursuit of learning. It is a

corporate body of scholars, each devoted to a particular branch oflearning: What is characteristic is thepursuit of learning as a co-operative exercise.


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MAGNA CHARTA UNIVERSITATUM:Fundamental Principles (1 and 2)

1. The university is an autonomous institution at the heart ofsocieties differently organized because of geography andhistorical heritage; it produces, examines, appraises andhands down culture by research and teaching. To meet theneeds of the world around it, its research and teaching must

be morally and intellectually independent of all politicalauthority and economic power.

1. Teaching and research in universities must be inseparable iftheir tuition is not to lag behind changing needs, the demands

of society, and advances in scientific knowledge.


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MAGNA CHARTA UNIVERSITATUM:Fundamental Principles (3)

3. Freedom in research and training is the fundamentalprinciple of university life, and governments anduniversities, each as far as in them lies, must ensurerespect for this fundamental requirement. Rejecting

intolerance and always open to dialogue, the universityis an ideal meeting ground for teachers capable ofimparting their knowledge and well equipped to developit by research and innovation, and for students entitled,and able and willing to enrich their minds with that

knowledge.


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MAGNA CHARTA UNIVERSITATUM:Fundamental Principles (4)

4. A university is the trustee of the Europeanhumanist tradition; its constant care is toattain universal knowledge; to fulfill its

vocation it transcends geographic andpolitical frontiers, and affirms the vitalneed for different cultures to know and

influence each other.


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ACADEMIC FREEDOM AND INSTITUTONALAUTONOMY OFTEN CONFUSED

Academic freedom and university autonomy areconcepts that have evolved hand-in-hand overcenturies in a mutually reinforcing fashion.

But they are not identical: Academic freedom is a personal privilege accorded to

faculty members. University autonomy, on the other hand, is an

institutional privilege.

At times they may be in conflict


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EMERGENCE OF NATION STATE

The external authority also acted as an agent orchannel foraccountability. The various charters, bulls and edicts it issued alsoserved as a licensing, accreditation and quality assurancemechanism.

From the 19th century on, the external authority became the

nation-state. Scott estimates that of the 1,854 universities founded between

1200 and 1985, three quarters were established since 1900, and1,101 were founded between 1950 and 1985. Thus, the modernuniversity, especially the modern higher education system is acreation ofthe nation state. P. Scott (ed.) The Globalization of

Higher Education. Buckingham, UK: Open University Press, 1988. No wonder: Mostly European universities and academics feel

comfortable under the protective shelf of the state.


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Globalization

Decolonization first and globalization second has had a phenomenalimpact on the growth of the higher education sector.

According to International Journal of Scientometrics, infometricsand bibliometrics, total number of universities in the world is nowestimated to be17036. (www.webometrics.info/methodology.html ).

This figure may be debatable according to how one defines auniversity.

Yet, it is an indicator that we are faced with a completely newparadigm where the number of universities has dramatically goneup in the world.

With numbers you also get diversity and differentiation.
http://www.webometrics.info/methodology.htmlhttp://www.webometrics.info/methodology.html


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UNIVERSITY AUTONOMYAND THE CHANGING ROLE OF THE

STATE Before the mid 1980s

Regulatory state: Prescribes through input controls Trust based funding regimes (Sverker Srling,

Funding Diversity in Higher Education Policy(2007:20). In the global knowledge economy: Performance Based

Funding and the Rise of the Audit Society(Srlin) Evaluative state: evaluates outcomes and outputs

Emergence of national and supranational agencies ofquality and accreditation. Accountability becomes the third and complementary

concept to academic freedom and institutional autonomy.


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NEW ACTORS/AGENTS IN UNIVERSITYAUTONOMY AND ACCOUNTABILITY

International quality assurance networks such asENQA/EQAR, INQAAHE

National accreditation agencies playing and international

role (ABET) OECD-UNESCO guidelines

Bologna Process

GATS (General Agreement on Trade and Services)

Magna Charta Observatory (MCO) as a watchdog ofacademic freedom and institutional autonomy Gather information, express opinions and prepare documents relating to

the respect for, protection and promotion of, the fundamental universityvalues and rights laid out in the Magna Charta Universitatum


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TRADITIONAL UNIVERSITY AUTONOMY:Freedom from (State) Interference

Who will teach?

Who will be taught?

What will be taught?

Who will be awarded degrees? What will be researched?

Almost no emphasis on financial matters:

Freedom to (strategic planning, mission and vision)


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OECD IDENTIFIES EIGHT CRITERIAOECD, Education Policy Analysis 2003 .Chapter on CHANGING PATTERNS OF

GOVERNANCE IN HIGHER EDUCATION

Ownership of property: buildings and grounds

Ability to borrow and spend

Ability to make budgets and spend according to strategicgoals.

To be able to make your academic design and set coursestructure

Hiring and firing of academic and administrativepersonnel.

Determining salaries.

Deciding on student intake

Setting tuition for students


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RECENT EUA STUDY TO TAKE STOCKOF UNIVERSITY AUTONOMY IN EUROPE

Thomas Estermann and Terhi Nokkola, Unversity in Europe. An Exploratory

Study.

Organizational Autonomy Internal Academic

Structures

Governing Bodies Executive leadership

Financial Autonomy Funding Framework

Funding Capacity

Staffing Autonomy Recruitment of staff

Civil servant status

Academic Autonomy Institutional Strategy

Academic Profile

Degree Programmes Student admission


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MAJOR DEVELOPMENTS/CHALLENGES IMPACTINGTHE GLOBAL HIGHER EDUCATION AGENDA:

DIVERSITY?

Increasing demand and massification of higher education

Demographic shift population explosion versus aging

Non-traditional students

The rise of market forces

Impact of technology on our societies and universities being asked to leadin technology development

New providers, private institutions and increasing competition

Internationalization in response to globalization

Universities in the service of society

Decline in public spending and a corresponding need for income generation

Fund raising

Diffusion of lay governance : Burton Clark and his concept ofCreatingEntrepreneurial University

Rise of lay governance in some European countries.


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A Paradigmatic Change:The Growing Diversity of Universities

(Hans van Ginkel calls it Copernican Change)

Are universities anymore in the safe cocoon of the nationalsystems?

Increasingly, universities must rely on their own in a highlycompetitive world (beyond the nation state)

Especially for funding research and high quality teaching Setting of missions in a highly competitive and diversified environment

Whatis the responsibility of the State?

Bottom line is to regulate (1) supply, (2) access and (3) quality???

Dimensions of diversity in higher education: Teaching Research Both

Specialization Universities


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Changes in the Role and Place ofthe University:

The Diversification of Higher Education

Hans van Ginkels forecast:

1. The tasks of a University will concentrate heavily onguiding and combining flows of knowledge;

2. In contrast: higher education institutions will developtheir own (fundamental/basic) research to a lesserextent;

3. A new concept of education is emerging: content in theinitial formative stage will be more general and learningwill be continued throughout ones entire life.

4. The number and diversity of higher educationinstitutions will grow rapidly!


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What Universities Should Do:Initiatives to Improve Education

and Research

Develop specific missions both in research and

teaching. Can we be all encompassing? An important case study from Turkey: Sabanc

University An interdisciplinary academic design

Emphasis on applied research and university industryrelations

Internationalization both in research and teaching.


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CHALLENGES?

Preserving the integrity and the autonomy of the university. Research Ethical values Malpractice

Income generation and losing sight of basic values Intrusive quality processes

Reconciling managerial efficiency with collegialism. A distinct type of executive leadership: Burton Clarks

academic core.Burton R. Clark, Sustaining Change inUniversities. New York: Open University Press, 2004.


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Is Diversity a Threat to InstitutionalAutonomy and Academic Freedom?

Multiple sources of funding.

Strategic planning dictating top heavy executiveleadership as a mode of governance.

Running after money may hurt the essence offree inquiry.

End of collegialism?

Yet, I see it as an opportunity to enhanceautonomy.


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Importance of the Magna ChartaObservatory

Act as a repository of the idea

Monitor and keep values on the agenda ofhigher education

Network with other international organizations Publications

Participate in conferences

Be a part of reform efforts in different parts of theworld

Documents

Institutional Autonomy and Diversity In Higher Education