higher education for the knowledge economy - professor lap-chee tsui

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Higher Education for the Knowledge Economy

Prof Lap-Chee Tsui, Vice-Chancellor and President, HKUOECD – IMHE General Conference

17 September 2012

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Overview Brief description of HKU Highly qualified personnel for knowledge economy

Role of higher education Developed vs developing countries

Challenges for HE Globalization Mismatch of expectations

Trend of HE Internationalization Private supplementary tutoring

HKU as an international university in China Our educational aims Curriculum reform

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HKU

Founded in 1911The HK College of Medicine (established 1887)One of the oldest higher education institutions

in Asia

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A Brief Introduction 10 Faculties

Architecture Arts Business & Economics Dentistry, Education Engineering Law Medicine Science Social Sciences

15,000 undergraduates (from ~50 countries) 12,000 postgraduates (Research PG, Taught PG) HKU School of Professional and Continuing Education

(SPACE, including Community College)

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Highly qualified personnel for the knowledge economy

• Role of higher education• Developed vs developing countries

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Role of higher education Development of talents and leaders

High quality students Range of disciplines + breadth of curriculum Employability

Advancement of scholarship Research and discovery Academic excellence

Knowledge sharing Active engagement in knowledge

transfer/exchange + serving the community

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Pyramid of human talents Shape of the pyramid varies with needs of the

country

Top level decision makers

Middle management

High-skilled labor, office workers, …

post-secondary education

Universities

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Challenges for higher education worldwide

• Globalization• Mismatch of expectations

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Challenges of Globalization (1) Interconnectivity, intensity, simultaneity,

multi-dimensionality, accessibility and instantaneity, rapid generation of new knowledge

The world is getting smaller, but the scale and complexity of issues and problems are getting bigger

New forms of activity are learnt as they are being created

Confronted with more and more novel situations and ill-defined problems

Fewer moral certainties and more moral dilemmas From HKU Curriculum Reform chaired by PVC T&L

Amy Tsui

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Challenges of Globalization (2) The global environment

Massification of higher learning and need for innovation

Globalization and greater demands for programs with a strong international component and for graduates with intercultural skills

Financial crises University rankings …

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The rise of rankings THE / QS / Shanghai Jiaotong Different league tables have different

methodologies and performance indicators But, changing methodologies / criteria /

weighing / goalposts ‘Itemisation’ of parts of the ranking Impacts on institutions

Good – recruitment, funding, donation, … Bad – ill-informed decisions, vicious competition,

… Nonetheless, rankings boast huge ‘market’,

which is here to stay One size fits all? Modified from Michelle Li, HK SAR EDB

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One size fits all?Stefan Collini, The Guardian, UK wrote in The

threat to our universities:… Universities are said to serve two purposes

– and two purposes only. The first is to "equip" "young people" to get jobs in "the fast-

moving economy of tomorrow”,and the other is to

contribute to "growth", to develop the "cutting-edge products" needed in "today's competitive global marketplace" (and preferably to discover the odd miracle drug, too) …

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How do we define quality for universities? Quality = Large, comprehensive and elitist?

Small colleges → large comprehensive universities Vocational / technical / teaching universities → research

universities Three types of HEI according to pursuit and objectives

(Chen Yu-kun on undergraduate teaching evaluation in China, 2008)

(1) Top universities (to become world class universities)Quality = “pursuit of excellence”

“Pursuit” = to be ranked as top 100 in the world”

(2) Vocational & technical colleges and universitiesQuality = “client satisfaction” = high employment rates.

“Being trusted by employing sectors means high quality”

(3) Colleges & universities between (1) & (2) – majority“Quality means the extent to which their objectives are fulfilled”

Courtesy of Amy Tsui, HKU PVC T&L

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What is expected of higher education? Research, education and service to

community Different expectations from

Tax payers Governments Parents Students Employers

However, there is increasing emphasis on the importance of whole person education

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Ask the Employers … According to HKU’s employer survey on about

40 attributes that university graduates ought to have today

Work attitude 4.72 Emotional stability 4.64 Ability to grow and learn on one’s own 4.54 Analytical reasoning 4.43 Interpersonal skills 4.42 English Writing 4.35 Cantonese speaking 4.35 Presentation skills 4.30 English Reading 4.29 Planning skills 4.26 English Listening 4.26 Practical course-work 4.26 Lateral thinking 4.24 The informal curriculum 4.23 Guidance on whole person development 4.21 English Speaking 4.19 Application to real life problems 4.17 Group course-work 4.15 Depth of knowledge in <discipline> 4.10 Applied course-work 4.10 Discipline-specific knowledge 4.08 Chinese Reading 4.07 Technical and practical skills in <discipline> 4.07 Chinese Writing 4.06 Working experience / internship 4.05 Guidance on Career 4.05

Breadth of knowledge around the general area of <discipline> 4.02

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The goals of education

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Trend of higher education worldwide

• Internationalization• Impact of private supplementary tutoring

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Internationalization Internationalization of universities

Research collaboration Teaching and learning

International student body Enrich learning environment; cultural diversity adds to

understanding; tolerance of difference Students going abroad

Learning experience; global perspectives; cultural understanding

Curriculum Staff and student exchanges

Knowledge Exchange Cooperation with other universities to advance human

knowledge and higher learning Global socioeconomic development would be the ultimate

gain for human kind Sharing of knowledge, information, good practice, …

19Source: New trends in international student mobility . Hendrik van der Pol, Director, UISCourtesy of John Spinks, HKU Sr

Advisor to VC

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By percentage of population

HK

Kore

a

Mal

aysia

Canad

a

Mor

occo

Pola

nd

Germ

any

Fran

ceIta

ly

Turk

ey

Japa

n

China

Russia US

Indi

a0

1

2

3

4

5

6(0.6%)

Courtesy of John Spinks, HKU Sr Advisor to VC

21Source: New trends in international student mobility. Hendrik van der Pol, Director, UISCourtesy of John Spinks, HKU Sr

Advisor to VC

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Changes in student mobility

1998 2008

Proportion of mobile students going to the U.S.

32.0% 18.7%

Proportion of U.S. students coming to Asia

6% 11%


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International Student Mobility

ASEANCOUNTRIES

JapanChinaKorea

EAST ASIA

USA GermanyCanada FranceUKAustraliaNew Zealand

Adapted from: International Student Mobility and Asian Higher Education Framework for Global Network Miki SUGIMURA, Ph.D. Department of Education, Faculty of Humanities, Sophia University, Japan

The traditional educational destinations, USA, UK etc.

Malaysia

Subcontinent


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ASEANCOUNTRIES

JapanChinaKorea

EAST ASIA



The new Global Regionalism (Don Olcott), EU

Malaysia

Europe (Bologna)

Subcontinent


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ASEANCOUNTRIES

JapanChinaKorea

EAST ASIA



The new Global Regionalism (Don Olcott), Asia

Malaysia

Europe (Bologna)

Malaysians UK dropped from 18K (1997) to 11K (2006); Egypt were 5.5K (2006)

Subcontinent


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External Obstacles to Internationalization (of student bodies) - 2nd & 3rd most important

Source: Ross Hudson (2010). Internationalization of Higher Education the 3rd IAU Global Survey Report .

14%

12%

14%

15%

13%

10%

13%

14%

19%

17%

17%

16%

11%

15%Recognition of qualification / programme

Sample size N=745

Wld Language

barrierVisa restrictions on our

studentsAF

Recognition of qualification / programme


APLanguage

barrierRecognition of qualification /

programmeEU

Language barrier


LACLanguage

barrierVisa restrictions on our students

MERecognition of qualification /

programmeVisa restrictions on foreign

studentsNA

Internationalization not national priority

Courtesy of Amy Tsui, HKU PVC T&L

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Private supplementary tutoring

Courtesy of Mark Bray, HKU Education

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0c/KGE_billboard.jpg

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Shadow Education (Mark Bray, HKU Education)

Additional to the provision of mainstream schooling As the size and shape of the mainstream changes,

so does that of the shadow May be one-to-one, in small groups, large classes,

or huge lecture theatres; and now includes internet tutoring

Long been vigorous in East Asia and parts of South Asia

Lower numbers but also deep roots in Eastern Europe and Central Asia

Emerging in Africa and Arab States Also in Western Europe, North & South America,

Australia

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Scale of private tutoring Azerbaijan: 92% of senior secondary China: 29% lower secondary Egypt: 52% rural primary; 64% urban primary France: 25% lower secondary, 33% upper

secondary Hong Kong: 45% primary, 72% upper

secondary India: West Bengal, 57% primary; Kerala, 72%

secondary Japan: 16% Primary 1; 65% Secondary 3 Korea: 88% elementary, 72% middle, 60%

high Sri Lanka: 92% Grade 10; 98% Grade 12 UAE: 65% of Emirati students in Grade 12


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Costs France: US$2.8 billion India: US$6.4 billion Japan: US$12 billion Korea: US$17.3 billion; equivalent to 80%

of government expenditure on primary and secondary education

Greece: US$2.1 billion; equivalent to 20% of government expenditure on primary and secondary education

Egypt: 1.6% of GDP


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Implications

Good

Bad

Helps student learning and pass examinations

Provides incomes and employment for professional tutor

Contribution to knowledge economy

Distorts the teaching and learning processes

Create peer pressure and anxiety, both among students and among parents

Mainstream teachers reducing effort in classroom, especially when providing tutoring to their own pupils

Affects admissions policies Hard to tell high grades from

high achievements Narrowly examination driven

vs selection of well-rounded individuals

Exacerbates social stratification and inequalities

Modified from Mark Bray, HKU Education

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It is coming your way


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HKU as an international university in China

• Our Education aims• Curriculum reform

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Challenges to HE in Hong Kong Concerns of the community and employers with quality of

university graduates Increasing demand for graduates with generic capabilities

and global outlook Constraints imposed by government funding approach on

curriculum structure Less mature university entrants; need for guidance in

academic pursuit and personal development Pragmatic and utilitarian orientation of parents, students,

and the community as a whole Students more vocationally oriented and less academically

oriented Ethics and moral and civic values have assumed less

importance in the undergraduate curriculum Admission largely based on examination results and

students’ reliance on private tutoringFrom HKU Curriculum Reform chaired by PVC T&L Amy Tsui

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HKU rearticulated Educational AimsTo enable students to develop capabilities in: the pursuit of academic/professional

excellence, critical intellectual inquiry and life-long learning

tackling novel situations and ill-defined problems

enacting personal and professional ethics, self-reflection and greater understanding of others

intercultural understanding and global citizenship

communication and collaboration leadership and advocacy for the improvement

of the human conditionFrom HKU Curriculum Reform chaired by PVC T&L Amy Tsui

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Seven Distinctive Features of the New Curriculum

FlexibleCurriculu

mstructure

Development of

moral and civic

valuesEngagement with local and

global communities

Inter-disciplinary enquiry and collaboration

Multiple modes of

learning and assessment

Experiential learning

Inquiry in multiple contexts

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Common Core Curriculum Centre piece of our curriculum reform To help students to see interconnectedness

and the interdependent nature of human existence through exploring some common human experiences

Four Areas of Inquiry Scientific and Technological Literacy The Humanities China: Culture, State and Society Global Issues

(6 courses to be taken in Years 1 and 2, at least one from each area, making up 15% of the whole curriculum)

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Experiential Learning Learning in authentic work environment Novel situations Problems are not well-defined Need to consider many contextual factors and

the interconnection between them No perfect solution – live with dilemmas Synergy between theory and practice

Degree-related internships Research mentorships Personal mentorships Study tours Summer schools General education

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Service learning HKU students have been working in the Thai-

Burma border refugee camps each vacation for several years

“Social innovation” and “Global Citizenship” as graduation requirements

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Knowledge exchange in Myanmar Working with NGOs and donors to provide scholarships

for Burmese students each year Partnership with universities (library book donations,

visiting students to HKU, HKU students teaching in Yangon, places in M.S.W. & M.Ed. Programmes, Ph.D. places for faculty)

Partnership with education ministry (workshops on IT in education, teacher education)

Partnerships with donors for funding Working with other Consul-Generals and MoE’s, e.g.,

Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Mongolia …

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Concluding remarks Role of higher education for knowledge

economy Highly qualified personnel for different needs

Challenge of globalization Mismatch of expectations from stakeholders Internationalization a trend of HE Private supplementary tutoring something to

watch out HKU as an international university in China

Our educational aims Curriculum reform

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THANK YOU