Political and Economic Factors
Merle Jacob & Tomas Hellström (2014) 'Opportunity from crisis: a common agenda for higher education and science, technology and innovation policy research' Studies in
Higher Education, 39:8, 1321-1331, DOI: 10.1080/03075079.2014.949531 (Accessed 17 November)
This article commences with the observation that there is a widespread perception of HE being 'in crisis': “A keen reader of the literature on universities would conclude that while the conventional wisdom is that change seldom occurs in universities, there are constant reports of universities being in a state of crisis... Universities are now frontline actors in the casualization of highly skilled labour (Gappa and Leslie1993; Raman 2000; Kimber 2003).”(p.1322)
The article refers to the impact of 'massification' on HE throughout the world (in other words, the expansion in provision), and the push for internalization and the professionalization of university administration which this has brought with it. Massification raised the question of 'quality', which is linked inextricably with 'standardization and accountability' (p. 1323). A concern with standardization has led to an increasing focus on accreditation, and the bodies which provide it. However, this standardization mean that the names of universities are becoming 'akin to a brand', and 'facilitates the deepening marketization of the university (p.1324).
"The turn to innovation and relevance in European Union member countries’ STI policies witnessed introduction of a new set of relevance and accountability criteria in the governance of research. Taken together, these two criteria unleashed the reign of metric indicators of quality. Relevance has gradually been interpreted as innovation-related knowledge which is measurable in patents and numbers of spin offs, while accounting for how one used research time is done in publications. The first expression of the latter was the UK’s introduction of the Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) now known by its more Orwellian incarnation, the Research Excellence Framework. The RAE introduced a nationwide system of peer-review-based evaluation of research quality.” (p.1324)
The article stresses that the 're-conceptualisation' of research has led to an increasing emphasis on the importance of journal publication for career academics. It also meant that a 'fictional narrative' developed in which the performance of different departments at a university could be compared. Universities were incentivized to separate 'teaching' and 'research' staff, dealing a blow, according to the writer to 'research-based education'.
It is claimed that there has been a retreat from the promise of higher education for all citizens in many countries. Universities have been redefined in the following ways: “(a) recasting students as customers, (b) re-visioning university education as a source of skills and increased employability, (c) treating universities as corporate actors and (d) framing cost sharing as a question of equity.” (p1325) The article wonders whether the idea of higher education creating 'good citizens' may be left behind by this drive.
Attention is also paid to the 'internationalisation of the governanace of universities' and the 'development of multinational' universities. (p.1326) The article stresses that internationalisation is now an important part of the marketing strategy of institutions which have embraced it. It notes that “Phenomena such as joint programming initiatives and the European Research Area Networks (ERANETs) are simply the latest in a development which has accelerated in the last decade.” (1327)
It is noted that university administration is now growing exponentially as a result of new management practices and policy initiatives. In the past, 'faculty' and 'admin' were very much separate spheres.
Finally, the article calls for a recognition that research and teaching must be seen as inter-connected. It poses the question: “Is the corporate organizational form and logic suitable for the modern university, or are there other directions for organizational and institutional innovation?” (1329) It points out that, although globalisation and the corresponding diversity of the student body is important in a select group of institutions, most universities still have locals as the majority of their student body. “However, unlike the first wave of massification where higher education and research were driven by the ideal of realizing and strengthening the nation state, universities today are all convinced that they need to measure up to a global standard.” (1330)
Relevance to my theme
The section about internationalisation is particularly important, as I need to consider that many of the EAP students will actually be hoping to enrol at English-speaking branches of universities in their own countries. This means that they will not necessarily be immersed in the culture of the English-speaking world as they pursue their studies. The drive for standardization in HE extends to EAP, and I may need to consider how my resource fits in with the existing frameworks, such as European language benchmarks.
Technical Factors
Gilbert, J. (2013) 'English for Academic Purposes' in Motteram, G. (ed.) Innovations in learning technologies for English language teaching, Longon, British Council, pp. 117-145 Available at: https://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/sites/teacheng/files/C607%20Information%20and%20Communication_WEB%20ONLY_FINAL.pdf (Accessed 17 November)
This chapter examines a number of technologies that have been, or have the potential to be, of particular use to EAP tutors and their students.
Concordancing and corpus analysis
It is suggested that students use online corpora to conduct mini-research projects on how language is used. “For teachers, concordancing can offer input for materials development and classroom teaching, and provide a source of lexico-grammatical information about naturally occurring language. For learners, concordancing can provide opportunities for inductive learning, a resource for error analysis and correction, and opportunities for ‘serendipity learning’ (Johns, 1988, cited
in Flowerdew, 1996).” (p123) It is suggested that corpora are used to create learning materials and frequency-based word lists. The chapter makes reference to DDL, (data driven learning), a term coined by Tim Johns.
Web-based research the internet as information source in EAP courses
It is acknowledged that computer research is now commonplace in EAP. However, a question is raised as to the assumption that such students are digitally literate: “In an earlier paper, based on a survey of computer use at HEIs in the UK, Jarvis (2004: 126) raises this concern:...[UK university] providers are focused exclusively on computers for language work ... it is surprising to note the confidence that providers have in the perceived understanding that EFL students are competent in the use of computers in their academic studies... Providers of EAP might ask the following questions...Do students really know how to access and evaluate relevant WWW sites? And how to paraphrase, quote and appropriately reference material from the WWW?” (p.129) The article goes on to point out that research on the web poses particular challenges for NNS, as it requires a particular 'critical mindset' and the ability to cope with a 'deluge of information'. (p.130) In a library, students will, to a certain extent, come by sources which are pre-filtered in terms of quality and reliability. There is no such guarantee on the web. To improve e-literacy, activities such as WebQuests are recommended.
Online Learning Environments: collaboration and project-based learning
This was a particularly interesting example: “In another example, Kessler
et. al (2012) discuss how Google Docs can support a collaborative writing project
among advanced proficiency EAP students. The study investigated the details of
how students write collaboratively in using online word processing, and focused on
the types and accuracy of changes made by writers, and the levels of participation
within collaborative groups. As a result of their investigation and earlier studies,
Kessler et al. recommend that practitioners take a flexible approach to writing
pedagogy in order to take full advantage of new technologies for writing, as
students ‘engage in the writing process in new and unexpected ways’ (p. 104).” Some
case studies of Wiki were also explored.
Learning Management Systems: Additional Opportunities to Engage in Learning
Most EAP teachers have access to an LMS, usually Moodle or Blackboard. The article explores different ways in which this is used, as a repository, online space, etc.
In the conclusion, the writer points out an important aspect of technology in relation to EAP: “Many contextual factors influence the EAP teacher’s decision and ability to use technology. The most obvious and often cited of these is time. The intensive nature
of EAP courses and institutional demands to ‘get through’ the curriculum with
learners means that instructors can have difficulty finding the time needed to
judiciously investigate and integrate technology in their teaching” (p.140)
Relevance to my theme
The most obvious take-away from this is the importance of digital literacy when teaching citation and referencing. There is no way students can be taught about plagiarism without understanding the centrality of critical thought in online research. I'd also like to consider how I might use corpora as part of my OER.
Social Innovation: http://www.economist.com/node/16789766
This is connected to the idea of 'social entrepreneurship' which David Cameron was partly referring to in his drive for the 'Big Society', much vaunted in his first election campaign, but Barack Obama also created an 'Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participation', so it is clear that this is a very current idea. According to this article, this is more or less shorthand for public-private partnerships, and a drive to apply some modern business ideas and theories to the not-for-profit sector and bring 'productivity' to the public realm. Not many of these projects, however, have brought substantial dividends, a problem which it attributes to 'speed and scale'. Whereas as the success of a business can easily be measured in profit, it is harder to decide what defines success in a social project.
Relevance to my theme
Some OERs could be regarded as a form of 'social entrepreneurship', especially those which target the under-privileged. My project does not really fall into this category. However, the issues of economic sustainability have pertinence to the Openness movement in general.