HIED 513:
Issues in Higher Education

Time:
Room:
Professor:	Dr. Lesley Andres
Office:	Ponderosa H, Room 112
Telephone:	822-8943
Fax:	822-4244
Email:	lesley.andres@ubc.ca
Office hours:	by appointment

Higher Education 513 addresses selected issues in higher education. The course focuses on the people and the institutions of higher education in Canada and British Columbia. These issues are explored within the context of emerging and developed educational, social, cultural, and economic structures and contexts of higher learning.

Course Objectives

1. To critically examine contemporary problems in higher education by comparing and contrasting theory, research, policy and practice.

2. To assess the relevance and potential impact of current and proposed educational, social, cultural and economic policies on the Canadian higher education system.

Current Focus

In keeping with the above objectives, the course this year will focus upon the theme "Post-secondary education in the 1990s: Preparing for a New Agenda." The specific areas to be examined are indicated on the schedule which follows.

Format

The course is held in three all-day Saturday and three Wednesday half-day sessions. The course format will be comprised of large group discussions, panel presentations, and small group discussions. Faculty members in Higher Education and expert resource persons from the community college sector, government, and will lead intensive seminar-style discussions.

Prerequisites and Restrictions

The course is open to any student registered for a degree program in the Department of Educational Studies. Other students will be accepted with consent of the instructor on the basis of availability of space.

Course Fee

A fee of $35.00 per student is assessed to cover all expenses for copies of reading assignments and other handouts, lunch on the first day, and coffee throughout the course. Note! Summer 1996 Schedule (The list of presenters changes each year)

THEME: POST-SECONDARY EDUCATION IN THE 1990S: PREPARING FOR A NEW AGENDA

Session Date	Time	Session Topic	Presenter(s)
I. May 4	9:00 - 10:30	Introduction to Course	Lesley Andres
		Current Issues in Higher Education: An Overview	Lesley Andres
	11:00 - 1:00	The Changing Federal Agenda	David Borins Richard De Beck John Dennison
	2:00 - 4:00	Small Group Discussion
II. May 8	9:00 - 9:45	Current Issues
	10:00 - 12:00	Government/University/Community College/ Labour Market Linkages	Susan Witter Shawna Butterwick Tom Perry Werner Schultz
	12:00 - 1:00	Small Group Discussion
III. May 18	9:00 - 10:30	Current Issues
	11:00 - 1:00	Planning for What? New Strategies and Initiatives	John Grace Dan Birch
	2:00 - 4:00	Small Group Discussion
IV. May 22	9:00 - 9:45	Current Issues
	10:00 - 12:00	Changing Delivery Methods	Tony Bates
	12:00 - 1:00	Small Group Discussion
V. June 1	9:00 - 10:30	Current Issues
	11:00 - 1:00	Changing Demographics -- . Implications for Teaching & Learning, Leadership & Management (Issues of Equity, etc.)	Neil Guppy Marsha Trew Janet Mee
	2:00 - 4:00	Small Group Discussion
VI. June 5	9:00 - 10:00	Current Issues
	10:00 - 12:00	Learning Contracts
	12:00 - 1:00	Course Appraisal	Lesley Andres

* Each session is held from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. with an hour for lunch. Breaks are held mid-morning and mid- afternoon. Coffee, tea and juice are provided.

* Lunch is provided the first day.

* The meeting is held in (TBA) at the UBC campus.

* Parking is available in the parkade and can be accessed from Gate 6.

Assignments

1. Readings: to be distributed throughout the course.

2. Bulletin board of "Current Issues in Higher Education." Each class participant will be expected to contribute clippings from newspapers and other sources.

3. Each course participant will be expected to lead a morning "group discussion" session - see Group Discussion.

3. Individual learning activities - see Learning Contract.

Morning Group Discussion

Each morning session will begin with a group discussion. During this discussion, participants will be invited to share concerns and issues currently relevant at their institutions, or provincially, nationally, or globally. Two participants will be assigned to lead each morning session, that is, to be prepared with a topic or issue for discussion. This exercise is NOT intended to be a formal presentation; rather, students are asked to lead the session by raising issues and concerns based on current events and by engaging the entire class in the discussion.

Evaluation - Student

See Learning Contract.

Learning Contracts are due ________.
Final contract requirements are due _______.

Evaluation - Course

Critical comments, written or oral, anonymous or not, are welcomed at any time. Students will be asked to complete a short evaluation form at the end of the course. An evaluation discussion will be held at the end of the course.

Information

For further information or comments, phone Dr. Lesley Andres at 822-8943, e-mail lesley.andres@ubc.ca

Method of Evaluation

Higher Education 513 has been designed to permit the student to identify her/his learning objectives and to be graded according to the accomplishment of those objectives.

Learning Contracts

Research indicates that adults learn more deeply and permanently when learning is self-initiated and self-directed. A learning contract provides a method for allowing personal development while improving one's competence to perform in a job or profession.

Learning contracts differ from traditional learning in that they permit learning experiences to be a mutual understanding between the learner and her/his helper (instructor, peers).

The evaluation procedure for Higher Education 513 is designed to allow the learner to be self-directed. With the support and assistance of the instructor, the learner will have the opportunity to participate in learning experiences that are personally meaningful.

References

Knowles, Malcolm. (1984). The adult learner: A neglected species. Houston: Gulf Publishing Company.

Tough, Allen. (1979). The adult's learning projects. Toronto: Ontario Institute for Studies in Education.

Steps in Developing a Learning Contract

1. Diagnose your learning needs.

Need is the gap between:

a) where you are now
b) where you want to be.

Focus on areas that need improving.

2. Specify your learning objectives.

Translate needs into objectives.

State - What you will learn.
not What you will do.

3. Specify the learning resources and strategies.

How do you propose to go about accomplishing each objective?

Identify - Resources (material and human)
- Strategies (techniques and tools)

4. Specify evidence of accomplishment.

- what evidence will you provide to indicate the degree to which you have met the objective?

5. Specify how the evidence is to be validated.

a) By what criteria do you propose the evidence to be judged?

6. Review contract with instructor.

Guidelines:

a) Objectives:
- are they understandable?
- are they realistic?
- do they accurately describe the proposed learning activity?

b) Strategies and Resources:
- are they reasonable?
- are they appropriate?
- are they efficient?
- are there any others available?

c) Criteria and Means for Validating:
- are they clear?
- are they relevant?
- are they convincing?

7. Carry out the contract.

8. Evaluation of your learning.

Assure you have learned what you set out to learn.

One of the actions that helps to differentiate 'distinguished' from 'adequate' performance in self-directed learning is the wisdom with which a learner selects his or her validators (Knowles,1984, p.226)

Signature: ___________________________

Date: ___________________________