ENSINO SUPERIOR E SOCIEDADE BRASILEIRA: AN��LISE HIST��RICA E SOCIOL��GICA DOS DETERMINANTES DA EXPANS��O DO ENSINO SUPERIOR NO BRASIL (D��CADAS DE 1960/70)

O trabalho �� resultado de uma pesquisa te��rica, documental e hist��rica sobre a expans��o do ensino superior brasileiro nas d��cadas de 1960 at�� meados de 1970. Especificamente, objetivou demonstrar como e de que forma se deu o processo de expans��o do ensino superior e seus determinantes pol��ticos, econ��micos e sociais, al��m de analisar as causas sociais do aumento da press��o pelo acesso ao ensino superior. Para tanto, o trabalho est�� baseado na obra de diversos autores brasileiros sobre o ensino superior e sobre a forma����o social brasileira no per��odo, al��m da an��lise de documentos e legisla����o espec��fica sobre o ensino superior. Conclui que as transforma����es ocorridas na sociedade brasileira a partir de meados da d��cada de 1950 levam as camadas m��dias, mais que qualquer outra classe, a elevar a press��o pelo acesso ao ensino superior. Tal press��o das camadas m��dias vai, no contexto pol��tico aberto pelo golpe militar de 1964, dar base social ao movimento estudantil, que figura como principal foco de contesta����o pol��tica da ditadura. A expans��o do ensino superior, que se deu no processo da reforma universit��ria de 1968 e nos anos seguintes, levada �� cabo pela ditadura militar, determinou modifica����es administrativas que j�� estavam presentes nas reivindica����es dos estudantes, assim como j�� vinham sendo colocadas em pr��tica em institui����es como o ITA e a UNB, ao mesmo tempo que promoveu o ensino superior privado, baseado na multiplica����o dos cursos e estabelecimentos isolados, com a inten����o principal de conter o movimento estudantil e impedir a passagem das camadas m��dias ao campo da oposi����o, o que auxiliou na conquista da hegemonia poss��vel na sociedade brasileira.(AU)

Measuring performance of virtual learning environment system in higher education

Purpose ��� The purpose of this paper is to measure the performance of commercial virtual learning environment (VLE) systems, which helps the decision makers to select the appropriate system for their institutions. Design/methodology/approach ��� This paper develops an integrated multiple criteria decision making approach, which combines the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and quality function deployment (QFD), to evaluate and select the best system. The evaluating criteria are derived from the requirements of those who use the system. A case study is provided to demonstrate how the integrated approach works. Findings ��� The major advantage of the integrated approach is that the evaluating criteria are of interest to the stakeholders. This ensures that the selected system will achieve the requirements and satisfy the stakeholders most. Another advantage is that the approach can guarantee the benchmarking to be consistent and reliable. From the case study, it is proved that the performance of a VLE system being used at the university is the best. Therefore, the university should continue to run the system in order to support and facilitate both teaching and learning. Originality/value ��� It is believed that there is no study that measures the performance of VLE systems, and thus decision makers may have difficulties in system evaluation and selection for their institutions.

An integrated multiple criteria decision making approach for resource allocation in higher education

Resource allocation is one of the major decision problems arising in higher education. Resources must be allocated optimally in such a way that the performance of universities can be improved. This paper applies an integrated multiple criteria decision making approach to the resource allocation problem. In the approach, the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) is first used to determine the priority or relative importance of proposed projects with respect to the goals of the universities. Then, the Goal Programming (GP) model incorporating the constraints of AHP priority, system, and resource is formulated for selecting the best set of projects without exceeding the limited available resources. The projects include 'hardware' (tangible university's infrastructures), and 'software' (intangible effects that can be beneficial to the university, its members, and its students). In this paper, two commercial packages are used: Expert Choice for determining the AHP priority ranking of the projects, and LINDO for solving the GP model. Copyright �� 2007 Inderscience Enterprises Ltd.

An analysis of costs in institutions of higher education in England

Cost functions are estimated, using random effects and stochastic frontier methods, for English higher education institutions. The article advances on existing literature by employing finer disaggregation by subject, institution type and location, and by introducing consideration of quality effects. Estimates are provided of average incremental costs attached to each output type, and of returns to scale and scope. Implications for the policy of expansion of higher education are discussed.

Higher education reform in Kyrgyzstan: the politics of neoliberal agendas in theory and practice

There would seem to be no greater field for observing the effects of neo-liberal reforms in higher education than the former Soviet university, where attempts to legitimize neo-liberal philosophy over Soviet ideology plays out in everyday practices of educational reform. However, ethnographic research about higher education in post-Soviet Central Asia suggests that its ���liberalization��� is both an ideological myth and a complicated reality. This chapter focuses on how and why neo-liberal agendas have ���travelled��� to the Central Asian republic of Kyrgyzstan, what happens when educators encounter and resist them, and why these spaces of resistance are important starting points for the development of alternative visions of educational possibility in this recently ���Third-worlded��� society.

Widening access to Higher Education:an evaluative case study of a foundation year alternative to access

Universities are encouraged to widen access to a broad range of applicants, including mature students taking Access qualifications. Admissions tutors can find it difficult to compare and choose between Access and A-level applications, and Access applicants for popular courses may be disadvantaged relative to students with good A-levels. In this evaluative case study a foundation year designed to avoid Access selection problems and widen participation in psychology, biology, optometry and pharmacy is reviewed. Progression and success rates are compared to national averages for Access courses and issues in Foundation Year management considered. The Foundation Year is rejected as unsatisfactory and it is concluded that widening participation for mature students can be achieved through Access courses. Difficulties in achieving this for high-demand courses in leading universities are discussed.

The problems of corruption in Post-Soviet Ukraine's Higher Education sector

This article provide an in-depth examination into how the existence of "informal" work practices, in a particular location, namely, the higher education system in Ukraine impacts the everyday lives of a specific population group, namely, students. The article provides a comprehensive overview of corruption in post-Soviet education systems, suggesting some historical and contemporary reasons for its current scale. In particular, the article focuses on students' experiences of corruption, first, exploring the difficulties that many individuals face when trying to gain access to the higher education system, and second, outlining students' experiences while progressing through the course. The article's concluding section examines the wider outcome of these processes on Ukrainian society as a whole as well as the impacts on individual students.

The whats, whys and hows of supporting dyslexic students. A review of ���Learning Disabilities in Higher Education and Beyond: An International Perspective��� edited by Susan A. Vogel, Gila Vogel, Varda Sharoni & Orit Dahan, USA: York Press, 2003, 384 pages + xv, ISBN 0912752742

Book review

Liberalization and the public sector:the pre-eminent role of governments in the ���sale��� of higher education abroad

Much recent scholarship concerning liberalization has emphasized the role of regulatees, rather than governments, in promoting liberalization. This article examines such scholarship in the light of an important development in the British and French public sectors���the creation of new agencies (the Education Counselling Service and EduFrance) to ���sell��� British and French higher education to potential international students. The new agencies attempted to induce two things: competition amongst higher education institutions for the recruitment of international students from developed and emerging economy countries, and the commodification of these students. This article shows that, contrary to existing theories of liberalization, governments were pre-eminent in pushing forward this liberalization, while higher education institutions attempted to hold it back.