Campus sustainability in Chinese higher education institutions

2015 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 34-43 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin Lo
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Energy Conservation ◽  
Higher Education Institutions ◽  
Case Study Research ◽  
Chinese Higher Education ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Campus Sustainability ◽  
The Government

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the focuses, motivations and challenges of achieving campus sustainability in Chinese higher education institutions (HEIs). Design/methodology/approach – A multisite case study was conducted in Changchun City, Jilin, where eight HEIs of various types were examined. Structured interviews with school managers, students and government officials were accompanied with analysis of relevant documents. Findings – The focuses of sustainability among the studied HEIs were on water and energy conservation and on non-technical initiatives. The focuses can be explained by motivations and challenges. The HEIs are motivated by government and financial pressures and face challenges in limited accessibility to funding. The reliance of non-technical initiatives has negatively impacted student welfare and has become unpopular among students. Practical implications – The government is advised to increase funding to HEIs in relation to sustainability and to make the funding more equitable. The HEIs are advised to modify sustainability practices that severely affect the daily lives of students, to share the benefits of water and energy conservation with their students and to involve students in sustainability governance. Originality/value – This paper adds to the existing literature in two ways. First, it expands the geographical reach of the literature to developing countries, in general, and to China, in particular. Second, it adopts the multisite case study research approach to study the whole spectrum of Chinese HEIs and highlights the differences among these HEIs when it comes to sustainability.

Management of Records in Adapted Buildings as Records Centres in Zimbabwe

Mousaion ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 35 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Samson Mutsagondo ◽  
Getrude Maduyu ◽  
Godfrey Tsvuura
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Research ◽  
Case Study Research ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Records Management ◽  
Personal Observation ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Design Data ◽  
Professional Management ◽  
The Government

This paper discusses the challenges of records management that arise from the use of adapted buildings as records centres in Zimbabwe, despite the advantages of using such buildings. A qualitative research approach was used as well as a case study research design. Data were collected from seven officers of the Gweru Records Centre through semi-structured interviews. Personal observation was used to triangulate findings from interviews. It was found that the use of adapted buildings as records centres was a cheaper and quicker way of establishing records centres throughout the country. However, a number of preservation, security and management challenges cropped up as the conditions of the buildings and the environment of the adapted buildings were not conducive to the proper and professional management of records. This study is important in that it explores the prospects and challenges of using adapted buildings as records centres in Zimbabwe, an area that has not been researched by many authors. This provokes archival authorities and the government to seriously consider establishing purpose-built records and archival centres.

Strategies to promote sustainability in higher education institutions

2017 ◽  
Vol 18 (7) ◽  
pp. 1018-1038 ◽  
Author(s):  
Issa Ibrahim Berchin ◽  
Vanessa dos Santos Grando ◽  
Gabriela Almeida Marcon ◽  
Louise Corseuil ◽  
José Baltazar Salgueirinho Osório de Andrade Guerra
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Scientific Literature ◽  
Higher Education Institutions ◽  
Public Institution ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Federal Institute ◽  
Sustainability In Higher Education ◽  
Education Science ◽  
Education In Brazil

Purpose This paper aims to analyze strategies that promote sustainability in higher education institutions (HEIs), focusing on the case study of a federal institute of higher education in Brazil. Design/methodology/approach The research was based on a scientific literature review on sustainability in HEIs, to identify the recurrent actions for sustainability in these institutions; and a case study of a federal institute of higher education in Brazil, to illustrate how these actions are being implemented by HEIs. Findings Concerns about sustainability, prompted by the Brazilian federal legislature, led federal HEI to change its internal processes, infrastructure and organizational culture toward sustainability. Practical implications The findings presented in this study, more specifically the sustainability plan of the Federal Institute for Education, Science and Technology of Santa Catarina, aligned with the recommendations proposed, can be used and replicated in other HEIs. Originality/value Scientific literature about organizational changes led by sustainability concerns, in HEIs specifically, still needs more attention in the academia. By addressing the case of a Brazilian public institution of higher education, this paper contributes to the literature on sustainability in higher education by reporting the process of implementation of a sustainability plan.

Accreditation and ranking of higher education institutions (HEIs): review, observations and recommendations for the Indian higher education system

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jerald Ozee Fernandes ◽  
Balgopal Singh
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Education System ◽  
Higher Education Institutions ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Academic Quality ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Global Ranking ◽  
Higher Education System ◽  
The World ◽  
Indian Higher Education

PurposeThe higher education system has been entrusted globally to provide quality education, especially to the youth, and equip them with required skills and capabilities. The visionaries and policymakers of the countries around the world have been working relentlessly to improve the standard of the higher education system by establishing national and global accreditation and ranking bodies and expecting measuring performance through setting up accreditation and ranking parameters. This paper focuses on the review of Indian university accreditation and ranking system and determining its efficacy in improving academic quality for achieving good position in global quality accreditation and ranking.Design/methodology/approachThe study employed exploratory research approach to know about the accreditation and ranking issues of Indian higher education institutions to overcome the challenges for being globally competitive. The accreditation and ranking parameters and score of leading Indian universities was collected from secondary data sources. Similarly, the global ranking parameters and scores of these Indian universities with top global universities was explored. The performance gaps of Indian university in global academic quality parameter is assessed by comparing it with scores of global top universities. Further, each domestic and global accreditation and ranking parameters have been taken up for discussion.FindingsThe study identified teaching and learning, research and industry collaboration as common parameter in the accreditation and ranking by Indian and global accreditation and ranking body. Furthermore, the study revealed that Indian accreditation and ranking body assess leniently on parameters and award high scores as compared to rigorous global accreditation and ranking practice. The study revealed that “research” and “citations” are important parameters for securing prestigious position in global ranking, this is the reason Indian universities are trailing. The study exposed that Indian academic fraternity lack prominence in research, publication and citations as per need of global accreditation and ranking standards.Research limitations/implicationsThe limitation of this study is that it focused only on few Indian and global accreditation and ranking bodies. The future implication of this study will be the use of methodology designed in this study for comparing accreditation and ranking bodies’ parameters of different continents and countries in different economic development stages i.e. emerging and developed economies to know the disparity and shortcomings in their higher education system.Practical implicationsThe article is a review and comparison of national and global accreditation and ranking parameters. The article explored the important criteria and key indicators of accreditation and ranking that would provide an important and meaningful insight to academic institutions of the emerging economies of the world to develop its competitiveness. The study contributed to the literature on identifying benchmark for improving academic and higher education institution quality. This study would be further helpful in fostering new ideas toward setting up of contemporary globally viable and acceptable academic quality standard.Originality/valueThis is possibly the first study conducted with novel methodology of comparing the Indian and global accreditation and ranking parameters to identify the academic quality performance gap and suggesting ways to attain academic benchmark through continuous improvement activity and process for global competitiveness.

Lean Six Sigma in higher education institutes: an Irish case study

2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 948-974 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seamus J. O’Reilly ◽  
Joe Healy ◽  
Tom Murphy ◽  
Rónán Ó’Dubhghaill
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Six Sigma ◽  
Single Case ◽  
Lean Six Sigma ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Training Programmes ◽  
The Impact

Purpose This paper aims to contribute to a developing literature on continuous improvement (CI), enabled by Lean Six Sigma (LSS), in higher education institutions (HEIs). It reports on the key learning points arising from the initial steps taken by an Irish university on its CI journey. Design/methodology/approach A case study strategy was adopted following a participatory research approach. This approach supports reflexivity and also provides access to all relevant documentation and staff within the case university. Thematic analysis was supported by data reduction and display techniques. Findings The introduction of a LSS approach rather than a reliance on lean alone introduced a structured methodology (DMAIC) that supported simplification of a number of administrative processes. A number of specific improvements were achieved including: Cycle time and cost reduction; customer or employee satisfaction; and rework and error reduction. The findings support the importance of the Readiness Factors as identified by Antony (2014), with particular insight into the role of senior and middle management, the impact of training and deployment of expertise. Research limitations/implications This paper is based on an ongoing, longitudinal, empirical study of a single case study in Ireland. Originality/value This paper tracks the development of CI in a HEI in a longitudinal manner and adds to the emerging the literature in this area. The paper evaluates the role of management at various levels, analyses the use of LSS tools and techniques and evaluated the role of training and capacity building. Implications for Management are shared including: design and role of training programmes, role of champions at various organisational levels, including key functional areas and sustaining momentum.

Positively supporting women faculty in the academy through a novel mentoring community model

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 102-117
Author(s):  
Amanda Koontz ◽  
Linda Walters ◽  
Sarah Edkin
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Higher Education Institutions ◽  
Women Faculty ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Community Model ◽  
Key Issues ◽  
Gender Based ◽  
Insight Into ◽  
Mentoring Model

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the ways in which an innovative higher education women’s faculty mentoring community model fosters supportive networking and career-life balance. The secondary goal is to better understand the factors that both promote and limit retention of women faculty at a large, metropolitan university. Design/methodology/approach The paper examines data from the survey component of an applied research project on understanding and supporting the complex processes of women faculty’s pathways toward self-defined success. Adopting a mixed method research approach, this manuscript focuses on the survey questions related to four key issues related to retention: mentor experiences, gender-based obstacles, a sense of support and community, and goal attainment. In addition to quantitatively examining shifts in perceptions between pre- and post-survey Likert scale questions, the authors performed a qualitative analysis of the supplemental open-ended questions, utilizing a social constructionist lens to further understand perceived influences of the mentoring community on these issues. Findings The findings revealed qualitatively important shifts in increased awareness surrounding mentoring, gender-based obstacles, interpersonal support, and career-life choices, offering critical insight into the intangible, and thus often difficult to capture, forms of support a mentoring community model can offer women faculty. Findings also reveal how definitions of success can be integrated into community mentoring models to support retention and empowering women faculty. Research limitations/implications This study is limited by its exploratory nature with one mentoring community cohort. Ongoing implementations are in place to increase the participant size and further test the mentoring model, while future research is encouraged to implement and expand the research to additional higher education institutions. Practical implications This research offers a model that can be implemented across higher education institutions for all faculty, along with offering insight into particular points that can be emphasized to increase perceptions of support, offering concrete mentoring options. Originality/value This paper contributes to the advancement of mentoring models, helping to address concerns for better supporting and advancing women faculty, with implications for further supporting marginalized faculty. It offers insight into the ways in which a mentoring model can help to address key issues of retention. Additionally, analyzing quantitative and qualitative findings concurrently allowed for insight into areas that may otherwise be overlooked due to seemingly contradictory or non-significant statistical findings.

Coaching and mentoring in higher education institutions: a case study in Oman

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 307-322
Author(s):  
Ahmed Nawaz Hakro ◽  
Priya Mathew
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Middle East ◽  
Organizational Development ◽  
Higher Education Institutions ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Open Communication ◽  
Thick Description ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Study Approach

PurposeUniversities and higher education institutions (HEIs) are increasingly recognizing the value of coaching for professional and organizational development. This study is designed to investigate whether Cognitive Coaching, implemented as a programme in an HEI in Oman, made any difference to the behaviour and attitudes of employees holding leadership positions in academic, administrative and professional services departments. It also explored the factors that hindered or supported the coaching programme and offers recommendations to strengthen coaching initiatives in similar contexts.Design/methodology/approachSemi-structured interviews and focus group discussions were used to collect feedback from the 15 participants of the programme. A case study approach was adopted in this study for an in-depth examination of the effectiveness of coaching interventions.FindingsThe findings suggest that coaching can be an effective approach, facilitating personal and professional development and also contributing to the achievement of organizational goals.Research limitations/implicationsAs a case study of a coaching programme in a single institution, the findings of the study are not generalizable to other contexts, though a “thick description” of the context in which the study took place will enable institutions in similar contexts to draw lessons from the experience.Practical implicationsThis study discusses the benefits of a coaching programme for an HEI in the Middle East. Suggestions to strengthen coaching include board level endorsement and sensitivity to cultural nuances in coaching relationships.Social implicationsOne of the effects of a coaching programme is the collegial atmosphere that it can foster. This can have wider impacts on the community as there is more open communication and trust engendered amongst employers and employees belonging to different cultural backgrounds.Originality/valueThis study is one of the first to report the findings of a systematically organized coaching programme in an HEI in the Middle East.

scholarly journals Case study research: opening up research opportunities

2019 ◽  
Vol 55 (1) ◽  
pp. 100-111 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adriana Roseli Wünsch Takahashi ◽  
Luis Araujo
Keyword(s):  
Case Studies ◽  
Case Study Research ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Case Study Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Study Approach ◽  
The Social ◽  
Internal Coherence ◽  
Opening Up

Purpose The case study approach has been widely used in management studies and the social sciences more generally. However, there are still doubts about when and how case studies should be used. This paper aims to discuss this approach, its various uses and applications, in light of epistemological principles, as well as the criteria for rigor and validity. Design/methodology/approach This paper discusses the various concepts of case and case studies in the methods literature and addresses the different uses of cases in relation to epistemological principles and criteria for rigor and validity. Findings The use of this research approach can be based on several epistemologies, provided the researcher attends to the internal coherence between method and epistemology, or what the authors call “alignment.” Originality/value This study offers a number of implications for the practice of management research, as it shows how the case study approach does not commit the researcher to particular data collection or interpretation methods. Furthermore, the use of cases can be justified according to multiple epistemological orientations.

scholarly journals The Amalgamation of Chinese Higher Education Institutions

2002 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
pp. 20 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Y. Chen
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Education System ◽  
Higher Education Institutions ◽  
Chinese Higher Education ◽  
Reform Process ◽  
Administrative System ◽  
Revolutionary Change ◽  
After Effects ◽  
Higher Education System

The 1990s witnessed revolutionary change in China's higher education system, particularly through radical mergers. The reform process and its background are detailed here, with a case study focusing on Zhejiang University. After nearly 15 years of painstaking effort, the reform goals for the higher education system have been met, and a decentralized, two-tiered administrative system has been installed. However, the most hotly debated reform has been the amalgamation of universities. The need to optimize China's system of higher education has a background dating back about 50 years, when the first reordering of higher education took place. The reordering and its results are described, and the causes and after effects of this reform are detailed.

scholarly journals Using mobile learning and social media to enhance learner feedback

2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 70-90 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mireilla Bikanga Ada ◽  
Mark Stansfield ◽  
Gavin Baxter
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Mobile Devices ◽  
Mobile Learning ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Educational Institution ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Media Applications

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate an area of growing importance that is widely recognised in the literature relating to the issue of how to improve ways that assessments and feedback are provided to students within higher education. This paper reports on a study that aimed to explore the views of both educators (n=70) and students (n=540) on feedback and feed-forward at a UK university. The study also investigated their experience and attitudes to social media applications as a means of enhancing access to feedback within the context of mobile learning. Design/methodology/approach The research approach adopted in this study predominately conforms to a quantitative research design though embeds elements of qualitative research via a “mixed methods” approach. The overall methodology of the paper adheres to an exploratory case study in a higher education environment to identify various issues and approaches that could be addressed or enhanced to aid ways that assessments and feedback are disseminated to students within higher education. Findings Participants’ views were sought in relation to students receiving learning materials, as well as feedback from tutors directly to their smartphones and mobile devices. In addition, the study explored possible reasons for students not wanting to use social media and mobile devices for their learning and feedback. Overall, the results indicated a positive attitude on the part of educators and students to using mobile devices and social media applications for teaching and learning purposes. Research limitations/implications The case study presented in this paper draws on findings from one higher educational institution. Further research is required to determine the generalisability of the findings to allow comparison of the findings to be undertaken within other higher education institutions. Originality/value The originality of the paper is that it provides detailed empirical evidence and findings that provide several important implications in relation to enhancing the student learning experience and providing considerable improvements to the way that feedback is provided that make it more likely that students will take more notice to feedback and act upon it. This in turn enables educators to better plan and manage their teaching and student experience online and through students’ mobile devices. The value of this study is that it explores views of both educators and students, whereas many other previous studies tend to focus on the views of either educators or students.

An overview of strategic responses of Vietnamese higher education institutions

2020 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 35-44
Author(s):  
Ngoc Minh Do
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Education System ◽  
Higher Education Institutions ◽  
Analytical Framework ◽  
Poor Quality ◽  
Higher Education Management ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Michael Porter ◽  
Vietnamese Higher Education ◽  
The Government

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to review the strategic management of Vietnamese higher education institutions. Design/methodology/approach The paper examined the external environment of the country’s education system based on the five forces framework by Michael Porter and inspected the strategies of universities and colleges. Findings It was concluded that lack of environmental analysis from both the government and higher education institutions themselves diminishes the intended effectiveness of the reforms; problems of skill shortage in the labor market, staff insufficiency and poor quality are prevalent; and that strategies developed by the institutions are purely responsive to the State’s direction without considering sustainability. Research limitations/implications Lack of literature on Vietnamese higher education limits timely analysis. Practical implications Strategic planning based on a thorough investigation of the environment is imperative to enhance the performance of the education system generally as well as of academic institutions individually. The government plays a key role in developing initiatives to enhance staff capabilities and improve quality of educational outputs. Originality/value There has not been any paper that approached Vietnam’s higher education management under such an analytical framework.

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