scholarly journals Ranking Research: Rankings as Devices in Higher Education Governance

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julian Hamann
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Performance Assessments ◽  
Research Assessment ◽  
Main Section ◽  
Review Of The Literature ◽  
Research Assessment Exercise ◽  
Case Examples ◽  
Education Governance ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Data Informed

The paper provides a brief review of the literature on rankings in the higher education sector. It distinguishes literature on standardization effects and on stratification effects. The main section of the paper presents different rankings that are produced from the data of the Research Assessment Exercise and the Research Excellence Framework in the UK. Among them are rankings produced directly by the RAE/REF, and rankings produced by media outlets drawing on the RAE/REF data. Informed by these case examples, the closing section discusses the performativity of rankings. It looks into the different implications and effects rankings and the associated performance assessments have on higher education institutions, their personnel, and the personnel's practices.

Architectural research and its enemies

2010 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 11-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sebastian Macmillan
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Architectural Education ◽  
Research Assessment ◽  
Research Assessment Exercise ◽  
Consultation Process ◽  
Research Excellence Framework ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Architectural Research ◽  
Competitive Allocation ◽  
Support Research

Like the Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) that preceded it, the UK government's proposed Research Excellence Framework (REF) is a means of allocating funding in higher education to support research. As with any method for the competitive allocation of funds it creates winners and losers and inevitably generates a lot of emotion among those rewarded or penalised. More specifically, the ‘winners’ tend to approve of the method of allocation and the ‘losers’ denigrate it as biased against their activities and generally unfair. An extraordinary press campaign has been consistently waged against research assessment and its methods by those involved in architectural education, which I will track over a decade and a half. What follows will question whether this campaign demonstrates the sophistication and superior judgment of those who have gone into print, or conversely whether its mixture of misinformation and disinformation reveals not just disenchantment and prejudice, but a naivety and a depth of ignorance about the fundamentals of research that is deeply damaging to the credibility of architecture as a research-based discipline. With the recent consultation process towards a new cycle of research assessment, the REF, getting under way, I aim to draw attention to the risk of repeating past mistakes.

Ideals and ideas

2002 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 195-195
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Built Environment ◽  
Architectural Education ◽  
Research Assessment ◽  
Education Funding ◽  
Higher Education Funding ◽  
Research Assessment Exercise ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Uk Higher Education

Most architectural education takes place within a university context. There are very considerable advantages to such an arrangement but, for a discipline as broadly based and practically orientated as architecture, there can also be occasional problems if aspects are inappropriately managed. Anyone who doubts this should read Philip Steadman and Bill Hillier's review of the Built Environment category of the UK Higher Education Funding Council's (HEFCE) 2001 Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) (pp. 203–207).

scholarly journals The Real-Time REF Review: A Pilot Study to Examine the Feasibility of a Longitudinal Evaluation of Perceptions and Attitudes Towards REF 2021

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Netta Weinstein ◽  
James Wilsdon ◽  
Jennifer Chubb ◽  
Geoff Haddock
Keyword(s):  
Pilot Study ◽  
Real Time ◽  
Research Assessment ◽  
Research Assessment Exercise ◽  
Perceptions And Attitudes ◽  
Education Community ◽  
Stern Review ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The University ◽  
Uk Higher Education

The UK first introduced a national research assessment exercise in 1986, and methods of assessment continue to evolve. Following the 2016 Stern Review and further rounds of technical consultation, the UK higher education community is now preparing for the next Research Excellence Framework – REF 2021.Despite its importance in shaping UK research cultures, there is limited systematic and nuanced evidence about how academics across the sector view the REF, and which aspects are viewed favourably or unfavourably. The aims of this pilot study were twofold: first, it was designed to gather initial data to address this evidence gap; second, it was aimed at testing the feasibility of conducting a longitudinal study into academic and managerial attitudes towards the REF. We argue that further research to better understand the effects of the REF on research cultures, institutions, and individuals should be part of the evidence used to inform the development of future iterations of the exerciseThe Real Time REF Review Pilot Study was developed and delivered by a research team from Cardiff University and the University of Sheffield, in collaboration with Research England.

scholarly journals Corporate Governance Practices in Higher Education Institutions: The UK vs Bahrain

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 29
Author(s):  
Marwan M. Abdeldayem ◽  
Saeed H. Aldulaimi
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Arab World ◽  
Educational Institutions ◽  
Education Governance ◽  
Academic Management ◽  
Governance Practices ◽  
Governance In Higher Education ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Higher Education Organizations ◽  
Different Cultures

This research aims to investigate the application of leadership and governance in higher education organizations in the Kingdom of Bahrain and the UK. The study also intends to gather evidences on the practices of academic management in different cultures. The methods of the study relies on reading lists of governance standards from several advanced educational institutions and uses a “comparative methodology” based on the data from the Kingdom of Bahrain and The UK. This research reviews the various models of “the higher education governance” and discuss the strengths and weaknesses of each model. The study employs the three principles of UNDP (Transparency, Participation and Accountability) to assess application of leadership and governance in higher education institutions.The findings of this study reveal that Arab universities need to perceive the significance of clarifying the reason for governance. The examination likewise distinguishes the significance of relating their job and commitment to the procedure of change to the learning based economy and world informatics. Also, it features the need of broadening the cooperation of stakeholders in the key basic leadership.The importance of this study lies in examining whether the governance standards are associated with practical application in universities. Also it examines whether there is an influence of the culture and social aspects on the application and understanding of these standards. The significance of receiving administration measures in the Arab world lies in its possibility to change the HE organizations’ practices, and increment their ability for greatness and aggressiveness. Thus, ensures the autonomy of advanced education alongside its quality and viability particularly with respect to their yield and status locally and internationally. 

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