Academic Reforms in the World: Situation and Perspective in the Massification Stage of Higher Education. Reports of the 1997 Six-Nation Higher Education Project Seminar (Hiroshima, Japan February 6-7, 1997). RIHE International Seminar Reports, No.10.

Overview & Synopsis

This volume presents papers presented at an international seminar conducted as part of the Six Nation Education Research Project, a project identifying aspects of higher education that currently confront educational systems in all countries. A keynote address by Robert Zemsky, titled "Seminar on Post-Massification," examines trends in the United States, including the price-income squeeze in access to higher education and the reduced demand for young workers, and suggests that such trends may generalize to other nations. Six country reports are then presented: (1) "Massification of Higher Education and Academic Reforms in Japan" (Akira Arimoto); (2) "Trends in Higher Education from Massification to Post-Massification" (United States) (Patricia J. Gumport and others); (3) "Current Issues in Higher Education" (Switzerland) (Francois Grin, Christoph Metzger, and Andreas Gruner); (4) "Trends in University Reform in the Context of Massification" (Singapore) (S. Gopinathan and Susan B. Morriss); (5) "Reform and Development of China's Higher Education System in the Past Decade" (Wei Xin); and (6) "Higher Education in a Federal System" (Germany) (Wilfried Hartmann). Two summary papers are: "Reforms as a Response to Massification of Higher Education: A Comparative View" (Ulrich Teichler), and a commentary on conference discussions by Keith J. Morgan. Two special papers are also included: "Approaches to Mass Higher Education: A Comparison of Change in Britain and Australia" (Keith J. Morgan), and "Cross-National Study on Academic Organizational Reforms in Post-Massification Stage" (Akira Arimoto). (Individual papers contain references.) (DB)