The sectoral divide between vocational education and training (VET) and higher education in Australia is blurring as a consequence of broader social and economic pressures for a more highly skilled population, but also as a consequence of government policies designed to develop tertiary education markets and to diversify institutional types. The…

The recognition of prior learning (RPL) is a cornerstone of the lifelong learning policies of most developed nations. Yet the scholarly view in Australia has been that, unlike other post-compulsory education sectors, universities have erected barriers to limit the development of RPL. This paper re-examines the current policy environment and finds…

This article provides a critical discussion of the neoliberal reforms of higher education focusing on new managerialism and New Public Management. It also distinguishes between democratic and market accountability regimes, examining how the former arise from classical liberalism and the latter from neoliberalism. The article then examines…

Reports a research project which studied the institutionalization of a secondary school syllabus in New South Wales. Key variables in the process of accepting an innovation as a part of the school curriculum were identified and discussed. Suggests means by which institutionalization of innovations might be facilitated. (KO)

The Australasian Association for Institutional Research (AAIR) conference provided a comprehensive coverage of issues, concepts, and techniques in the areas of planning, data analysis and research, and related aspects of management support in tertiary education. Refereed papers from the conference include: (1) "Changes in Student Approaches…