The growth of private higher education has come as a surprise to most governments, which have tried to catch up in their regulatory and funding policymaking. In China, Malaysia and South Africa they have given legal recognition to previously disallowed private higher education and this has helped to fuel its subsequent growth. Some governments…

It is argued in this paper that in a culture of "performativity" research into "education" is often avoided. It is observed in many research publications that attention is given to techniques of learning, teaching, management, social equity, identity formation, leadership and delivery of the curriculum, without a justification…

The definition of evaluation as a process of delineating, obtaining and providing information useful for making decisions and judgments about educational programs and curricula highlights the function of evaluative information of assisting decision-making. It reflects the concept of the role of evaluation in informing action at discrete decision…

Health librarians are very familiar with the accreditation process in hospitals. In 2000 the first ALIA National Policy Congress recommended that accreditation of special libraries should be implemented. The proposed guidelines have been roughly based on the EQuIP Program of the Australian Council on Healthcare Standards. This program is…

Academic development is emerging as a complex and challenging leadership role. Academic developers in Australia were interviewed to determine how they: (1) conceptualized leadership; (2) saw themselves in leadership roles; and (3) effected leadership and change through academic development work. The results revealed that, in an academic…

In tertiary institutions in Australia, and no doubt elsewhere, there is increasing pressure for accountability. No longer are academics assumed "a priori" to be responsible and capable of self management in teaching and assessing the subjects they run. Procedures are being dictated more from the "top down". Although academics…

This bibliography was compiled for the 2006 Summer Institute at The Centre for Literacy-"Accountability and Public Trust: Restoring the Balance." The selections include lectures, research studies, policy papers, and government documents that describe and analyze recent concepts of accountability in the context of government funding in…

"Steady state" implies that as students and their requirements change, so must the academic staff. The present and foreseeable future in Australia is reviewed briefly along with implications for faculty in both teaching and research. (LBH)

Australian higher education has an elitist disregard for the needs, interests, and concerns of the rest of society, and operates under a system that is inherently unaccountable in any democratic sense. Dawkinism does little to change this, and the academic community appears unable or unwilling to question the status quo. (MSE)

Summarizes interim findings of a policy research project in Tasmania, Australia, aimed at producing educative accountability options for identifying processes and criteria to improve learning, teaching, and leadership. Identifies preferred accountability criteria and processes in Tasmania's locally managed school district, maps patterns of…

Analyzes the changing nature of accountability in Australian and English higher education within the context of global knowledge-based economic principles. Finds similarities in accountability policy objectives and discourse, but differences in structures and processes. Discusses three themes that emerge from analysis: Complexity of changing power…

An important contemporary issue in special education is the extent to which students with a disability are included in all mainstream educational activities, including educational accountability. In line with other Western countries, the extent of national testing conducted by Australian schools will increase in the near future. At the moment, the…

As time spent in academic research becomes more controversial, it is proposed that a quantitative measure of research productivity be applied to faculty efforts. The formula takes into account single- and multiple-author publication rates and appropriate types of publication. The validity of a publication rate index is discussed. (MSE)

Describes the changing ways child observation is being used by preschool teachers in the United States and Australia in relation to the accountability movement pressuring young children and their teachers in both countries. Explores the costs of the accountability movement in early childhood education. Calls for genuine accountability based on…

Competing pressures on Australian educational managers include pressure to implement competency-based training, to manage using the industrial model, and to husband resources, conflicting with traditional educational goals, government policies, and demands for accountability. (SK)