Advantages and Significance of Higher Development for the Progressive Development of Nations - Essay Example

The Role of Higher Education in Developing Countries Introduction Education in general and higher education in particular is central to the progressive development of all nations. “Institutions of higher education have an important responsibility to support knowledge-driven economic growth strategies” (Kuroda & Shanawez, 2004, p.235). As compared to industrialized nations, in developing countries access to higher education is limited, the cost is prohibitive, and there is a lack of flexibility. Further, they are characterized by less-differentiated class framework, low institutionalization of educational systems and poor occupational structures (Buchmann & Hannum). Only with improved higher education, can developing countries benefit from the global knowledge-based economy (The World Bank, 2000). This paper will investigate the role of higher education in developing countries. Discussion Implications of the Knowledge Revolution on Developing Countries There is an increasing demand for higher education; particularly in developing nations which are home to more than 80% of the world’s population. This demand is caused by the knowledge revolution, globalization, development of communication, networking, dissemination of knowledge, global competitiveness, and the democratization of education (Heydenrych, Higgs, & van Niekerk, 2004). The developing countries have only a weak connection to the growing global knowledge system, and are at an increasing disadvantage. “The gap between industrial and developing countries will widen unless the corresponding gaps in knowledge and access to knowledge are successfully addressed” (The World Bank, 2000, p.34). In the contemporary domain of higher education, there is a growing use of the internet and other media. Online and open universities in developing countries conduct distance learning courses in formal education, at minimum costs (Kaul, 2006). Significance of Higher Education in Developing Countries Higher education supports development by promoting income growth through labour productivity, alleviation of poverty and improvement in people’s lives. Higher education supports the emergence of enlightened leaders and well-trained teachers for the education system, it expands choices, bolsters social mobility and the fulfillment of individuals’ potential. It provides increasingly relevant skills in core areas such as health and medicine, environmental protection, development of infrastructure and industrial expansion. These benefits are associated not only with the institutions and systems of higher education, but also with “the broader social, political, and economic systems within which they are situated” (The World Bank, 2000, pp.92-93). Resource-scarce governments of many developing countries focus on developing primary and secondary education, arguing against the expansion of higher education (Tilak, 2000). Contrastingly, the African government’s emphasis on higher education at the expense of primary education, has also been detrimental to economic development (Europa, 2004). Limitations include the prohibitive cost of higher education, the quality of the faculty and problems of infrastructure faced by students. Weakness in the governance of higher education has to be corrected by formulating and implementing new regulations by the government (Kapur & Crowley, 2008). A major transformation is required in the culture of higher education in Africa and Asia, where professors and instructors in universities should be provided with incentives to widen the scope beyond the classroom, to the community at large. To combat poverty and achieve sustainable development, universities in developing countries need to employ information and communication technology (ICT) in the following ways: develop suitable information resources based on research evidence on community information needs, help governmental formulation and implementation of related policies, “convert its own research and academic knowledge into education, information and training packages suitable for community use” (Colle & Roman, 2004, p.37), appropriately modify information from external authoritative sources to fulfill the needs of populations in surrounding communities, and resolve development problems through the formulation of related curricula that train students and reward faculty members for contributing to development programs. Further, universities in developing countries need to design and implement ICT training programmes for different community groups, particularly those sidelined by conventional ICT training. Additionally, it is important for universities to promote a new generation of champions for community causes, towards using ICT and telecentres for community development and poverty alleviation. Other essential initiatives include the provision of continued monitoring and evaluation support to ICT and telecentre activities, be opinion-leaders on ICT, promote ICT-for-development among university faculty and officials for gaining increased support to ICT initiatives, and to “build ICT-related curricula and research programmes” (Colle & Roman, 2004, p.37). ICT and The Role of Higher Education in Developing Nations In the early twenty-first century, developing continents such as Asia and Africa are increasingly employing Information and Communication Technology for Development (ICT4D) both socially and geographically (Johnson, 2003). Colle & Roman (2004, p.17) assert that universities should increase their role as one of the main actors, building “their capacities to be partners in the ICTs for the development movement”. Most of the African universities have only recently begun to get organized for the ICT environment (da Costa, 2002). Digital technologies are central to new developments in information and communication, hence “higher education institutions in the Africa and Asia can become a more powerful force by applying them to education, training and development issues” (Colle & Roman, 2004, p.18). Through conventional as well as digital media, issues related to child health, gender equality in education, family planning, commerce and governance, are widely propagated in the public interest, implementing governmental policies. In Malaysia, the government considers skilled human capital as the core of a knowledge-based economy, and has undertaken higher education policy reforms in the public and the private sectors (Komogawa 2004). It is important to note that the telecentre and ICT4D movements lack university partnerships in the production and dissemination of research-based, locally relevant quality information. The technical aspect has been developed by various institutions such as India’s Institutes of Technology, and distance learning in southern Africa. Limiting the university role to content development is inadequate, universities need to assist as institutionalized sources of information and support (Clark, 2001). Various community support initiatives are being increasingly implemented; for example, in India, the University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences transformed some of its extension counters into support units for village information centres. Thus, together with access to web pages and information from a world-wide base, useful and relevant information will also be available from the university’s research laboratories. Similarly, universities are involved in extension programmes linking researchers with potential users of their research. Other initiatives include the use of World Bank’s planning grants for hosting Country Gateways by universities in West Bank and Gaza, the Dominican Republic, Rwanda, and Nicaragua (Colle & Roman, 2004). Conclusion This paper has highlighted the role of higher education in developing countries. It has investigated the implications of the global knowledge revolution on developing countries, the signicance of higher education, the importance of information and communication technology in the role of higher education in developing countries, and the need for universities’ support and involvement in community development. Higher education is of vital importance to support progress in all aspects of developing countries. Successfully achieving the goals of higher education towards sustainable development depends increasingly on utilizing the contemporary information and communication technology (ICT) environment. Numerous institutions such as the United Nations participate in applying ICT to a wide range of development challenges. It is crucial that universities should be involved in research regarding the key areas needing development, in extension programmes to ascertain that research evidence reaches those in need of its benefits, in ensuring the training of communities to utilize ICT, in the dissemination of knowledge to communities, and in the building of knowledge-based economies. References Buchmann, C. & Hannum, E. (2001). Education and stratification in developing countries: A review of theories and research. Annual Review of Sociology, 27: 77- 102. Colle, R.D. & Roman, R. (2004). 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Cyberspace, distance learning, and higher education in developing countries: Old and emergent issues of access, pedagogy, and knowledge production. pp.91-144. The Netherlands: Brill Publications. Johnson, K. (2003). Telecenters and the gender dimension: An examination of how engendered telecenters are diffused in Africa. Unpublished M.A. thesis, Georgetown University, Washington D.C. Retrieved on 14th May, 2010 from: http://schoolnetafrica.org/fileadmin/resources/KelbyJohnson.pdf Kapur, D. & Crowley, M. (2008). Beyond the ABCs: Higher education and developing countries. Working Paper No.139. Centre for Global Development. Retrieved on 13th May, 2010 from: http://www.cgdev.org/content/publications/detail/15310/ Kaul, S. (2006). Higher education in India: Seizing the opportunity. Working Paper No.179. Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations. Retrieved on 14th May, 2010 from: http://www.icrier.org/pdf/WP_179.pdf Komogawa, A. (2004). Higher education reform: Challenges towards a knowledge society in Malaysia. In Assie-Lumumba (Ed.). Cyberspace, distance learning, and higher education in developing countries: Old and emergent issues of access, pedagogy, and knowledge production. pp.215-234. The Netherlands: Brill. Kuroda, K. & Shanawez, H.M. (2004). Strategies for promoting virtual higher education: General considerations on Africa and Asia. In Assie-Lumumba (Ed.). Cyberspace, distance learning, and higher education in developing countries: Old and emergent issues of access, pedagogy, and knowledge production. pp.235-246. The Netherlands: Brill Publications. The World Bank. (2000). Higher education in developing countries: Peril and promise. The Task Force on Higher Education and Society. Retrieved on 14th May, 2010 from: http://www.tfhe.net/report/downloads/report/whole.pdf Tilak, J.B. (2000). Higher education in developing countries. Minerva, 38(2): 233-240. Read More