Relatively little research on blended learning (BL) addresses institutional adoption in higher education. Graham, Woodfield, and Harrison (2012) proposed a framework for institutional BL adoption, identifying three stages: (a) awareness/exploration, (b) adoption/early implementation, and (c) mature implementation/growth. The framework also identified key strategy, structure, and support issues universities may address at each stage. In this series of articles, the authors applied that framework to institutions of higher education implementing BL. In the first article, the authors applied the framework to 11 Next Generation Learning Challenge (NGLC) grant recipients transitioning from Stage 1 to Stage 2 of BL adoption. The authors compared U.S. institutional strategy, structure, and support approaches to BL adoption and identified patterns and distinctions. In the final two articles, the authors applied the framework as well as Rogers' (2003) diffusion of innovations theory to determine the degree to which and why institutional strategy, structure, and support measures would facilitate or impede BL adoption among higher education faculty. The authors also explored whether faculty's innovation adoption category would affect which measures facilitated or impeded BL adoption. To achieve these objectives, the authors surveyed and interviewed faculty at BYU-Idaho (BYU-I). In the second article, the authors reviewed the survey results to determine (a) the appropriate innovation adoption category for each faculty member and (b) the factors that impacted faculty decisions to adopt BL. In the third article, the authors reviewed the results of the interviews to identify why participants reported strategy, structure, and support decisions would impact their decision to adopt BL.

Pioneering legislation such as Sections 504 and 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 1997, and the Assistive Technology Act of 1998 have increased attention to the needs of individuals with disabilities. These regulations require that public programs and services are accessible to people with disabilities (Griffin, 2004). This descriptive case study examines policy design to conform with Sections 504 and 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 at a public research university through the lens of Bolman and Deal’s four frames of organizational analysis. These frames include: (a) the structural frame, (b) the human resource frame, (c) the political frame, and (d) the symbolic frame. Results of the study indicate that accessibility policies in postsecondary education that address access to web content and course materials should develop a systematic approach to establishing an action plan to identify barriers and develop solutions. This includes a strategic commitment to policy planning, development, implementation, monitoring, and assessment.

This research seeks to answer two questions: why did Jamaica include its higher education (HE) sector in its General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) ‘Schedule of Commitments’; and, how do the politicians and policy makers view the impact of this decision? For answers, I looked at arguments linking the GATS with national development and with HE. The thesis explores Jamaica’s HE policy strategies, how they are formed, how well, even after the fact, the decision-makers understand the implications of the regulatory framework of the GATS and the loss of control implicit in some of its tenets. This study is anchored in research findings by UNESCO and the World Bank, among others, which show that HE systems serve as the foundation for nations’ social and economic development, in providing the required knowledge and high levels of trained manpower to build their human capital. However, suggestions have been made that inequities in the global trading system constrain small developing countries in implementing policies that serve these objectives. Therefore, the emergence of the GATS as a new regulatory structure for trade in educational services raises concerns about the ability of countries like Jamaica, to promote an HE system likely to meet their needs. iii Twenty senior policy actors within Jamaican society were interviewed to elicit their views on national priorities for HE and, the opportunities or threats to their fulfilment presented by the GATS Commitment. Of particular interest is the growth in cross-border HE services found in Jamaica. The research found that notwithstanding the inequities of the global trading system, Jamaica embraces the concepts of liberalisation and free trade, and its negotiators, in formulating the Commitment, were seized with GATS’ potential for rapidly expanding access to HE. However, the evidence of this research suggests they were ill-prepared to make this decision, and clearly there is need for a better understanding of the role of HE in Jamaica’s development.

This thesis investigates higher education regionalization by studying the case of the Asia Pacific Quality Assurance Network (APQN). In this thesis, higher education regionalization is conceptualized in three ideal-types: 1) as a sub-set of higher education globalization, 2) as a regional form of higher education internationalization, and 3) as an alternative to higher education globalization. Theories of international relations and globalization are used to develop a conceptual framework of the norms, values, ideologies, and concepts of regional identity that underpin these constructs. The main research question asks what can be learned about higher education regionalization through a study of the APQN? A sequential mixed method approach is used to gather data from textual analysis, key informant interviews, participant observation, and an online survey to investigate how the APQN bridges national, regional, and international levels of quality assurance in higher education. A methodological triangulation design is implemented to pinpoint the ideal-type of higher education regionalization that most represents the APQN. An embedded case study of Việt Nam’s QA capacity building activities demonstrates the APQN’s role in one country. The findings suggest that the ideal-type of higher education regionalization as a sub-set of globalization best represents the APQN. The nature of the APQN as a network for QA professionals highlights the transformative role that globalization is playing within the nation state. Instead of globalization being a homogenizing force on higher education systems, this study shows that higher education regionalization as a sub-set of globalization is changing the role of the nation state into a regulator for the global market. Higher education regionalization as a sub-set of globalization does not remove the control of the nation state, but rather reinforces the state’s role as a monitor of higher education for market competition. The study concludes by suggesting opportunities for QA policymakers and practitioners to shape higher education regionalization.

This thesis investigates higher education regionalization by studying the case of the Asia Pacific Quality Assurance Network (APQN). In this thesis, higher education regionalization is conceptualized in three ideal-types: 1) as a sub-set of higher education globalization, 2) as a regional form of higher education internationalization, and 3) as an alternative to higher education globalization. Theories of international relations and globalization are used to develop a conceptual framework of the norms, values, ideologies, and concepts of regional identity that underpin these constructs. The main research question asks what can be learned about higher education regionalization through a study of the APQN? A sequential mixed method approach is used to gather data from textual analysis, key informant interviews, participant observation, and an online survey to investigate how the APQN bridges national, regional, and international levels of quality assurance in higher education. A methodological triangulation design is implemented to pinpoint the ideal-type of higher education regionalization that most represents the APQN. An embedded case study of Việt Nam’s QA capacity building activities demonstrates the APQN’s role in one country. The findings suggest that the ideal-type of higher education regionalization as a sub-set of globalization best represents the APQN. The nature of the APQN as a network for QA professionals highlights the transformative role that globalization is playing within the nation state. Instead of globalization being a homogenizing force on higher education systems, this study shows that higher education regionalization as a sub-set of globalization is changing the role of the nation state into a regulator for the global market. Higher education regionalization as a sub-set of globalization does not remove the control of the nation state, but rather reinforces the state’s role as a monitor of higher education for market competition. The study concludes by suggesting opportunities for QA policymakers and practitioners to shape higher education regionalization.

This research seeks to answer two questions: why did Jamaica include its higher education (HE) sector in its General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) ‘Schedule of Commitments’; and, how do the politicians and policy makers view the impact of this decision? For answers, I looked at arguments linking the GATS with national development and with HE. The thesis explores Jamaica’s HE policy strategies, how they are formed, how well, even after the fact, the decision-makers understand the implications of the regulatory framework of the GATS and the loss of control implicit in some of its tenets. This study is anchored in research findings by UNESCO and the World Bank, among others, which show that HE systems serve as the foundation for nations’ social and economic development, in providing the required knowledge and high levels of trained manpower to build their human capital. However, suggestions have been made that inequities in the global trading system constrain small developing countries in implementing policies that serve these objectives. Therefore, the emergence of the GATS as a new regulatory structure for trade in educational services raises concerns about the ability of countries like Jamaica, to promote an HE system likely to meet their needs. iii Twenty senior policy actors within Jamaican society were interviewed to elicit their views on national priorities for HE and, the opportunities or threats to their fulfilment presented by the GATS Commitment. Of particular interest is the growth in cross-border HE services found in Jamaica. The research found that notwithstanding the inequities of the global trading system, Jamaica embraces the concepts of liberalisation and free trade, and its negotiators, in formulating the Commitment, were seized with GATS’ potential for rapidly expanding access to HE. However, the evidence of this research suggests they were ill-prepared to make this decision, and clearly there is need for a better understanding of the role of HE in Jamaica’s development.

Föreliggande rapport är resultatet av sex intervjuer kompletterade med litteraturgranskning. Rapporten speglar den pågående debatten kring studieavgifter. Den redovisar, inspirerad av diskursanalytisk metod, tre skilda diskursiva debatter dvs. lärosätets, individens, samhällets, på två diskussionsområden - kompensatoriska åtgärder samt möjligheter, fördelar/styrkor. Rapporten påvisar de problem och lösningar som förts fram inom dessa. Respondenterna lyfter fram att studieavgifter handlar om ett ömsesidigt investeringsproblem för framtida välfärd – för individen såväl som för samhället. Respondenterna pekar också på att samverkan mellan departement behövs liksom företagsstöd för industristipendier eftersom full kostnadstäckning behövs. Brister i investering blir ett dilemma som långsiktigt påverkar Sveriges välfärd och även den enskilda studentens välfärd, i synnerhet för den som inte själv har ekonomiska resurser. Fem av sex respondenter har den samlade synen på avgifter att kravet på full kostnadstäckning inte är rimligt utan ett välfungerande stipendiesystem och innebär att vi förlorar alltför många studenter. Den preliminära lösningen är att vidta kompensatoriska åtgärder samt att regeringen tillskjuter medel, säger studieanordnarna. Jag drar slutsatsen att vi ännu inte är redo för att ta hand om konsekvenserna av avgifter och att samverkansdebatten knappt påbörjats. / This paper is based upon six interviews completed by making a literature examination. The paper reflects the current debate on tuition fees. It shows, inspired by a discourse analysis method, three separate discursive debates i.e. higher education, the individual, the society, in two areas of discussion – compensatory measures and potentials, advantages/ stability. The paper demonstrates the problems and solutions put forward in these areas. The respondents highlight that tuition fees are about a mutual investment problem for future welfare - for the individual as well as the society. The respondents also point out that there needs to be collaboration between the ministries, as well as financial support for industrial scholarships because costs need to be completely covered. Lack in investment becomes a dilemma that affects Sweden’s welfare and even the students individual welfare in the long term, particularly for the one who does not have own economic resources. Five of six respondents have an overall view on tuition fees that indicate the demands on full cost coverage is not reasonable without a well-functioning scholarship system and results in us losing too many students. The preliminary solution is to take compensatory actions and that the government contributes funding, the study providers say. I conclude that we are not yet ready to deal with the consequences of tuition fees and that a collaborative debate has just begun.

Public higher education is a large enterprise in the United States. Total state expenditures for higher education totaled nearly $152 billion dollars in FY2008, accounting for over ten percent of total state expenditures and representing the single largest category of discretionary spending in most states (NASBO, 2009). The last three decades have witnessed the introduction of hundreds of pieces of legislation across states which make structural changes to state higher education governance systems (Marcus, 1997; McLendon, Deaton, and Hearn, 2007). Despite the ubiquity of state higher education governance change much remains unknown, both in terms of why states choose to enact reforms as well as the implications of state governance arrangements for institutional performance. This dissertation attempts to fill these critical gaps in knowledge. First, it surveys the historical development of state higher education governance structures and reviews the limited empirical literature regarding the antecedents and impacts of various state approaches to higher education management. Drawing on this literature, the first empirical chapter, utilizing hazard modeling, seeks to uncover the factors associated with state enactment of legislation decentralizing higher education governance. It finds that state fiscal characteristics emerge as strong predictors of decentralization. Specifically, states with greater tax efforts are much less likely to decentralize, while states experiencing real dollar declines in tax revenues are much more likely to decentralize, all else constant. The second empirical chapter explores the implications of state management of public higher education for institutional degree completion rates. Utilizing a unique, institutional-level dataset comprising 518 public, four-year institutions of higher education in the United States, it finds that, controlling for relevant institutional-level characteristics such as institutional selectivity, mission, and per-FTE student expenditures, inter-institutional competition emerges as a powerful predictor of student degree completion. Institutions operating in more competitive environments—defined as states with less concentrated undergraduate enrollments and states with weaker higher education governance structures—graduate students at higher rates than institutions operating in less competitive environments. The dissertation concludes by discussing the implications for these empirical findings for policy makers seeking to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of public higher education.

In response to the challenges presented by unprecedented growth in higher education (HE) since 1978, China adopted policy experimentation (PE) as a means of introducing and testing HE reforms. This study involves four in-depth case studies of important reforms facilitated by policy experiments at different junctures of China's HE development: early 1980s, mid-late 1980s, late 1990s, and early 2010s. Within each reform, two elite universities as 'experiment points' (shi dian) were selected. Through cross-case analysis informed by semi-structured interviews and extensive documentary analysis, the study offers a holistic historical perspective on how PE has been used to bring about institutional changes in China's higher education. The study documents different rationales used for implementing policy experiments. State actors use PE to exert pressure on universities to introduce reforms, to lower associated risks and to strengthen the nation's overall HE policymaking capacity in a volatile and extremely heterogeneous context. For their part, university leaders have adopted PE locally to navigate China's politically charged policymaking environment and to negotiate with state actors more favourable terms for reforms. Therefore, the PE approach enables state-university interactions and power negotiations that create and maintain 'strategy space' for consensus-building and institutional changes. It is an iterative process characterised by central-local interaction and intentionally ambiguous boundaries. The state, however, retains ultimate authority for legitimatising, selecting and expanding policy experiments. It is best understood as elite-enabled experimentation within existing political hierarchies. Over time, China's PE approach has become a semi-institutionalised mechanism for HE reforms. In the various policy experiments discussed in this study, PE functions as a productive, disciplinary and symbolic force at different stages of the policy process. Sometimes it appears to offer a genuinely productive mechanism for producing, identifying and negotiating innovative policy options that may be replicated at a larger scale; sometimes its essential use lies in its generated regulative effect; and sometimes it assumes more of a symbolic role allowing the government to acquire or consolidate reform legitimacy. Policy processes are mediated by these different uses of PE towards either reform efficacy or institutional conformity. This study situates these reforms within broader political, social, economic and historical contexts, and highlights the policy implications for higher education reform internationally.

Notwithstanding challenges facing systems of higher education world-wide, higher education in South Africa has been fundamentally re-engineered since the achievement of democracy in 1994. The University of South Africa (Unisa) emerged as the only dedicated distance education institution and the biggest provider of higher education. Against the background of transformation in higher education policy and practice in South Africa, this study aimed to address the implementation of higher education policy in relation to the provision of distance education in South Africa, with special reference to Unisa. To address the research problem, a literature study investigated theoretical perspectives, recent policy trends in higher education globally and their influence on distance education and the impact of higher education policy development and implementation in South Africa on Open Distance Learning (ODL) provision. A mixed method empirical research design was used to explore how the academic and administrative cohort of top and middle and extended management at Unisa perceive the implementation of higher education policy at their institution in relation to distance education provision. The inquiry comprised two phases: Phase 1, a quantitative component entailed a survey using a self-designed questionnaire. A non-probability purposive sampling strategy was used to select respondents for the survey, and the entire target population (Unisa employees at middle to executive management level) participated. Phase 2, a qualitative component, entailed semi-structured interviews with a purposeful sample: members of top management and two council members. The survey results indicated strong agreement on the need for strategy and planning, more funding and improved levels of service. There was disagreement or ambivalence around sufficient human and infrastructural capacity, the cost of ODL, quality and the efficiency of ICT systems and processes. Four major areas of concern emerged from the interviews: Transformation (the national transformation agenda and mindset change); funding (enrolment planning and capping, the unfunded student issue and salaries); institutional efficiency (strategy, planning, capacity and quality); and the cost of ODL and the need for a dedicated ODL Policy. The study concluded with recommendations to facilitate the enhanced practice and delivery of ODL in South Africa. / Educational Studies