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For a developing nation like Kenya, an effective higher education system is essential for its national development. Often intermediary bodies, such as the Commission for Higher Education in Kenya, are established and mandated to oversee higher education systems. As a “buffer” agency between the state and the universities, the Commission is strategically placed to ensure an effective and productive higher education system that serves the Kenyan society and advances the development of the nation. The purpose of this research is to investigate and describe the contribution of an intermediary body responsible for the coordination of the higher education system in a developing nation. The research describes the legal framework for the establishment of the Commission for Higher Education in Kenya and focuses on the three main functions of this intermediary agency: planning, program review and budget review. The research uses a historical case-study design that includes extensive documentation analysis coupled with interviews in order to understand the experience of the Commission for Higher Education in Kenya from its establishment in 1985 up to the present. The main objectives of the research are: a) To describe the legal framework for the establishment of the Commission for Higher Education for Kenya and analyze its mandate and terms of reference; b) To investigate and describe the experience of the Commission for Higher Education for Kenya with reference to the following primary functions of intermediary bodies: planning, budget review and program review. In addition to describing the legal framework that established the Commission and its work in planning, program review and budget review, the research provides recommendations for improved effectiveness as a buffer agency. Chief among these is the need for legislative change that would create an empowering legal framework. Specific recommendations for improvements in core function service areas (planning, program review and budget review) are also provided. The study is important because it addresses service improvement issues in a context where the development agenda demands effective and efficient leadership in the higher education sector.

The purpose of this study is to create a framework for theological education in an African context. It focuses on discipleship and mediated learning experience (MLE) because it encapsulates the fundamental idea of this study, namely that the concepts and principles of discipleship and MLE can effectively contribute to construct a framework that is appropriate for theological education in an African context. In an analysis of the discourse on theological education over the past five decades the following six models for theological education are identified: classical model; vocational model; dialectical model; neo-traditional model; missional model; and ecumenical-diversified model. Further evaluation of these six models lets four central themes emerge, namely leadership stature, practical effectiveness, relational capacity, and spiritual accuracy. These four themes are then compared with a competence-based model for learning in order to conceptualise a broad outline framework for theological education in an African context. The development of this framework must address the primary challenge of competent church leaders in Africa, but also contextual challenges like access to theological education, a lack of resources, socio-political and socio-economic illness, and an Africanized scholarship and curriculum. An analysis of the concept discipleship focuses on its use in ancient Greek, the Old Testament, the Intertestamental period, and the New Testament. Discipleship developed from the general referral to an apprentice in ancient Greek, up to a specialised term in New Testament times. Discipleship in the New Testament is the result of obedience to the call of Jesus, which often requires a cost of self denial. This cost has an effect on the relational proximity within discipleship. Following leads to imitating, this leads to representation. The context of discipleship in the New Testament is the eschatological kingdom of God. Each of the four Gospels emphasises a different aspect of discipleship, which relates broadly to the central themes identified within the discourse on theological education. Discipleship in Matthew largely relates to leadership stature, Mark to practical effectiveness, Luke to relational capacity, and John to spiritual accuracy. The conceptual analysis of mediated learning experience (MLE) focuses on its historical background, theoretical background, and core parameters of intentionality-and-reciprocity, mediation of meaning, and transcendence. MLE is rooted in the belief that the human mind is modifiable. Intelligence is not fixed but is defined as a propensity for change. A lack of MLE results in cultural deprivation but can be altered by MLE interventions. A mediated approach to learning stems from constructivism but stands opposed to its direct approach to learning. In MLE a human mediator (H) is placed between the stimulus (S) and organism (O), and between the organism (O) and the response (R); thus a relational sequence of S-H-O-H-R. Various research studies show that MLE brings about cognitive development for individuals in an African context. MLE and discipleship share a mediated approach to learning. Further comparison between these two concepts bring about three shared foci, namely: a focus on relationship; a focus on process (as opposed to product); and a focus on culture. A framework for theological education in an African context is constructed from two sides, namely: (1) from the previously defined broad outline framework for theological education; and (2) from the concepts and principles of discipleship and MLE. This construction first merges a competence-based model for learning with a mediated approach to learning against a contextual background. This basis is secondly fused with a shared focus on relationship, a shared focus on process, and a shared focus on culture. The third step incorporates the themes leadership stature, practical effectiveness, relational capacity, and spiritual accuracy into the framework as four competences and in so doing creates a three-dimensional diagram. The framework for theological education in an African context, developed by this research study, provides possible solutions for the contextual challenges theological education in Africa is facing. Eight recommendations, in the form of research questions, are made to advance the research findings of this study.

This research project was an in-depth case study, an investigation of a small sample of white South African male academics from the University of Cape Town who were part of the USHEPiA (University Science, Humanities, and Engineering Partnerships in Africa) initiative. The project investigated these University of Cape Town academics experiences and perceptions of another African country and university, and considered the effect that this might have had on the academic's own life.

<p> Maier Acosta, Ana Margarita, Ph.D., Purdue University, May 2016. A Multiculturalist and Sociotransformative Approach to Entrepreneurship Education in Honduras. Major Professor: JoAnn Phillion. This research seeks to take advantage of the converging points among multicultural education, sociotransformative constructivism and entrepreneurship education to propose new ways of teaching entrepreneurship through a multicultural approach in Honduras, based on the potential that entrepreneurship education has to impact society. Action research, because of its potential to connect theory and practice was used as the methodology for this project. This study had the purpose of exploring the efficacy and effects of incorporating multicultural education into entrepreneurship education through a sociotransformative constructivist theoretical framework at the graduate school in the leading private university at Honduras, UNITEC. Entrepreneurship&acute;s contextual nature, its desire to foster individualism and its potential to impact society provided the perfect platform for multicultural education through the incorporation of sociotransformative constructivism in the curriculum to act as an awareness raising device for both students and the teacher. A review of multicultural literature and business education literature, specifically entrepreneurship education literature, reveals adisconnect between the two fields. Even though in some literature the integration of multicultural education is implicit; it is not explicitly stated. The field of Entrepreneurship in Honduras had never been studied before through the lens of such a theory and this as a starting point from which future research should be done.</p>

<p> A primary goal of universities is to maximize student enrollment by improving course curriculum and enhancing specific programs. This is especially a challenge for smaller universities who want to offer specialized and highly diverse electives. This study aims to increase the quality and relevance of electives offered by understanding specifically what attributes students prefer more or less when choosing among alternatives. The results are used to explore how to use limited marketing and student-outreach financial resources to target students that are most likely to enter and complete courses and programs, based in part on their socioeconomic or demographic characteristics. The application is aimed at the economics unit at Michigan Technological University, which offers two programs: an undergraduate economics major and a master&rsquo;s program in applied natural resource economics. Using an efficiently-designed discrete-choice experiment, this study elicits over 700 students&rsquo; stated preferences over a variety of attributes of economics courses related to the natural environment. Students were surveyed, and each student was presented with six different pairwise choice options that were developed based on 36 different alternative courses consisting of 8 attributes, such as class topics, professor rank, time of day, and research requirement. There were three significant covariates (political preference, economic interest, and domestic/foreign status). A latent-class discrete-choice random-utility model is estimated to probabilistically group students into different preference classes. Four preference classes emerge from the results that are highly heterogeneous in terms of the marginal utilities and the probabilities of being in a given class. For example, the largest class (40%) is made up of mostly conservative students, and the smallest class (12%) is made almost entirely of liberal students. While this study and the applicability of the specific results is unique to Michigan Technological University, the use of stated preference surveys and latent-class models is highly flexible and can be applied to any program at any university</p>

<p> Every field of study has a set of domain-specific concepts that anyone who desires to work in that field must know and understand. Most students who pursue university degrees in engineering trust that their education is designed to provide them with this knowledge. But does it? In electrical engineering (EE), conceptual understanding of electrical phenomena has rarely been addressed. Even though the presumed goal of instructors and students alike is to learn the concepts of electrical phenomena well enough to be able to use the concepts to design useful things, it is difficult to determine whether this goal is being achieved. The purpose of this study was to develop reasonable representations of the mental models used by senior EE students as they thought about and worked with electrical phenomena. Focusing on students&rsquo; mental models of threshold concepts in electrical phenomena can thus increase knowledge of students&rsquo; conceptual understanding, which can contribute to systematic research into pedagogical and assessment methods in this area of study, which forms one of the most basic and fundamental areas of knowledge needed by EE students.</p><p> Thus, the research question addressed by this study was:</p><p> What do senior EE students&rsquo; mental models of the fundamental electrical phenomena of voltage, current, and the relationship between them look like? </p><p> The theory of mental models claims that everyone organizes their understanding of the way the world works by constructing models in the mind by which they both explain phenomena that they observe, and make predictions about what is likely to occur in a given situation.</p><p> To observe the students&rsquo; mental models in operation, semi-structured interviews were used to engage the participants in a conversation concerning their knowledge and experience in applying electrical ideas. Using discourse analysis, a representation of each student&rsquo;s mental model was created, consisting of a concept map and a short narrative. While the models were all different, analysis of them as a group led to the emergence of five dominant themes, or ways of thinking.</p><p> The findings of this study have implications for the course of study that these students are engaged in. How effective has it been in developing the conceptual understanding that they will need after they graduate? Knowledge of the outcomes of a course of study: the conceptual understanding of these students, the misconceptions present in their models, and the dominant themes that drive their models, can inform ongoing efforts in curriculum development. </p>

<p> There is limited literature regarding how higher education leaders influence and shape curriculum do for graduate students. The question is how the curriculum is influenced by higher education leaders. The purpose of this exploratory qualitative study was to discover how those in leadership positions in higher education influence and shape curriculum for business school graduate students. Examining the influence higher education leaders have on curriculum design will provide information to universities to evaluate their current processes and may help universities continue to improve program quality. An exploratory qualitative descriptive approach was taken for this study. Qualitative data was collected via eight interviews with those involved in curriculum design. Specifically, participants for this study were those in leadership positions (administrators, deans, associate deans, and senior faculty) in the masters of business administration (MBA) program at a selected university in the Northeast region of the United States. The data from the interview transcripts were analyzed to discover how those in leadership positions in higher education influence and shape curriculum for business school graduate students. The four major themes identified in this study were flexibility, streamlining, continuous improvement, and innovation. The study revealed that factors such as flexibility, communication (internal and external), adaptability, and technology all contribute to robustness of the graduate business curriculum and are a reflection of how those in leadership positions influence the curriculum. The findings from the study revealed similar views regarding participants&rsquo; experiences about their role in influencing and shaping the curriculum, challenges faced, and common experiences among several participants. The study revealed that the participants reported positive feedback on their level of participation with the curriculum design process. The practical implications that may result from the proposed research may explain the current leadership structures, both formal and informal, within department of business. Results of the study may also have the potential to inform the development of future curriculum design efforts to enable current and future department faculty and chairs to influence curriculum design as effectively as possible.</p>