The purpose of this study was to better understand the historical
development of the British Columbia (B.C.) community college, university college,
and institute system with the focus on the changing nature of voluntary inter-institutional
collaboration in relation to provincial coordination. The study also
examined the related themes of centralization and decentralization within B.C.'s
system and the development of a provincial system of autonomous institutions.
The methodology used was qualitative, and more specifically, interpretive
in nature and based on the historical method and the underlying assumptions of
hermeneutics. The researcher began by analyzing pertinent primary and secondary
sources of literature in relation to the study's purpose. The findings from the
literature analysis formed the basis for interview questions that were asked of 10
key informants to fill gaps in understanding and confirm findings.
The study found that the B.C. system began as a decentralized group of
autonomous, community-oriented institutions but became more centrally
coordinated by government in the late 1970s and early 1980s, largely because of
increased costs and a worsening economy. The 1990s witnessed a high level of
centralized decision making with stakeholder involvement, which has been
replaced by a move towards decentralization and greater institutional autonomy in
the early 2000s based on the market ideology of the new government. Throughout
the decades, the B.C. system has had a history of voluntary collaboration but that
collaboration has been gradually blended over time with provincial coordination as
government built a system of autonomous institutions.
The main conclusions of the study are that an appropriate balance may be
achievable between centralization and decentralization in order to maintain a
coherent system of accountable, autonomous institutions but would need systematic
efforts by government and institutions and a policy framework for system
governance. Such a balance may be achieved by learning from the lessons of B.C.'s
rich history and from the experiences of other jurisdictions. To achieve system
goals, the Ministry and institutions could build on the history of voluntary
collaborative efforts, which seem particularly important among educators at the
program level. The Ministry might reward such collaboration and hold institutions
accountable for it. / Graduation date: 2003
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ORGSU/oai:ir.library.oregonstate.edu:1957/31102 |
| Date | 14 November 2002 |
| Creators | Gaber, Devron Alexander, 1952- |
| Contributors | Copa, George H. |
| Source Sets | Oregon State University |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis/Dissertation |
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