What Future For Higher Education?

In his book Two Cheers for Higher Education: Why American universities are stronger than ever – and how to meet the challenges they face, Steven G. Brint (Princeton University Press) explores the rich history of higher education and its future prospects. Originally, the purposes of higher education were to "prepare students for a few learned professions, and to provide a strong, religiously tinged moral education." That conception changed over time. The great majority of American universities are primarily devoted to teaching students, mainly in occupational fields that in theory equip graduates to obtain jobs. When it comes to research universities, the wide range of activities they offer – such as various trainings, mentoring, production of research papers, patenting of new discoveries – constitute the enacted purposes of research universities.

The author predicts that the focus of American higher education will tend to focus on three main purposes: (1) human capital development (improving the cognitive and non-cognitive skills of students), (2) basic research and research in the national interest, and (3) the provision of access for students from lower-income and under-represented minority backgrounds.

One thing is certain, American higher education is doing quite well. Unlike Africans, American people are less concerned with access issues and the trainings available, and more with the cost and the quality of undergraduate education.

How might we expect higher education in Africa to evolve over the next few years?

It has been recognized that higher education has the potential of providing African-led solutions to African problems. Despite many positive developments in the African higher education sector, many challenges have to be raised, including the poor research output of African universities. In 2014 it was estimated that Africa, which has 15% of the world's population, produced only 1% of the world's research publications and 0.1% of global patents, the bulk of which emanated from two countries – South Africa and Nigeria. While the African Union recommended African countries in 2006 to invest 1% of their GDP on research and development, the shortage of PhD-qualified academic staff and the lack of funds for research remain an important obstacle. Another challenge – which is not specific to Africa though – is corruption in higher education. Those issues should imperatively be addressed through appropriate solutions.

We have to change the research and innovation landscape of Africa. Yes but how?

Pan-African University. Let us remember that Madagascar currently has 33 Doctoral Schools (30 public, 3 private) which offers 105 authorized trainings in total. The African Union established the Pan-African University (PAU) in key development areas in the five regions of Africa, with an emphasis on postgraduate training and research. Malagasy researchers could join the nearest one in Kenya for the East African region – the PAU Institute for Basic Sciences, Technology and Innovation (PAUSTI), hosted by the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology.

African Centres of Excellence. To strengthen postgraduate training and research in priority sectors, the World Bank Group's board of directors approved in 2016 a US$ 140 million credit to set up 24 centres of excellence in universities in eight Eastern and Southern Africa (Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia).

What to expect?

Significant expansion of private higher education. In almost all countries, the number of private institutions exceeds public ones, and sometimes more students enroll in private universities. The major concern here is the quality of the education provided by private institutions which are at first commercial businesses.

Phenomenal increase of the use of ODeL. It is no surprise that open, distance and e-learning (ODel) will be a very important tool to realize Africa's vision about education as written in the African Union's Agenda 2063.

What is urgent now?

Differentiation. It is imperative for African countries to create more polytechnics and technical colleges and offer more specializations. It is also urgent for universities to place greater emphasis on postgraduate training and research than on just teaching and learning. Let us not create copies of the existing ones!

Trends. At the global level, the future of higher education predicts artificial intelligence, analytics, augmented and virtual reality, robotic telepresence and cyber defense will be driving forces in digital-learning at colleges and universities over the next 20 years. Is Africa ready for that? We really have to.

 Source: Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, May 2019

Source: University World News / WBG / African Union / MESUPRES / Psychology Today