Week 2: Higher Education: Governance, Management and Practice

Overview of Maldivian Higher Education System

Maldives established its very first college in 1998 under the name Maldivian College of Higher Education (MCHE) which later changed to Maldives National University (MNU) in 2011, making it the first University in the country. It was only after 2008, MCHE/MNU had its first competitor -Villa College, the second higher education institution in the country. Hence, the higher education system in Maldives is still in its infancy and has a lot to learn from the developed countries.

For the purpose of this task, examples are taken from these two institutions, namely Maldives National University (MNU) and Villa College. Please visit the following site for further information.

http://www.villacollege.edu.mv/index.php/about-villa-college

http://www.mnu.edu.mv/index.php/the-university

Challenges in Governance, Management and Practice in HE

Ø  Competition in attracting and retaining quality staffs

v  In Maldives the teaching profession is not valued enough, hence there is a lack of human resource in this field. Main reason for this is due to the small salary compared to other professions. In addition , due to other mismanagement issues and poor governance, for example, lack of proper structure and fairness in giving promotions , salary increment and appraisals, a lot of qualified professionals are leaving this field for better opportunities overseas.

v  To address this issue higher education system needs to develop proper policies regarding salary structure and increments and make sure that an equal emphasis is given to higher education sector. Emphasis should also be given to provide professional development opportunities in this sector. Kim and Loadman (1994) also mentioned that intrinsic (professional challenge, professional autonomy, interaction with colleagues and students) and extrinsic (working conditions, salary increment) rewards need to be offered to maintain the quality staffs and to attract quality staffs.

Ø  Quality assurance

v  The two main methods of quality assurance used in Maldives are evaluation of teaching by students and lecturers' performance appraisal process. Often, the results of both of these processes are unreliable mainly because most students do not take it seriously and  fill such evaluation forms just for the sake of it, or they tend to favour certain lecturers. Secondly, sometimes appraisals are highly subjective and often based on only one lecture observation. Depending only on these two methods are not enough because as Anderson (2006) describes, the authority given to students in evaluating lecturers has the potential for damage. In addition Anderson also states that  "performance appraisal process is a surveillance that could potentially be used  against the lecturers".

v  Hence, better ways to assure quality need to be considered. For example models like `production model’, which depicts a direct relationship between inputs and outputs  (Tam, 2011) can be used. In addition using  the `value-added approach’- which measures the gain by students before and after they receive higher education, and the `total quality experience approach’- which aims to capture the entire learning experience undergone by students during their years in universities or colleges need to be practiced (Tam, 2011).

Ø  Technology

v  Mainly multimedia projectors are used during lectures. Although there is access to multimedia resources most lectures do not use them properly because of time constraints in preparing the secondary resources or due to lack of up to date knowledge and confidence in using them properly. In addition Internet/ WiFi is slow or unavailable and unreliable.

v  To address this problem professional development workshops need to be held for existing lecturers to help them build their confidence in utilizing latest technology in class. Learning management systems like blackboard/moodle need to be established so that both students and lecturers become more used to the latest technologies. This is important to prepare the students and staffs to survive in the globalised world.

Ø  Teaching pedagogies

v  Both higher education institutions use face to face lecture method using PowerPoint presentation and few discussions. A variety of methods need to be used for delivery. For instance, blended  learning methods need to be introduced and practiced.

v  This would give access to educational opportunities for a wider population, for example students in rural and remote islands.

Ø  Research

v  Area of research has not been a focus of higher education in the Maldives. There is no research journal in the country. Reasons could be due to the lack of funding to conduct research, lack of qualified researchers and because there are more important issues to address at the moment than research area. However, due to the lack of a research focus students graduating from these institutions lack knowledge of research methods and practice.

Conclusion

As Maldives higher education system is still in its infant stage it has to cope with a lot of challenges in governing the system. First, it should focus on ways to enhance the quality of the system by attracting and retaining qualified lecturers. This can be done by providing an attractive salary and other benefits.  Secondly, these higher education institutions need to make more use of the latest technologies both in teaching and in the learning process. Pedagogical instructions need to be enhanced by using a variety of methods using multimedia, internet and learning management system to ensure that its graduates are ready to enter the work place in the globalised world. Finally, both institutions need to improve its focus on research area so that the staffs as well as the students are equipped with the skills required to survive in this technologically advanced era.

Reference

§  Kim I and  Loadman, W.(1994). Predicting Teacher  Job Satisfaction. Retrieved March 12, 2014 from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED383707.pdf

•  Tam, M. (2001). Measuring quality in higher education. from http://www.tandfonline.com.wwwproxy0.library.unsw.edu.au/doi/abs/10.1080/13538320120045076