David C.L. Lim, Olaf Zawacki-Richter and Insung Jung
This paper engages Olaf Zawacki-Richter and Insung Jung in a frank and penetrating conversation that seeks to ground, frame, and problematise research in the field conceptualised…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper engages Olaf Zawacki-Richter and Insung Jung in a frank and penetrating conversation that seeks to ground, frame, and problematise research in the field conceptualised as “open, distance and digital education” (ODDE). Taking as starting point the recent publication of the landmark Handbook of Open, Distance, and Digital Education (2022), it segues into a broad critique of the shortcomings of ODDE research, the importance of knowledge production on the meso- and macro-levels, the autonomy of ODDE as a field coming into its own, the place of postfoundationalism in ODDE discourse, and related topics that are pivotal in ODDE today.
Design/methodology/approach
The semi-structured interview was employed as the primary qualitative research method.
Findings
The research imperative of the relatively young but complex field of ODDE today is not the incessant reiteration of the same but rather a strategic reorientation that, first, circumvents the well-documented yet too-often-overlooked shortcomings of ODDE research and, second, promotes transboundary collaborations with the potential for system-wide impact.
Originality/value
This novel interview-based critique of ODDE research demonstrates that extending the scholarly discourse beyond the conventional report format is a productive method for enriching conversations on ODDE and vitalising the field itself.
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David C.L. Lim, Hamidah Mat and Fatimah Yusooff
This purpose of this paper is to explore the future of open universities (OUs), particularly in developing Asia, focusing on the potential risks associated with technological…
Abstract
Purpose
This purpose of this paper is to explore the future of open universities (OUs), particularly in developing Asia, focusing on the potential risks associated with technological solutionism, or the popular belief that educational problems can be readily solved through technological means. This exploration is pertinent as the initial advantages that OUs once held have significantly diminished and competing higher education institutions worldwide are converging on a digital future.
Design/methodology/approach
The qualitative method of empathy-based stories (MEBS) was employed as the primary research method for drawing data from sampled OU teachers. The obtained data were parsed via textual analysis and the lens of critical discourses on technology and higher education.
Findings
The study shows that, in the future envisioned by the sampled OU teachers, students’ lack of privileged access to frontier technologies is no barrier to learning success. It also emphasises that learning outcomes have causality beyond technological determinism, and that educational problems, which OUs may deem as requiring technological solutions, are often non-technological in nature and require no technological fixes.
Originality/value
Critiques of techno-solutionism, such as the present study, are virtually absent in the context of OUs in developing Asia. For this very reason, this study is vital and serves as a guardrail while these OUs seek to reformulate their respective value propositions in the time of global digital convergence.
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David Lim and Jane Klobas
This paper investigates the extent to which six factors drawn from the theory and practice of knowledge management can be applied in small organisations. The factors are: balance…
Abstract
This paper investigates the extent to which six factors drawn from the theory and practice of knowledge management can be applied in small organisations. The factors are: balance between need and cost of knowledge acquisition; the extent to which knowledge originates in the external environment; internal knowledge processing; internal knowledge storage; use and deployment of knowledge within the organisation; and attention to human resources. Three cases demonstrate that the fundamental concepts and principles of knowledge management are similar for small and large organisations. Differences include the value placed on systematic knowledge management practices such as formalised environmental scanning and computer‐based knowledge sharing systems. Consultants, and library and information professionals, are advised to understand the organisation’s management and communication culture; emphasise simple and inexpensive systems integrated into everyday practice; and establish and monitor adherence to tools such as records management schedules. Information professionals can contribute much by managing systems which use vocabularies to enhance information retrieval for knowledge sharing.
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Kisha Chantelle Krishna and Habibul Haque Khondker
Argues taht the idea of global and national/international categories being inherently opposed, is a fallacy of the globalization debate. Seeks to illustrate how “international”…
Abstract
Argues taht the idea of global and national/international categories being inherently opposed, is a fallacy of the globalization debate. Seeks to illustrate how “international” co‐operation can have favourable national consdequences. Explores the implications of international volunteerism for nation‐building in Singapore.
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Many students do not benefit from mainstream education and are forced to leave it. Governments and non‐government organisations concerned with the social injustice and problems…
Abstract
Purpose
Many students do not benefit from mainstream education and are forced to leave it. Governments and non‐government organisations concerned with the social injustice and problems that such rejection could cause offer these students second‐chance education programmes. This paper aims to examine the effectiveness of such opportunities, using as a case‐study the Vocational Training Council (VTC) of Hong Kong, which offers programmes in vocational education and training (VET) but draws lessons for the offer of such programmes elsewhere.
Design/methodology/approach
The study uses a case‐study approach but sets it within the general literature on, and discussion of, second‐chance education. It concentrates on programmes that prepare students for the younger end of the labour market.
Findings
The VTC is effective because its programmes are easily accessible and have excellent student progression rates. Its graduates from lower‐level progammes perform as well as those with better academic backgrounds from other institutions in the VTC's higher‐level programmes, and also as well in the labour market. Reasons for this success include course design and implementation that avoid much of what put the young off mainstream education, the provision of a caring environment, the removal of the stigma attached to second‐chance education and VET, and the provision of a through‐train education system.
Research limitations/implications
In assessing the effectiveness of the VTC, most attention is placed on the criteria where reliable data are available. This means that less evidence is presented on employment performance, a gap that will be filled by future research.
Practical implications
The findings enable policy makers in Hong Kong and elsewhere to improve the effectiveness of their second‐chance education.
Originality/value
The paper examines an unexplored area of education in Hong Kong, using a methodology that is applicable for similar studies elsewhere.
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Ever since hydrocarbon resources were exploited off the coast of Terengganu in 1978, a state in Peninsular Malaysia, its built environment underwent dramatic physical…
Abstract
Ever since hydrocarbon resources were exploited off the coast of Terengganu in 1978, a state in Peninsular Malaysia, its built environment underwent dramatic physical transformation arising from huge investments in first‐grade infrastructure and industrial facilities, largely hydrocarbon‐related in nature. Yet, more than two decades later, the stock and technical competencies of the local contractors have not been to the level one might expect, despite prolonged robust demand that should have acted as an alluring incentive for entrepreneurship. There were, of course, enabling factors such as favorable client and government interventions. However, the inhibitors ‐ economic model, socio‐cultural traits, institution, mix of construction demand and even the recent change in political landscape ‐ were found to exert an even greater influence. The findings of this study underscore the necessity of identifying the influential forces exerting on the construction community's operating environment before any construction entrepreneurial development programme is instituted so that realistic targets can be set. Furthermore, as different regions may possess different types and intensities of such forces, implementing standard policy prescription is likely to yield sub‐national diversity
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Malaysia is one of the high performing economies (HPE) in Southeast Asia. It had experienced strong growth and development for the period between 1957 and 1995. Socioeconomic…
Abstract
Malaysia is one of the high performing economies (HPE) in Southeast Asia. It had experienced strong growth and development for the period between 1957 and 1995. Socioeconomic planning, structural and trade adjustments, and adoption of pragmatic policies that promoted agriculture as well as the manufacturing sub‐sector resulted in higher productivities, incomes and standards of living. Policymakers were also successful in adopting policies that mitigated poverty and, to a lesser extent, decreased income inequality.