Ian Hardy and Petri Salo
The purpose of this paper is to explore the governance of educational reform, as an interpretive process – “interpretive governance” – through a case study of five superintendents…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the governance of educational reform, as an interpretive process – “interpretive governance” – through a case study of five superintendents living in a predominantly Swedish-speaking region in Finland.
Design/methodology/approach
To foreground superintendents’ perspectives on reforms as simultaneously reflective and constitutive of governance processes, the research applies and extends Rhodes’ (2012) notions of “network governance,” “meta-governance” and “interpretive governance.” Interpretive governance, an underresearched area, is construed as particularly important for developing better insights into how school reform is understood by key actors involved in its enactment.
Findings
The research identifies what are described as three “deliberative” dimensions of interpretive governance; these modes of governance are elaborated as “dialogic,” “directive” and “defensive” in nature.
Originality/value
The study reveals senior educators’ interpretations of governance as multifaceted, and argues that these complex modes of deliberation need to be taken into account to better understand how school development is understood and enacted in municipal and school settings.
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This paper aims to explore how the Australian Government represented issues of sustainability in Australian international higher education (IHE) policies and how it framed efforts…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to explore how the Australian Government represented issues of sustainability in Australian international higher education (IHE) policies and how it framed efforts to foster enhanced strategies for sustainable development of IHE. This research calls for a change from one-dimensional economic sustainability to a more multi-dimensional conception of sustainability, including emphasizing the role of the political sphere in issues of sustainability.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper uses discourse analysis of policy documents, specifically Bacchi’s (2009) “what is the problem represented to be” approach, to explore the problematization behind selected government policies related to IHE in Australia.
Findings
This research identified existing challenges and factors that have affected the sustainability of Australian IHE and examined how the Australian Government constructed this issue. In light of this approach, a theoretical model is proposed from internal resource analysis and external industry and foreign market structure analysis to help foster more sustainable development of IHE.
Research limitations/implications
This study is based on policy document analysis. Consequently, future empirical research is needed to examine the impact of these policies and further substantiate the findings of this study.
Practical implications
This paper proposes a theoretical model for strategy making that helps gain and maintain sustainable competitive advantage in IHE from a more integrated perspective; such an approach enables more systemic thinking on strategy proposals and offers a reference for future practice. This research will contribute to policy design for the sustainability of the Australian IHE industry and promote change from a one-dimensional economic sustainability to a more multi-dimensional sustainability approach, thereby offering a point of reference for other countries that face similar issues.
Social implications
This study points out the need to broaden the business focus, expand the value created from shareholder value to the common good and change “inside-out” economic perspectives to “outside-in” integrated perspectives for business, including the IHE industry.
Originality/value
The sustainability of IHE has become an important concern in Australian policies but is an area for further inquiry in academic discussion and research. By closely examining government policies, particularly from a discursive approach (after Bacchi), this paper makes a contribution to policy design for the sustainability of the Australian IHE industry, helping to promote a more multi-dimensional approach to sustainability.
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THE library year ends in no spectacular way. If posterity has any cause to remember 1932 it will probably be as of a year when the doctrine of economy was raised to the rank of a…
Abstract
THE library year ends in no spectacular way. If posterity has any cause to remember 1932 it will probably be as of a year when the doctrine of economy was raised to the rank of a divine dogma by a world of debtors and creditors all crazed with fear over international debts. A year of hurried committees producing reports for the reduction of expenditures, beneficient or otherwise; especially, in this last month, a report which if implemented would cripple almost every local activity, and set back the clock of social effort at least thirty years. The intention of such reports is no doubt good; their effects are yet to be seen. So far, the increased parsimony in national and local affairs seems only to have intensified unemployment without bettering the general situation. A reaction against all this is beginning, not a moment too soon, and all who care for the finer things in our civilisation will be compelled to stand against the more unsocial recommendations of these reports.
Yaw A. Debrah and Ian G. Smith
Presents over sixty abstracts summarising the 1999 Employment Research Unit annual conference held at the University of Cardiff. Explores the multiple impacts of globalization on…
Abstract
Presents over sixty abstracts summarising the 1999 Employment Research Unit annual conference held at the University of Cardiff. Explores the multiple impacts of globalization on work and employment in contemporary organizations. Covers the human resource management implications of organizational responses to globalization. Examines the theoretical, methodological, empirical and comparative issues pertaining to competitiveness and the management of human resources, the impact of organisational strategies and international production on the workplace, the organization of labour markets, human resource development, cultural change in organisations, trade union responses, and trans‐national corporations. Cites many case studies showing how globalization has brought a lot of opportunities together with much change both to the employee and the employer. Considers the threats to existing cultures, structures and systems.
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The 150th anniversary of Thomas Hardy′s birth is briefly noted and anumber of recent publications on the author and his work are noted in thecontext of his corpus of critical…
Abstract
The 150th anniversary of Thomas Hardy′s birth is briefly noted and a number of recent publications on the author and his work are noted in the context of his corpus of critical material on him.