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by Nigel J French, Secretary-General
University Grants Committee of Hong Kong
Introduction
During the past decade or so, a variety of technology-mediated learning environments have emerged, including stand-alone computer-assisted instruction applications; networked information resources; experimentation via new modes of communication (e.g. computer conferencing); and distance learning, offered primarily, though not exclusively, via television. More recently, and at an increasingly dramatic pace, Internet-based applications such as email and the World Wide Web (WWW), etc. have become widely available in higher education institutions all over the world offering new possibilities in communication, collaboration, and delivery. What are the opportunities, challenges and threats presented to higher education institutions in Hong Kong by the increasingly rapid pace of technological development and the emergence of the information age?
There are various aspects to these issues as they relate to the nature of higher education institutions and how they function, to questions of access and the changing profile of the student body, to the role of faculty and the nature of faculty work, to the quality of teaching and learning, to faculty evaluation and rewards, to research and publication, to funding, and so on. In this paper I offer some thoughts on these issues as they may affect the future development of Hong Kong's higher education system, with a view to advancing debate and discussion of the issues involved in the academic community and more widely .
Nature of Higher Education Institutions
At the outset I should say that I believe that the aims of higher education are quite universal and will not change in essence as a result of the impact of the technological revolution and the availability of international connectivity via the Internet. "Intellectual work is social work.......and the university is a social institution. .........The Internet can enhance the society of the university and quicken its pace of discovery and invention, but the electronic environment cannot replace physical human society. We humans cannot thrive in a bodiless, frownless, smileless ecology, and our intellectual society cannot be complete without physical interaction." (Chodorow (See footnote no.1)1995 ).
I would share this view, but the underlying issue is a real one. The Internet and the telecommunications revolution offer the prospect, not very far in the future, of replacing universities with international virtual campuses enabling students to have on-line access to the best teachers and scholars worldwide. Such institutions are already appearing, at least in embryonic form, and it does not require much imagination to see what the implications of such developments might be. For example, an advocate for the Globewide Network Academy (GNA) wrote recently: "Much of the reason for the existence of GNA lies in the belief that the traditional departmental structure of universities is reaching the end of its usefulness and that new organizational structures are needed if universities are to provide education for the masses of the world with the diminishing resources which are available to them."(Wang(see footnote no.2)1995)
This sort of perception can be seen as both an opportunity and a threat to Hong Kong's higher education institutions. Hong Kong's excellent and rapidly improving telecommunications infrastructure provides the opportunity for Hong Kong's institutions to take a lead in the development of on-line courses and academic interactions, as well as widening access outside the traditional boundaries of a physical campus and the borders of Hong Kong. Recognising this, the University Grants Commitee (UGC) has invested some HK$ 18 million over the past three years in improvements to the Hong Kong Academic and Research Network (HARNET) and the technological support for the institutions' own library, information and communications networks, and supported the institutions' efforts to establish and improve telecommunications links beyond Hong Kong's borders with the USA and China.
In this context the potential exists of opening up access to students and institutions in China. There is, however, the legitimate concern about whether, in providing such access, the institutions might neglect local students. Our view is that this should not be the case. Such developments should have positive spin-offs for the local student experience as well. Moreover the personal and social interactions, which occur among students and academic staff in a physical campus setting, cannot be wholly replaced by electronic communications.
But can Hong Kong's institutions realistically expect to compete in this area with richer and more famous institutions in the West or elsewhere eg Japan and Australia? We believe so, but it will require the selective investment of resources in areas of excellence as these emerge within our institutions as well as flexibility and market-awareness on the institutions' part to respond quickly where the opportunities arise. The danger is that Hong Kong's institutions fail to respond and become side-lined as developments proceed at a faster pace elsewhere.
Access
Another opportunity presented by the telecommunications revolution is further widening of access to higher education and advanced learning for adults, non-traditional and second chance learners, and the disabled. Hong Kong, like developed societies elsewhere, is increasingly moving away from the traditional model whereby people complete their education and then devote themselves solely to work. Initiatives such as distance learning built around new technology offer one way of meeting the need for a more flexible system allowing people to dip in and out of education and periodically update their knowledge.
Some work is already being done in this area by the UGC-funded institutions, their Schools of Continuing Education and others eg the Open Learning Institute. However more can and should be done to tap the potential of new technology to facilitate access to higher education and professional training for those at work and those otherwise requiring special facilities eg the disabled.
Quality Assurance and Productivity
The assurance of the quality of part-time programmes and short courses offered by non-traditional means can be problematic. Where these are provided within the ambit of respected and established higher education institutions, there can be a reasonable level of comfort for potential students. However increasingly such programmes are being offered in Hong Kong by overseas institutions, some of which are of doubtful reputation. The Government has recently moved to introduce some measure of control over these activities by the newly introduced Non-Local Higher and Professional Education (Regulation) Bill, although, given the inevitable limitations on the applicability of legislation outside the constitutional boundaries of Hong Kong, the principle of "buyer beware"must still obtain. To help potential students navigate through the often murky waters of different course offerings the Hong Kong Council of Academic Accreditation will also offer an advisory service.
Against this background, how much greater will be the problems posed by any eventual "virtual campuses"established on an international scale. "If campuses become electronic metaphors housed in multiple institutions, who sets the standards? Who grants the degree? What kind of degree?"(see footnotes no.3) These are legitimate concerns that will need to be addressed regarding the quality assurance of courses and qualifications offered by virtual universities.
Nevertheless the application of information technology would appear to offer opportunities to revamp cost structures and gain efficiencies, without sacrificing educational quality. Electronic storage of, and networked access to, library resources is one obvious area where much has been done, but more could be achieved. However the opportunities for leveraging expensive faculty time through the imaginative application of appropriate new technologies to teaching and learning should not be overlooked. We have noted with interest discussion on this topic in such fora as EDUCOM, CHANGE(see footnote no.4), etc. .
There has been an expectation in all areas of corporate activity, not just higher education, that the advent of information technology would improve productivity and achieve cost savings. This has yet to be borne out in practice, however. Just as the paperless office is still largely a pipedream, so too are the paperless classroom and, to some extent, the virtual library. Moreover the application of information and telecommunications technology in the higher education setting requires considerable input of staff time and effort to be effective.
Faculty Evaluation and Rewards
As information technology becomes increasingly integral to many aspects of education, the role of the faculty as teachers, professionals, and members of institutional communities necessarily changes. For example, the use of distance education and telecommunications to support classroom-based instruction changes the dynamics between students and teachers, and indeed changes the nature and location of the classroom altogether; similarly, the proliferation of electronic venues for the exchange of scholarly ideas and research is challenging the traditional protocols of publication and review, just as electronic networking, in general, has enabled faculty to involve themselves in new kinds of professional communities and service.
It seems inevitable that the use of information technology will change how many academics work. How will these changes be catered for in processes of staff evaluation and reward? It appears that new guidelines and models for institutional policies and practices will need to be developed for the evaluation of staff using technology. Similarly new guidelines will need to be formulated for peer review and evaluation of teaching, scholarship, and service that integrate the use of information technology. Increasingly higher education institutions will need to address how the implementation can be fostered and facilitated of institutional policies on the evaluation and reward of faculty work that integrates the use of information technology.
Research and Publication
The Internet/WWW provides a huge repository of information for reference and research. It is however enormously difficult to trace specific references/documents, and the so far existing search engines are still relatively blunt instruments. No doubt these problems will be overcome with time, but there will remain difficulties with regard to citing electronic sources, which may not be available for reference in future, and to verifying the authenticity and originality of such published work.
The Internet also offers the possibility of an alternative to traditional academic publishing, through the development of electronic journals and mailing lists, some of which already are moderated. However given the difficulties of citation and verification referred to above, the status of such publications is likely to remain moot for some time to come.
Conclusion
Discussion and deliberation on these issues is probably most advanced in the USA. We have therefore looked to learn from the American experience in this area to date. To conclude we quote just two recent commentaries by Kenneth Green and Steven Gilbert, both active participants in electronic fora on these and related issues:
"The real long-term academic benefit of IT will be what it brings to pedagogy and the curriculum - additional resources that enhance the instructional tools used by faculty and the learning experience of students. Ample evidence documents the benefits on the learning experience. Technology provides access to image data bases (satellite photos of the cosmos or the California coastline); statistical data bases (such as Census data) that students can use for class projects, remote libraries (which supplement resources available from campus facilities), and more."(see footnote no.5)
"Clearly technology has brought both enhanced productivity and reduced costs to some parts of higher education. Like many corporations, campuses routinely and effectively use technology in many administrative areas. As in the corporate domain, computers have improved productivity related to a wide range of data management and transaction processing activities: personnel files, course schedules, library catalogs, budgets and accounts receivable, student transcripts and admissions information. Moreover, in some parts of the faculty domain, technology has truly helped to increase productivity and reduce operating costs. Indeed, a generation of faculty has come into academic positions with little or no secretarial assistance from their departments or institutions: they have a computer to prepare their own class materials, course syllabi, conference papers, grant proposals, manuscripts, and other documents. As of yet, however, relatively few would claim - even after a dozen years into the "micro" revolution - any real gains in instructional productivity. In that realm, as ever, we're still left with the "promise" of technology."(see footnote no.6)
UGC Secretariat
March 1996
Bibliography
"Electronics and the Dim Future of the University"by Eli Noam (lead article in October 13th issue of Science)
"Will Higher Education Thrive or Wither in Cyberspace?"by Thomas J Deloughry, Chronicle of Higher Education 27 January 1995
On the Horizon 1(4) (1993, April). Distance education.. pp. 5-6
"Using Information Technology to Enhance Academic Productivity"(Massy/Zemsky EDUCOM 1995)
"Improving Productivity: What Faculty think about it - and its effects on Quality"(Massy/Wilger CHANGE 1995)
"Leveraged Learning: Technology's Role in Restructuring Higher Education"(Stanford Forum for Higher Education Futures 1995)
"Will information technology improve academic productivity?"(SHEEO newsletter 1995)
"Content, Communications, Productivity, and the Role of Information Technology in Higher Education"(AAHESGIT archives )
"Practices and Policies of Open and Distance Education in Hong Kong"(Angela Castro 1995 in 'Opening Education - policies and practices from open and distance education' Evans & Nation)
"The Changing Contexts of of Higher Education and Four Possible Futures for Distance Education"(Patricia Kovel-Jarboe 1995 )
"Managing Technological Change in Academe"(Carol B McKnight. CAUSE/ EFFECT magazine, Volume 18, Number 1, Spring 1995. Copyright 1995)
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