georgia higher education system dynamics and institutional diversity

The evolution of Georgian higher education system in recent decades almost perfectly mirrors the political and socio-economic developments in the country. Having emerged from the uniform Soviet system, it has been undergoing radical changes and has transformed into a diverse institutional setup, which, for all its similarities with various higher education systems existing in other countries, cannot be categorised as a typical representative of one

International development higher education: looking from the past, looking to the future

International development higher education is a distinct space in a vibrant and growing field of higher education studies. This paper examines international development higher education scholarship to highlight its thematic, disciplinary, methodological, and analytical eclecticism. At the heart of international development higher education is the assumption that the world can be made better by the human effort invested in higher education. This paper offers a novel conceptualisation of the ways in which higher education’s contributions to development can be understood. The bulk of the existing literature essentialises higher education’s role in the advancement of human capital and the modernisation of societies. In contrast, anti-essentialist understandings can include various conceptualisations of how higher education can contribute to the realisation of human rights and capabilities to pursue the freedoms people value. A holistic understanding of university contributions to development would encompass all of the essentialist and anti-essentialist, as well as post-foundationalist ways of looking at this important but empirically elusive link. The paper suggests to delink development from ‘international’ and reframe development as ‘glonacal’, thus allowing scholars and practitioners to be less bound by nation-state borders, and more conscious of the local nuance and the global connectedness

Charting the development of knowledge on Soviet and Post-Soviet education through the pages of comparative and international education journals

This paper examines 126 research articles from three comparative education journals to chart the development of knowledge within comparative education on the Soviet Union and post-Soviet countries. Thematic, theoretical, discursive and methodological aspects of scholarship are linked with changing geopolitical realities in a systematic analysis of scholarship published since the late 1950s. A new framework of multi-layered colonialism is introduced to explore different features of the double disadvantage that comparative education knowledge production on post-Soviet countries has faced - Russian imperialism and Western academic colonialism. The paper contributes to comparative education knowledge creation by historicising our understanding of Western academic output and outlining a potential future direction in the development of knowledge on post-Soviet systems, policies, and practices of education

Comparing post-socialist transformations: purposes, policies, and practices in education

This volume revisits the book edited by David Phillips and Michael Kaser in 1992, entitled Education and Economic Change in Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union (https://doi.org/10.15730/books.42). Two and a half decades later, this volume reflects on how post-socialist countries have engaged with what Phillips & Kaser called ‘the flush of educational freedom’. Spanning diverse geopolitical settings that range from Southeast and Central Europe to the Caucasus and Central Asia, the chapters in this volume offer analyses of education policies and practices that the countries in this region have pursued since the fall of the Berlin Wall and the dissolution of the Soviet Union. This book explores three interrelated questions. First, it seeks to capture complex reconfigurations of education purposes during post-socialist transformations, noting the emergence of neoliberal education imaginaries in post-socialist spaces and their effects on policy discussions about education quality and equity across the region. Second, it examines the ongoing tensions inherent in post-socialist transformations, suggesting that beneath the surface of dominant neoliberal narratives there are always powerful countercurrents – ranging from the persisting socialist legacies to other alternative conceptualizations of education futures – highlighting the diverse trajectories of post-socialist education transformations. And finally, the book engages with the question of ‘comparison’, prompting both the contributing authors and readers to reflect on how research on post-socialist education transformations can contribute to rethinking comparative methods in education across space and time.</p

Spatial Inequities in Higher Education Admissions in Georgia: Likelihood of Choosing and Gaining Access to Prestigious Higher Education Institution

The paper draws upon the findings of a mixed-methods study on spatial disparities in higher education access in Georgia. Examination of quantitative data on approximately 118,000 applicants, a purposive sample of households and policy-makers reveals geographic inequalities in university choice-making and student destinations. Multinomial logistic regression analysis of HE applicant first-choice HEIs, their general aptitude and residential origin shows that of two applicants with the same measured general aptitude, an applicant from a mountainous village is approximately 12 times more likely to apply to a least rather than a most prestigious HEI than an applicant from the capital. Qualitative evidence is used to explicate some aspects of the complex process of HE choice-making. Applicants and their families consider a number of factors like HEI location, cost of studies, prestige and availability of the desired programme when applying to tertiary education and selecting HEIs. Large differences are observed in applicant chances to enter prestigious HEIs by their residential origin. When controlling for prestige of first-choice HEIs, applicant measured aptitude and an array of other variables, applicants from mountainous villages are almost 8 times more likely to gain access to a least rather than the most prestigious HEI than applicants from the capital. International research shows that HEI quality is closely linked with higher probability of graduation, greater access to postgraduate studies and higher wage premium. It can be argued that rural students who apply and gain admission to less prestigious HEIs, may benefit from tertiary education to a lesser extent than urban students

Rural Disadvantage in Georgian Higher Education Admissions: A Mixed-Methods Study

The study investigates the chances of gaining admission to Georgian higher education in relation to residential origin. The analysis of broad trends is combined with details from an in-depth individual-level inquiry. Quantitative data on the entire population of 150,000 applicants over the period 2005-9, together with interview data from a purposive sample of families and policy makers, are examined. Findings indicate that urban applicants consistently score higher on university entrance exams compared to rural applicants, and their odds of gaining university admission are 1.22 times higher. Among those with the same measured aptitude, rural applicants are 12 times more likely to apply to one of the least prestigious higher education institutions than are applicants from urban areas. © 2013 by Comparative and International Education Society. All rights reserved

Gender inequality in Mozambican primary education: problems, barriers and recommendations

Considering the liberal and economic efficiency arguments for gender equality, this paper looks at some of the major economic and socio-cultural barriers to equal opportunity in primary education for Mozambican girls. Although full gender equality within a liberal understanding implies that girls and boys are offered not only the same chances of going and staying in school but also ensuring that teaching methods and curricula are free from gender biases, this paper solely focuses on the barriers to gender parity and not wider learning quality related issues associated with gender equality in Mozambican primary education. Utilising international research literature, it provides recommendations to fight the causes of gender inequalities in primary school access and retention. I argue that policy interventions should be directed at making schooling socio-culturally acceptable and economically attractive to girls and their families

Fairness in access to higher education in a global perspective: reconciling excellence, efficiency, and justice

The purpose of this volume is to help jump-start an urgently needed conversation about fairness and justice in access to higher education to counteract the ubiquitous mantras of neoliberal globalization and managerialism. The book seeks to carve out a strong moral and normative basis for opposing mainstream developments that engender increasing inequality and market-dependency in higher education. The book’s chapters consider how different national communities channel access to higher education, what their “implicit social contracts” are, and what outcomes are produced by different policies and methods. The book is essential reading for scholars of higher education and students concerned with increasing inequality in a globalizing educational marketplace