Research universities in Africa / [electronic resource]
Nico Cloete; Ian Bunting; François Van Schalkwyk.
- Oxford : African Minds, 2018.
- 1 online resource (316 pages).
Cover; Title page; Copyright page; Contents; Acronyms & abbreviations; About the authors; Contributors; Preface; Part 1 -- TOWARDS RESEARCH UNIVERSITIES IN AFRICA; Chapter 1. From flagships to research universities; Discourses on the role of higher education in development in Africa; The post-independence 'development university' discourse; 'Revitalisation' of the university for development and the knowledge economy; International funding for higher education in Africa; Empirical evidence on universities in Africa; The Higher Education Research and Advocacy Network in Africa (Herana). Researching the link between higher education and developmentThe analytical framework; National development models and a pact about the role of higher education; The strength of the academic core; From flagship to research universities; The importance of research universities for global science; Research universities are important for Africa; Can we talk of research universities in Africa?; Herana universities are the most research-productive in their countries; Conclusion; Chapter 2. The research performance of eight universities in Africa. Measuring institutional performance: Herana principlesCollecting academic core data; Trends in academic core data; Student enrolments; Graduates; Academic staff; Introduction to discussion of academic core indicators 4 and 5; Permanent academic staff as high-level inputs; Doctoral enrolments as high-level inputs; Doctoral graduates as high-level knowledge outputs; Research publications as high-level knowledge outputs; Determining cross-national performance goals and targets; Setting cross-national quantitative targets; Assessing the research performance of eight African universities. National and institutional policy and planning contextsEmpirical evidence of research performance; Empirical evidence of changes in research performance over time; Placing the Herana universities in research-activity categories; Conclusion; Part 2 -- UNDERSTANDING THE RESEARCH UNIVERSITY IN AFRICA; Chapter 3. The role of the research university; Four university models; Inconsistency in international development cooperation; Inconsistency in expectations among national and institutional stakeholders; Research aspirations and their take; Research aspirations; National realities. Inconsistency between national and institutional policy goalsConclusion; Chapter 4. Tensions between functions in the research university; Historically-determined functions of universities; Contemporary tensions between functions in universities; How universities are managing the tensions between functions; The University of Mauritius; Makerere University; The University of Ghana; Conclusion; Chapter 5. Incentivising research performance at African universities; University incentives for research; Funding and development aid for research; Government incentives for research.
"From the early 2000s, a new discourse emerged, in Africa and the international donor community, that higher education was important for development in Africa. Within this 'zeitgeist' of converging interests, a range of agencies agreed that a different, collaborative approach to linking higher education to development was necessary. This led to the establishment of the Higher Education Research and Advocacy Network in Africa (Herana) to concentrate on research and advocacy about the possible role and contribution of universities to development in Africa. This book is the final publication to emerge from the Herana project. The project has also published more than 100 articles, chapters, reports, manuals and datasets, and many presentations have been delivered to share insights gained from the work done by Herana. Given its prolific dissemination, it seems reasonable to ask whether this fourth and final publication will offer the reader anything new. This book is certainly different from previous publications in several respects. First, it is the only book to include an analysis of eight African universities based on the full 15 years of empirical data collected by the project. Second, previous books and reports were published mid-project. This book has benefited from an extended gestation period allowing the authors and contributors to reflect on the project without the distractions associated with managing and participating in a large-scale project. For the first time, some of those who have been involved in Herana since its inception have had the opportunity to at least make an attempt to see part of the wood for the trees. Different does not necessarily mean new. An emphasis on the 'newness' of the data and perspectives presented in this book is important because it shows that it is more than a historical record of a donor-funded project. Rather, each chapter in this book brings, to a lesser or greater extent, something new to our understanding of universities, research and development in Africa."
978-1-928331-88-9
Development studies. Universities and colleges--Research--Africa. Universities.