Dr Rajani Naidoo
“Higher Education and the Global Knowledge Race: Implications for Change”

The ability of nation states to compete successfully in the international context increasingly relies on a global knowledge race.

This is a contest in which countries compete in the production of graduates and value-added products which are mainly dependent on scientific and technological knowledge, and on innovation. In this context, higher education has become a crucial resource for the production and transfer of economically productive knowledge. At the same time higher education is increasingly being deployed to exert political influence in the battle to persuade far flung regions of the world to adopt preferred social, economic and cultural models.

The emerging powers of India and particularly China have entered this race to compete against the USA and Western Europe with far reaching consequences. These developments have led to the transformation of higher education systems as well as greater collaboration and more intensive competition between different regions of the world. This presentation analyses the impact of these changes on the creation of knowledge, on social equity and lifelong learning and on the role and function of higher education in society.

Bernard O’Hara
"Evolution of Irish Higher Education with particular reference to the Institute of Technology Sector"
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Marion Coy
"The Changing Scene in Higher Education: Challenges & Opportunities"
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Professor Tom Collins
"Building Flexible Learning into the Curriculum"
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