Heterodox Forms of University Ownership Control, Governance
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
DOCTORAL THESIS Heterodox forms of university ownership/control, governance, financing and organisational structure Butcher, Catherine Award date: 2018 General rights Copyright and moral rights for the publications made accessible in the public portal are retained by the authors and/or other copyright owners and it is a condition of accessing publications that users recognise and abide by the legal requirements associated with these rights. • Users may download and print one copy of any publication from the public portal for the purpose of private study or research. • You may not further distribute the material or use it for any profit-making activity or commercial gain • You may freely distribute the URL identifying the publication in the public portal ? Take down policy If you believe that this document breaches copyright please contact us providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim. Download date: 05. Oct. 2021 HETERODOX FORMS OF UNIVERSITY OWNERSHIP/CONTROL, GOVERNANCE, FINANCING AND ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE CATHERINE N. BUTCHER, BBA, MSc A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of PhD in Business Management Business School University of Roehampton 2018 The research for this project was submitted for ethics consideration under the reference BUS 14/019 in the Department of UR Business School and was approved under the procedures of the University of Roehampton’s Ethics Committee on 17.11.14. ii Abstract This study explores heterodox forms of higher education institutions in the context of the intensification of neoliberal forms in the UK and Australia. It aims to understand how heterodox forms might enhance students’ educational experiences, in which under- privileged students will be recipients of higher education at no cost to them. Students have been recast as customers who must pay for their education and a debt crisis is being created among young people who are made to carry, what I refer to as, an ‘educational mortgage’ throughout their adult life. The situation is even more burdensome for students from under-privileged backgrounds whose debts will continue to accumulate with interest as they take a longer time to repay the debt than their more affluent fellow students. An interpretivist approach to data collection was adopted. Interviews were conducted with eight senior executives and government officials in contemporary public higher education institutions in the UK and Australia to gain insight into the market model that is being adopted and its impact on students’ experiences. Case-studies were also undertaken of four alternative higher education institutions in the US, Europe and Asia, to gain an in-depth understanding of their forms of ownership, governance, financing and organisational structure and the ways in which students’ experiences in these alternative models differed from the mainstream. The findings revealed that students democratically participated in governance and operations of two institutions as beneficial owners, while students took ownership of curriculum design in one iii institution. Two institutions provided students with a free tuition education while students participated in a labour/work programme in all institutions. The study concludes with a conceptual framework of a heterodox higher education institution model and proposes a hybrid of a cooperative and trust, as provided in Chapter 7, that will be owned and operated by students, academics and other stakeholders in a democratic process, and in which students will be integrally involved in the process of their education and in curriculum development. This research therefore, contributes to the body of knowledge on alternative forms of higher education institutions and on-going efforts aimed at addressing issues of access to higher education for students from under-privileged backgrounds. It also has practical significance for education policy. iv Table of Contents Page Ethics Approval ii Abstract iii Table of Contents v List of Tables x List of Figures xi List of Abbreviations xiii Acknowledgements xv Dedication xviii Chapter 1 Another World is Possible …………………….......... 1 1.1 An Auto-Ethnographic Prologue ……………………………... 1 1.2 Orthodoxes versus Heterodoxes ……………………………… 5 Orthodoxy …………………………………………………... 5 Heterodoxes ………………………………………………... 13 1.3 Research Questions …………………………………………… 17 1.4 Approach to Answering the Questions ………………………... 19 1.5 Structure of the Thesis ………………………………………… 21 Chapter 2 Contextualising and Theorising the Different Models of Higher Education in the UK and Australia ………………………………………........... 23 2.1 Introduction …………………………………………………… 23 2.2 Types of Higher Education Institutions in the UK and Australia 25 Dominance of Elite Prototypes in the Academe ……………. 25 Reshaping Higher Education – The Industrial Era …………. 31 The ‘Gift’ Economy and Mass Higher Education ….............. 33 Thatcher and Dawkins Revolution and the Rise of the Neoliberal Academe ……………………………............ 41 2.3 Summary ………………………………………………………. 50 v Chapter 3 Social Economy Enterprises: Alternatives to Neoliberalism: Exemplars for Public Higher Education Institution Reform? …............. 53 . 3.1 Introduction ………………………………………………… 53 3.2 Brief Background to the Market Model Economy and Introduction to Social Economy Enterprises ………………. 54 Definition of Social Economy Enterprises ………............ 57 3.3 Salient Features of Social Economy Enterprises……............ 61 Governance of Social Economy Enterprises …………….. 72 Financing of Social Economy Enterprises ……….............. 76 3.4 Summary ……………………………………………………. 77 Chapter 4 Methodological Approach …………………........... 79 4.1 Introduction ………………………………………………… 79 4.2 Research Questions …………………………………………. 79 4.3 Philosophical Underpinnings and Theoretical Paradigm of this Study ……………………………………… 80 4.4 Research Strategy …………………………………………… 82 4.5 Selection of Research Sites and Case-Study Institutions 84 4.6 Participant Selection ………………………………………… 86 4.7 Gaining Entry to the Research Setting and Access to Participants ………………………………………………….. 87 4.8 Methods of Data Collection …………………………………. 90 Pilot Testing ………………………………………………. 92 Interviews …………………………………………………. 92 Focus Groups ……………………………………………… 97 Observation ………………………………………………... 99 Document Analysis …………………………………........... 103 4.9 Data Analysis ………………………………………………… 104 4.10 Ethical Considerations ……………………………………….. 109 Informed Consent ………………………………………….. 110 Confidentiality and Anonymity ……………………………. 112 Responsibility and Representation …………………………. 113 vi 4.11 Validity, Reliability and Reflexivity ………………………….. 114 Reflective Thoughts …………………………………………… 116 4.12 Situating Myself ……………………………………………….. 118 4.13 Significance of the Study ………………………………………. 118 Chapter 5 The Structure of Contemporary Higher Education and its Implications for Students’ Experiences ……………………………………………. 120 5.1 Introduction …………………………………………………….. 120 5.2 What are the current forms of university Ownership, Governance, Financing and Organisational structure in the UK and Australia Higher Education? ……………………. 122 Ownership/Control ……………………………………………. 122 Governance and Organisational Structure ……………………. 126 Financing of Higher Education in the UK and Australia ………………………………………………………. 139 5.3 What are the Consequences of these Regimes for Students’ Access and Educational Experiences? ……………….. 144 Access to Higher Education …………………………………… 144 5.4 Summary ………………………………………………….............. 154 Chapter 6 Findings and Analysis of Case-Study Institutions ………………………………………………. 157 6.1 Introduction ………………………………………………............. 157 Research Assumption …………………………….…………….. 157 6.2 Overview of Case-Study Institutions …………………………….. 159 Case-Study 1 – Unity University ………………………………. 159 Case-Study 2 – Gramuco University …………………………… 163 Case-Study 3 – Davena College ………………………………... 167 Case-Study 4 – Batista College …………………..……….......... 169 6.3 Structural Dimensions of Case-Study Institutions ……………….. 172 Ownership/Control ……………………………………………… 172 Governance and Organisational Structure …………………........ 176 Financing ………………………………………………………. 193 vii 6.4 Students Educational Experiences in the Case-Study Institutions ………………………………………………............. 201 Access to Higher Education ………………………………....... 201 Pedagogy ………………………………………… …………… 213 Labour Programme ………………………………………...... 214 6.5 Limitations of Case-Study Institutions on Students’ Experiences 230 6.6 Summary ………………………………………………………… 233 Chapter 7 An Idea Whose Time has Come: Significance for Policy and for Higher Education Reform ….................. 236 7.1 Introduction ………………………………………………………. 236 7.2 The Heterodox Higher Education Institutional Model …………… 241 Purpose …………………………………………. …………….. 242 Financing ……………………………………………………… 245 Pedagogy and Curriculum …………………………………….. 246 Legislation and Regulation ……………………......................... 250 Chapter 8 Implications, Recommendations and Conclusion ……………………………………………….. 255 8.1 Summary of the Findings and Theoretical Contribution………………………………………………………... 255 8.2 Implications for Policy and Practice ……………………………… 260 8.3 Contribution to Knowledge ……………………………………..... 261 8.4 Limitations and Recommendations for Further Research ……....... 263 Limitations ……………………………………………………... 263 How might I have done the research differently ……………….. 265 Recommendations …………………………………………… 266 Next Step …………………………………………………….. 267 8.5 Afterword - Reflections on the Research Process ……………… 267 Appendices ……………………………………………………………… 269 Appendix 1: Participant