All Ireland Society for Higher Education
| Name: | Jean Hughes |
|---|---|
| Email: | jean.hughes@dcu.ie |
| Institution: | Dublin City University |
Since the 1980's many western countries, most notably the UK, Australia and New Zealand, have been experiencing a change in how public services are managed (Hood 2001). Increasingly governments have been concerned with productivity, governance, value for money and accountability in the public service and have been bringing business management models to bear on the running of hospitals, schools, universities and other areas of the public service. Known as managerialism, key themes include viewing institutions as corporate enterprises (Jarratt Report, 1985:22), and an emphasis on accountability, performance measurement, devolved responsibility, increased fiscal control and emphasis on quality (see Chandler, Barry and Clark, 2002).
Very little research has been done on the existence of managerialism in Irish HE. Looking at developments such as the OECD Review of Irish Higher Education (OECD, 2004), the National Pay Agreements, the recent funding scheme - the Strategic Innovation Fund (www.HEA.ie), the review of funding models by the HEA and the move of the Institutes of Technology under the HEA all show significant elements of managerialism, in particular an emphasis on accountability, performance measurement, devolved responsibility with centralised control and an emphasis on efficiency, lower costs and strategy (OECD 2004).
While it is relatively easy to see how managerialism has impacted Irish higher education at sectoral and institutional levels (through cost savings, reporting requirements, development of strategic plans, adoption of business models etc), it is less clear to what extent it has impacted the individual academic, in particular with respect to their teaching role. This paper will report the findings of an attitudinal survey of HE academics who have taken postgraduate qualifications in teaching and learning, in particular whether there is evidence of managerialist themes driving their decision to pursue these qualifications.