Module A2: Sciene and Higher Education Institutions: Political and Economic Expectations
Hochschulwettbewerb im gesellschaftspolitischen Diskurs – konzeptionelle Überlegungen in Auseinandersetzung mit den Avenir Suisse Policy Papers
Raimund Hasse, Universität Luzern
The Steering and Management of Swiss Higher Education Institutions
Lukas Baschung, Haute ecole de gestion Arc/HES-SO
Abstract:
As in many other foreign countries, the steering and management of Swiss higher education institutions (HEi) have undergone deep chances during the last three decades. In the context of the "Knowledge society", HEis got a more important place on the political agenda. Simultaneously, parsimony and efficiency became popular words in the political vocabulary, also regarding public higher education. Consequently, new steering mechanisms, inspired by New Public Management and Network Governance have been introduced on the federal and cantonal levels.
Increasing autonomy for HEis, e.g. concerning funding and HR issues, was also part of the reform package. Consequently, the management of HEis also became more "professional". Certain (partly new) tasks have been taken into charge by newly created administrative units of HEls. Thus, HEis are becoming more and more "normal" organisations. Some authors also talk about ''Entzauberung".
The latest phenomena regarding steering and management of HEis, which are also part of an international tendency, consist in quality assurance and accreditation. Indeed, with the arrival of the new federal Higher Education Act, Swiss HEis are obliged to have a (performant) quality assurance system and to be accredited in order to keep the right to call themselves "universities" and get federal funding. Currently, the first accreditation procedure is going on and the first decisions are taken. Thus, it is time to analyse to what extent this new legal requirement chances something regarding the steering, management and effective quality of Swiss HEls.
My contribution will contain a short presentation of research that has been carried out on the topics mentioned above and describe a future research project on the topic of quality assurance and accreditation in the field of Swiss higher education.
Den hermeneutischen Zugang zur Welt fördern und würdigen
Markus Zürcher, SAGW,
Abstract
Die aktuellen Förderformate und die Evaluationsverfahren in der Forschungspraxis privilegieren ein ‘technikförmiges’ Wissen und diskriminieren damit jene Wissensbereiche, die in der einen oder anderen Weise nebst dem Erklären und dem Verstehen, auch der kontextbezogenen Deutung verpflichtet sind bzw. einen hermeneutischen Zugang zum Untersuchungsgegenstand pflegen. Dieser ist nicht die materielle Welt, sondern die symbolische und soziale Welt. Deshalb zeichnet gerade das, was für ein technikförmiges Wissen problematisch ist, den hermeneutischen Ansatz aus: Vielfalt der Methoden, Gegenstände und Interpretationen, Widersprüche und Ambiguitäten, kontext- und situationsabhängige Ergebnisse, unterschiedliche Zeitverständnisse mit all ihren Auswirkungen auf das Verständnis der hochschulpolitischen Leitkonzepte wie Innovation oder Fortschritt.