Association for Public Policy Analysis & Management

Roundtable: What We Are Missing: Academic Bridges to Promote Global Learning and the Common Good

(Education and Employment in a Global Market)

Globalization and technology are primary drivers of change in societies. As a result, competition on multiple fronts has emerged requiring institutions to engage in ″big picture thinking″ to support local and regional economies in practical and meaningful ways. Consequently, the importance of a highly educated and skilled workforce presents challenges for academe. Indeed, the speed of change challenges the internal policy and decision-making bodies of colleges and universities at a time when public policies do not completely align across the territorial boundaries of countries. With the growing uproar that higher education should respond to local and/or regional economic and workforce development needs, academia has taken on a continuum of missions and roles to serve society in diverse ways that prepares people to develop, work, and succeed in a dynamic global labor market. For instance, community colleges in the United States meet the needs of local communities and business, while research universities have taken on a role of knowledge creation. Regardless of individual countries or diverse economic contexts, investing in the development of individuals′ competencies throughout their lifetime is at the heart of education and skills development policies. Academe like never before must respond to multiple competing stakeholders. And, it must do so quickly. With these challenges come opportunities to draw on university leaders′ experience and expertise at the department and program levels. This roundtable is designed to start a dialogue, share ideas, and discuss how the collective actions of faculty and other higher education leaders can conceivably use policy analysis to guide the development of evidence-based programs and policies that address competencies and global learning outcomes. Generally speaking, policy analysis produces evidence for decisions about policy and/or programs. It also incorporates a blend of research and evaluation techniques. According to Aaron Wildasky (American Political Scientist and Author of Speaking Truth to Power: The Art and Craft of Policy Analysis. 1979. Little, Brown.) "There [is not] only one way of loving [or] learning; it all depends on where you are at and what you are up to." As can be expected, various types of analyses differ in the types of questions asked and the answers they give. This in turn improves or legitimates practical implications of programs and/or policies that occur at varying levels of implementation. Leaders are better able to understand political and organizational behavior; answer stakeholders′ questions; as well as predict and influence the feasibility of successfully implementing policies and/or programs. Collective actions taken at programmatic, departmental, and institutional levels within higher education contribute to the knowledge base; and thereby, inductively inform competency-based initiatives, workforce and economic development, as well as labor market policies. The round table presenters will reflect upon, share examples, and discuss their use of policy analysis techniques and effective evaluation practices, which translate into academe’s fast paced contexts of advancing technologies that necessitate the acquisition of skills and competencies through diverse means. A dynamic understanding of global learning aligned to institutions′ vision of learning outcomes may promote the common good across varied higher education contexts.