By Suchitra Behal. Nalanda University, set up on the initiative of India with international support, is at the centre of a political storm over the resignation of its Chancellor, Nobel Laureate Professor Amartya Sen, who blames Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his BJP or Bharatiya Janata Party-led government for delaying confirmation of his continuance in the post. Read more...

By Dennis Normile. Fewer and fewer Japanese students are going abroad for study. The number of foreign students in Japan is trending downward. And non-Japanese professors are uncommon. To address these deficits, Japan's education ministry has just launched the Top Global University Project. Under the program, 13 research universities deemed by the ministry capable of attaining top-100 status worldwide will each receive $3.5 million a year for 10 years. More...

Concerns are recently growing over the future of higher education, academic freedom and liberal academics in China. At the end of the last month, during a gathering of university chiefs - including the country’s top institutions, Peking and Tsinghua universities - Education Minister Yuan Guiren urged a tightening of control over textbooks, accused of spreading ‘Western values’.
Chinese politicians believe that universities have a key role in ‘indoctrinating’ students. Recent announcements and official documents are aimed at tightening ideological control over higher education institutions and at encouraging the promotion of Marxism. Although no anti-western references can be found in the ‘ideological’ guidelines published by The Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE), there is a strong emphasis on the need to reintroduce/reinvent Marxism and to build self-confidence in the ‘Chinese Dream’. The MOE’s annual work plan for 2015 refers to such guidelines and it also contains other proposals for internationalisation, not only for sending Chinese students abroad, but for attracting international students into China. 
The situation is sensitive in Hong Kong where, following the protests from September to December of the last year, pro-Beijing local officials are attempting to further squeeze independent media, courts and police. University professors and students are also affected by the tightened controls and they are trying to react urging for the need of formal investigations over government interference in academic affairs. 1000 scholars signed a petition asking the authorities to restrain themselves from compromising academic freedom in the city. 
 
2015 Annual Work Plan (in Chinese): Chinese Ministry of Education South China Morning Post. More...

Under fire Datuk Seri Idris Jusoh continues to defend his claim that Malaysian education is world class, this time citing new examples to back his statement.
Besides his earlier examples of international student enrolment and university rankings, which were criticised by the opposition, the education minister II also referred to Malaysia's achievements in an international study on scientific academics, Islamic banking and co-curriculum to prove that Malaysian education was world class. More...

The number of foreign students in a country or university cannot be used as an indication of the quality or standards of education, DAP lawmaker Dr Ong Kian Ming said today, refuting a claim by a minister that Malaysia's world-class education was validated by the high number of foreign students here.
"The danger in giving too much focus on international students is that some of our policymakers make use this as a ‘short cut’ to boost our university rankings," said Ong, who is the Serdang MP, in a statement today. More...