By Sophie Arkoudis, Chi Baik and Sarah Richardson. English Language Standards in Higher Education - From entry to exit
English Language Standards in Higher Education has been written in a context in which the English language skills of students are increasingly under the spotlight due to the monumental impact of globalisation on the higher education sector. The underpinning tenets of the book are that in all contexts in which English is the medium of instruction English language acquisition is central to academic success, and that this requires continuous and systematic development throughout the course of study. The authors are unwavering in this conviction and offer a variety of constructive approaches, acknowledging that there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to developing English language proficiency in higher education.
This book synthesises current research in English language standards to offer new approaches to addressing a growing challenge for those leading and teaching in higher education institutions around the world. A concise, accessible book, English Language Standards in Higher Education provides both a comprehensive analysis of English language challenges in higher education and more importantly offers a framework for institutional and pedagogical planning, with practical advice and suggestions. The focus of this book and the evidence-based suggestions it provides will strongly resonate in countries where English is the main language of communication, as well as in countries where English is used as the medium of instruction in higher education.
Read an article about English Language Standards in Higher Education published in The Australian by Bernard Lane.

This report looks at the trends in education spending over the period 2000-2012 and examines the impact that the financial and economic crisis has had on education budgets across Europe over the last few years (2010-2012). The analysis covers the developments in education funding from pre-primary to tertiary level and provides an overview of the main trends in the adult learning sector in 31 European countries. The full report includes information on the economic context, public expenditure, national budget developments in education, funding of human resources, educational infrastructure, support systems and financial support for students. European Commission Press release. Download the full version Funding of Education in Europe 2000-2012.
Introduction
High quality education and training are essential if Eur ope is to make a speedy recovery from the most severe economic and financial cris is for 50 years. Qualif ied people with the right skills can boost the European Union's economy by leading innovation a nd improving competitiveness. However, as a result of the financial and economic crisis, public finances in all Member States are under great pressure. Governments are seeking ways to reduce budget deficits and manage public debt without dismantling the foundations of sustainable growth. While no direct link can be established between the level of funding of the education systems an d student's learning outcomes, there is a general understanding that investing in high quality education and training should continue to be a priority. Nevertheless, the sector is not immune to austerity measures, particularly in countries where the need for short-term fiscal consolidation is greatest.
This report looks at the trends in education spen ding over the period 2000-2012 and examines the recent impact that the financial and economic crisis has had on education budgets across Europe in 2011 and 2012. The analysis covers the developments in education funding from pre-primary to tertiary level, while also providing an overview of the main trends in the adult learning sector. As Eurostat data on expenditure in education for 2011 and 2012 will not be available before mid-2013, for these years the report uses information from national education budgets. Education budgets adopted by national authorities can be seen as a reliable pr oxy of education spending in the respective years and provide a key to understanding the polit ical priorities for the sector.
The comparative analysis is arranged in five chapter s, two chapters deal with the overall changes in education funding and three thematic chapters assess the impact of the downturn on three of the pillars of the education system, namely, human resources, education infrastructure and financial support for students. In each chapter, the appraisal of the more recent changes in funding and policy priorities is based on information collected from the Eurydice Network. This analysis is accompanied by a view of the longer term trends based on statistical data available from Eurostat. The main findings of the report are explained in an executiv e summary following this introduction.
The first chapter presents the economic context in which European countries have been managing their public finances. It looks at Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and growth rates over the last decade as well as at levels of public debt in Europe since 2007. This general overview provides the financial framework in which recent education policies have been developed.
The second chapter provides an in depth analysis of the changes in actual public expenditure on education and the developments in national education budgets. The first section shows the trends in public expenditure over the last decade both as a share of total public expenditure and in comparison with national GDP; the cost per student is also examined. In the second section of this chapter, the most recent changes in education budgets for 2011 and 2012 are discussed; examining the proposed spending at different levels of educat ion and the budgets allocated to various categories of expenditure. The spending priorities defined by count ries for 2013 are also considered in the last section of the chapter.
Chapter three analyses the trends in the funding of human resources the largest category of expenditure in all European countries. Firstly, the changes in the numbers of teachers are compared with the changes in student populations to prov ide an indication of whether such changes were affected only by the demographic evolution or th e economic downturn has also affected human resource costs. Secondly, the changes to teachers' statutory salaries and allowances in 2011 and 2012 are presented, explaining the different national polic ies in this area. In the last section of this chapter, the funding for continuing professional dev elopment (CPD) is analysed, as this provision is important for the development of the prof essional skills of the work force.
Chapter four examines the recent mergers and school closures and assesses the degree to which they are related to the crisis. In addition, the budgets for educational infrastructure and for specific programmes of educational support are analysed. Although these categories of spending represent only a small share of the total public resources invested, they can have an impact on the quality of education provided. As local authorities and/or institutions have a degree of autonomy in managing these resources, any in formation provided on the extent of the reforms to infrastructure spending between 2010 and 2012 does not necessarily reflect a complete picture.
Finally, in chapter five, the latest trends in funding and changes to national policies for the financial support of students are examined. The budget allocated to such support is one of the key elements in ensuring high levels of participation in education, especially for disadvantaged groups of students. These support systems, however, are likely to come under pressure as a result of the possible reductions in the available public funding and the increased demand for contributions from private sources, especially in tertiary education.

At the Bucharest Ministerial Conference in April 2012, European ministers of higher education decided to revise the European Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance (ESG).
The Steering Group for revision of the ESG has launched an open call for contributions to the revision process. The Steering Group looks forward to receiving your replies by 26 March 2013 at the email address esg.revision@ehea.info. Please read the documents below for more information: Letter, Context.
Letter
It is our pleasure as the Steering group (representatives from Business Europe, EI, ENQA, ESU, EUA, EURASHE, and EQAR) for revision of the European Standards and Guidelines (ESG) to invite you to contribute to the revision process We would kindly ask you to take note of the document attached, which defines the context, scope and purposes of the revised ESG as agreed upon by the Steering Group in its meeting in February 2013.
In order to structure the responses, we suggest the following set of questions to be answered by your national authority or organisation:
1. Do you find the attached draft introduction clear and easy to understand? /follow? Please elaborate.
2. With regards to the current version of the European Standards and Guidelines (ESG), is there something particular you would like to see clarified or better emphasised in the revised version? Please elaborate your specific proposals. We look forward to receiving your replies by 26 th March 2013 at the email address esg.revision@ehea.info. The Steering Group will collect all proposals and comments and consider them in the next meeting of the Group.
Should you have any further questions or require clarifications, please do not hesitate to contact us. In addition, you can follow proceedings regarding ESG revision here: www.revisionesg.wordpress.org.
The ESG revision Steering Group
Context
Context, scope, purposes and principles of the ESG
Setting the context
Higher education, as well as research and innovation, plays a crucial role in supporting social cohesion, economic growth and global competitiveness. Given the desire for European soc ieties to become increasingly knowledge-based, higher education bec o me s an essential component of socio-economic and cultural development.
At the same time, the demand for better skills and competences is growing and higher education institutions are con fronted with more diversity in the student population. The context within which they work is constantly changing. Responding to diversity and change requires a fundamental shift in the provision of higher education; it requires a more student-centred approach to teaching and learning, embracing flexible learning paths and recognising competences gained outside formal curricula.
Quality assurance processes, in particular external ones, allow European higher education systems to demonstrate quality and bett er recognition of outcomes, and therefore help building mutual trust. A key goal of the Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in the EHEA (ESG) is to contribute to the common understanding of quality assurance across borders and among all stakeh olders. They have played a n important role in the development of national and institutional quality assurance systems across the EHEA , cross-border cooperation and provision of quality assurance, enhancing the transparency of quality assurance processes an d outcomes. In this context, the European Quality Assurance Register (EQAR) fosters c oherence of quality assurance systems across borders to build confidence in European higher education.
Scope and Concepts
The primary focus of the ESG is on quality a ssurance processes related to teaching and learning in higher education, including the learning environment and relevant links to research. The ESG apply to all higher education offered in the EHEA regardless of the mode or place of delivery. Higher education aims to fulfil multiple purposes; including preparing students for active citizenship and for their future careers, creating a broad advanced knowledge base and stimulating research and innovation. Stakeholders however can view quality in higher ed ucation differently. Q uality assurance needs to take into account such different perspectives. Quality , whilst not easy to define, is mainly a result of the interaction between teacher s and students, enabled by institutional planning processes. Quality assurance a ctivities should ensure a learning environment in which the content of programmes, learning opportunities and facilities are fit for purpose.
At the heart of all quality assurance activities are the twin purposes of accountability and enhancement. Taken together, these create trust in the higher education institution’s performance. The degree of autonomy and accountability (of which quality assurance is part) will depend as much on the national context within which the higher education system sits, as on the individual institution.
Quality assurance and quality enhancement are inter-related and describe a cycle that allows a higher education institution to assure itself of the quality of its activities and to take opportunities for continuous improvement. Such activities support the development of a quality culture that is embraced by all: from the students and academic staff to the institutional leadership and management. This quality culture should be verifiable b y external quality assurance agencies, national ministries, employers and society at large, through external quality assurance procedures.
The term ‘quality assurance’ is used in this document to describe all activities within the continuous improvement cycle (i.e. assurance and enhancement act ivities).
ESG: purposes and principles
The ESG have the following purposes:
- They set a common framework for quality assurance systems at European, national and institutional level;
- They enable the improvement of quality of higher education in the E urope an higher education area;
- They support mutual trust , thus facilitating recognition within and across national borders;
- They provide information on quality assurance in the EHEA.
The ESG may be used in different ways within these purposes by countries, institutions and agencies. At the European level, they provide the criteria against which quality assurance agencies and their activities are being assessed. This ensures that the quality assurance agencies in the EHEA adhere to the same set of principles, while the proces ses and procedures they apply are modelled to fit the purposes and requirements of their contexts.
The ESG are based on the following ten principles for quality assurance in the EHEA:
- Higher education institutions have primary responsibility for the qua lity of their provision and its assurance;
- Quality assurance processes respond to the diversity of HE systems, institutions and programmes across the EHEA;
- Quality assurance processes take into account the expectations of all stakeholders and society at large;
- Quality assurance processes enable higher education institutions to continuously improve and demonstrate their accountability;
- Quality assurance supports a quality culture;
- Internal and external quality assurance processes are fit-for-purpose;
- Quality assurance processes aim at creating appropriate learning opportunities and environments;
- External quality assurance processes are carried out by independent quality assurance agencies;
- Quality assurance processes involve stakeholders;
- Quality assurance p rocesses and their outcomes are transparent and clear.

CELAN final meeting and results
The CELAN final project meeting took place on 18 March 2013 in Berlin. The core partners discussed exploitation plans and the future of CELAN and its community. Amongst the results are:

• Corporate language needs in Europe  - the report covering three sectors Europe-wide
• a benchmarking tool for all: Language needs analysis tool
• a concise language industry catalogue

A "Vademecum" for language policies for companies is currently in print.
Visit www.celan-platform.eu for more information. 

By Ruth Graf, Professional Development Manager, EAIE. Cross border education extends beyond the mobility of individuals to the movement of programmes and providers across frontiers and the establishment of foreign higher education provision. Countries in the Gulf region, like the United Arab Emirates, are at the forefront of initiatives in transnational education. Needless to say, recent developments and research were one of the hot topics during the recent Going Global Conference in Dubai.
During the Going Global conference, the preliminary results of a new British Council study ‘The shape of things to come 2: the evolution of transnational education’ were presented and discussed. The analysis not only looked at the developments in transnational education (TNE) in recent years, but specifically examined the situation in a number of TNE host countries and aimed at answering a number of questions such as: What are the motivations of countries to invite foreign providers to establish HE provision? What forms of TNE are established? What are the benefits of, but also the problems with TNE provision?Read more...

HEA Research and Policy Seminar Series: Research Ethics and Integrity: Is it all about compliance and reputation?
Speaker: Andrew Rawnsley
Abstract of presentation
There has been considerable resistance in the academic community to increasing institutional oversight of research ethics and integrity over the last few years. Much of the resistance to ethics and integrity in HE arises because of the way in which institutions implement administrative systems to approve and regulate research activity. This seminar will explore the tensions between ethical research practice per se, the expectations of research ethics and integrity policy makers, and the implementation of policy and administrative procedures in HE institutions. How should we best navigate between ethical practice and compliance?
Bookings are now open. Please click here to book.
Date: 16 Apr 2013
Start Time: 12:45 pm
Location/venue: The Higher Education Academy, Innovation Way, York Science Park, Heslington, York, England, YO10 5BR

Fuel increases and the increased cost of higher education are top concerns raised by businesses in Malaysia, said the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants' (ACCA) report entitled "Drivers of Change in Asia-Pacific".
In a statement today, ACCA said Malaysian respondents were more sensitive to rises in fuel and energy costs than other respondents across the region. It said apart from that, the respondents from Malaysia also highlighted the increased cost and accessibility of higher education as their second most critical driver of change in the short term.
"This differs to that across the Asia-Pacific which ranked cyber-security challenges for businesses as its second change driver," it said.
ACCA Malaysia head, Jennifer Lopez, said while it might be predictable for finance and senior executives to both identify fuel and energy costs as an issue in the short term, it was encouraging to see both roles looking to the same factors well into the next 10 years and beyond.
"In the medium term (2016-2022), the factor businesses said would be top of the Asia-Pacific corporate agenda was the increased need for accountants to take on a business partner role and have a broader skill set within the company, with 82 per cent of senior executives and 72 per cent of accountants citing it as critical to their future business plans," she said.
Lopez said the report also showed the growing prominence of non-financial information reporting and integrated reporting in businesses with three-quarters of senior executives rated it as a major consideration for their future plans to 2022. The survey is a part of a wider global report, involving over 550 accountants and business leaders from different sectors across Asia-Pacific markets, including Malaysia, China and Hong Kong.

By Kevin Kiley. The appointment of a new president at one of the University of Texas System’s eight regional universities would typically generate some local press and excitement, and maybe a mention in the state’s larger newspapers.
But when the University of Texas at Arlington named the sole finalist for its presidency last week, the pick was featured in a glowing profile in the world’s largest newspaper by circulation – The Times of India. That’s because the pick, Vistasp Karbhari, was born and completed his undergraduate education in India.
As the Times notes, Karbhari will join a “small but expanding league of Indian Americans heading educational institutions in the U.S.” Read more...

By Karin Fischer. As globalization and technology blur national borders, universities must work even harder to demonstrate their distinctiveness and value, said the leaders of top universities in the Asia-Pacific region.
The half-dozen presidents and vice chancellors spoke on the challenges to higher education as part of a round table during a meeting of the Asia-Pacific Association for International Education. The four-day conference has drawn more than 1,300 top university administrators from around the world to Hong Kong. Globalization and technology, including the rise of massive open online courses, or MOOCs, are changing the education landscape, but university leaders said they shouldn't allow those developments to compromise their identities.
"Globalization should not mean homogenization," said Ian O'Connor, vice chancellor and president of Griffith University, in Australia. Read more...

By Arwyn Jones. Finance directors of Welsh universities say the Welsh government's student fees subsidies are leaving their sector with an uncertain financial future. They have told BBC Wales they can not be sure there will be enough money left for them after the subsidising of Welsh students who study elsewhere in the UK.
Welsh students pay fees of no more than £3,500 wherever they study, with the Welsh government supplying the rest. The Welsh government says its policy is "fully costed and sustainable".
The Welsh Higher Education Finance Directors Group says that no-one knows from year to year how many Welsh students will choose to study in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Read more...