Building Capacity for Collaboration

Michael Jackson and Hugh Mc BrideGalway-Mayo Institute of Technology

Seminar 21st November 2008

Presentation Outline

• Context and project outline

• Researching the countries

• Building the network• Country visit

• Themes arising

• Scope for future collaboration?

Project funded

by an Irish Aid (IA) Networking Grant

under the

Programme of Strategic Cooperation between Irish Aid and Higher Education and Research Institutes (2007 – 2011)

The Programme recognises:

–Potential of the HE sectors in IA programme countries to contribute to poverty reduction and to achieving MDGs.

–The need to strengthen HE capacity if this potential to be realised.

–A potential role in this regard for Irish HE providers.

– Inter-institutional collaboration an effective mechanism for strengthening capacity.

–Capacity of Irish HE sector needs strengthening to enable it to respond.

ITs have a history of successful, formal, structured involvement in development cooperation.

HE not part of the mainstream international aid agenda since the early 1990s.

Engagement since then has generally been ‘informal, individual and ad hoc’.

Reserves of tacit knowledge in the sector.

Interest among staff and students.

Some very worthy initiatives.

But, loss of institutional ‘capacity for collaboration’?

To collaborate in an effective, coordinated and sustainable manner, we first need to know and understand each other.

But, constrained in the first instance by a ‘knowledge gap’!

Arguably, the knowledge base and the mechanisms necessary to support an effective and sustainable collective response are not currently in place.

For example:

Insufficient understanding of the HE sector and institutions in the IA programme countries.

Existing contacts informal and limited.

Capacity for collaboration among Institutes nascent.

Need to build the requisite capacity for collaboration by developing

an enabling framework of capability

to support an effective and sustainable collective response to identified needs.

In this context, the broad aim of our project is:

– to foster and facilitate collaboration among ITs and HE sectors in Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia and Lesotho,

–as a support to the development of sustainable HE capacity,

– in accordance with identified needs.

In particular:

–to strengthen teaching, learning and applied research capacity;

–to support the development of institutional diversity.

To enable this process by:

– researching the HE sector in Zambia, Malawi, Tanzania and Lesotho;

–disseminating and sharing this knowledge;

–as a basis for developing collaborative partnerships.

Seeking to:

• Develop a knowledge base and better understanding.

• Establish contacts and links and the basis for a sustainable network.

• Promote awareness and engagement.

• Identify specific areas for potential collaboration.

Reasons for choice of the 4 countries?

• IA programme countries.

• Manageable.

• Staff experience of working in these countries.

Possible collaborations envisaged at:

• Policy level

• Institutional level

• Programme level• Other?

For example, collaboration with a diverse range of HE providers in:

–programme design, delivery, assessment;

–accreditation and quality assurance;–developing teaching and learning support

materials;

– staff development and mentoring;

–developing industry linkages;

–other?

Scope for transferring the experience of the Irish HE ‘binary’ model, including the richness arising from its institutional diversity?

To remind ourselves:

Institutes of Technology are a significant force underpinning Ireland’s economic, social and cultural development.

Institutes of Technology:

• have served as a pioneering model internationally;

• have a strong capacity for innovation in programme design and delivery, geared to meeting national and regional needs;

• provide awards in a range of disciplines, from apprenticeship to Ph.D. level;

• have particular strengths in terms of the quality of their teaching and learning, characterised by academic rigour allied to an applications orientation;

• have a strong capacity for collaborating with industry and State agencies, including in applied research;

• have a strong commitment and record of achievement in promoting social inclusion and in providing life-long learning opportunities;

• have a strong track record in developing sectoral capacity.

• What do we mean by higher education?

Themes

• Need for investment – MDG• Third Level within Government strategies for countries• Unfulfilled demand• Proliferation and diversity of Institutions• Quality Assurance/NFQ• Relevant Curricula• Capacity Building and Development required to deliver

programmes Staff retention (improvement)• Overwhelming desire to Collaborate• Different models for collaboration• Focal point for collaboration