Political Continuum and the Adjustment of Higher Education to Market Norms
Résumé
Starting from a parallel between the rise of the industrial economy at the turn of the twentieth century and the emergence of the knowledge-based economy at the turn of the twenty-first, this analysis traces the historical, social, and economic roots of modern higher education policy to argue that, contrary to a common and well-entrenched belief, the adjustment of higher education to market mechanisms in the age of globalization takes place through a political continuum rather than through a real rupture with the past. The theory of state disengagement will be put to the test against the increasing need for governments to exert at least some form of control over the overall orientations of such strategic sectors as training, research and innovation. The demonstration focuses on the impact of globalization on universities, on the interaction between governance and markets, and on their implications in terms of evaluation and funding. The analysis is valid for the teaching, research and governing systems, as well as market imperatives and performance indicators of OECD countries. The specific variables that apply to developing countries lie beyond the scope of this study.