Sam Rany, Ph.D.

Korea Joong Ang Daily 05 September 2014 Issue No:333   The Ministry of Education yesterday designated 19 universities and colleges in the lowest 15 percent in terms of their operations, restricting government financial support starting next year. In an assessment of the nation’s 334 universities and colleges, the education authority singled out the schools in the poorest condition and suggested a restructuring via a reduction in their admissions quotas. The ministry has sought to reduce university entrance quotas after it was discovered that XXX that there were too many universities in Korea based on the country’s number of college students and that many of them were operated irresponsibly. Earlier this year, the government also began to invest 1.2 trillion won ($1.1 billion) in making universities more specialized in order to reduce the number of freshmen. The assessment, which looks at nine criteria, including alumni employment rates and the number of students

Hans de Wit 05 September 2014 Issue No:333 When the European Commission recently published the results of the Erasmus programme for 2012-13, it was proud to announce an overall increase in numbers of students by 6% to nearly 270,000. The numbers and trends presented in the press release are indeed impressive: the overall numbers, the percentage of European Union students who are spending part of their study abroad with the support of Erasmus – 10%, still only half of the target of 20% set by the Bologna ministers of education, though – the top receiving and sending countries (Spain is number one for both), as well as increases in staff mobility (13%), in teaching assignments (8.5%), in university cooperation projects (25.4% success rate) and in intensive language courses (9%). What was in my view the most revealing information, but which received little attention, was the increase in job placements: 16%, compared to 3.8% in study placements. Job placements vs

Last update 16:02 | 31/08/2014 by Vietnam net bridge Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has bemoaned the slow process of delegating more power to universities to enhance their autonomy, saying relevant agencies should accelerate the process to increase the quality of education. Chairing a meeting on autonomy at public universities in Hanoi Tuesday, Prime Minister Dung said that making universities responsible for all their operations is a right policy and has delivered initial positive results. According to Dung, their autonomy aims to create a motivation and a breakthrough to improve the quality of education and facilitate sustainable development of universities. However, the process has been moving slowly and should be speeded up so that universities can soon be autonomous in terms of finance, organization, training, curriculums and issuance of degrees and diplomas, Dung added. At the meeting, participants also discussed the implementation of such a policy. Prof

Emilia Tan 02 September 2014 Issue No:33 Azmi Sharom, a law professor at the University of Malaya, was on 2 September charged with sedition in a court in Kuala Lumpur. The public galleries were packed with academics and students from the university, and other supporters and rights activists. He pleaded not guilty. Azmi is the first Malaysian academic to be charged under the 1948 Sedition Act, although a number of opposition politicians have faced sedition charges in recent weeks under the law that dates back to the British colonial era. The professor, who was granted bail during the Tuesday hearing, will appear again before the court in October. He said in a statement later that he would fight the charge, saying it was a blow to academic freedom and freedom of expression. “I hope reason will prevail,” he told well wishers at the court. Sedition can carry a jail term of up to three years. Shocking charges Azmi said he was “shocked” at the charges for comments

ដោយ វណ្ណ វិចារ   (Source, RFA) 2014-08-30 ក្រសួង​អប់រំ យុវជន និង​កីឡា ប្រកាស​គោល​នយោបាយ​កំណែ​ទម្រង់​ស៊ី​ជម្រៅ ដើម្បី​ធានា​គុណភាព​អប់រំ​ឲ្យ​កាន់​តែ​ប្រសើរ។ កំណែ​ទម្រង់​ដំបូង​បំផុត​របស់​ក្រសួង​អប់រំ គឺ​ជា​ការ​ប្រឆាំង​អំពើ​ពុក​រលួយ​ពេល​ប្រឡង ដោយ​អនុវត្ត​ពាក្យ​ស្លោក អ្នក​ចេះ គឺ​ជាប់។ ភាគី​ពាក់ព័ន្ធ​ទាំងអស់​ចាត់​ទុក​ថា លទ្ធផល​ប្រឡង​បាក់​ឌុប​ឆ្នាំ​នេះ ជា​លទ្ធផល​ស្រាវជ្រាវ​ដែល​បង្ហាញ​ពី​គុណភាព​អប់រំ​នៅ​កម្ពុជា និង​ប្រសិទ្ធភាព​នៃ​កំណែ​ទម្រង់។ តើ​វិធី​ដែល​រដ្ឋាភិបាល​ប្រើ​នេះ អាច​ធ្វើ​ឲ្យ​គុណភាព​នៃ​ការ​អប់រំ​បាន​ប្រសើរ​មែន ឬ​យ៉ាង​ណា? វិធានការ​កម្ចាត់​អំពើ​ពុក​រលួយ​ពេល​ប្រឡង​បាក់​ឌុប​នៅ​ឆ្នាំ​នេះ បាន​ធ្វើ​ឲ្យ​បេក្ខជន​ជាង ៦​ម៉ឺន​នាក់ ឬ​ប្រមាណ​ជាង ៧៥% ប្រឡង​ធ្លាក់។ ចំនួន​សិស្ស​ប្រឡង​ធ្លាក់ មិន​ត្រឹម​តែ​បង្ហាញ​ពី​ប្រសិទ្ធភាព​នៃ​ការ​ពង្រឹង​វិន័យ​ពេល​ប្រឡង​ ប៉ុណ្ណោះ​ទេ ប៉ុន្តែ​វា​ក៏​បង្ហាញ​ពី​កម្រិត​ដ៏​ទន់​ខ្សោយ​នៃ​គុណភាព​អប់រំ​នៅ​កម្ពុជា ដែរ។ រាជ​រដ្ឋាភិបាល​បាន​ដាក់​ចេញ​វិធានការ​លើក​កម្ពស់​វិស័យ​អប់រំ​មួយ​ចំនួន រួម​មាន ការ​រៀបចំ​ផែនការ​យុទ្ធសាស្ត្រ​អប់រំ​រយៈពេល ៥​ឆ្នា

Source: Radio Free Asia  Students leave an examination center in Cambodia's Svay Rieng province, Aug. 4, 2014. More than 70 percent of nearly 90,000 of Cambodia's high school students who sat for this year’s national examination have failed, the Ministry of Education announced Friday—the result of a government crackdown on bribery and cheating that had tainted previous exams. It was a stunning reversal of the 80 percent pass rate last year and the previous year, forcing Prime Minister Hun Sen to give a “second chance” to unsuccessful candidates who have to sit for another examination around mid-October. The ministry said in a statement that only 25.72 percent or 23,126 of 89,937 students passed this year’s Grade 12 examination held early this month under the watchful eyes of thousands of monitors recruited by the Anti-Corruption Unit. Ministry spokesman Ros Salin said the result of the examination—a prerequisite for students wishing to pursue universit

Source: Radio Free Asia Hundreds of university students protested on Tuesday against a proposed law that civic groups say allows centralized control of universities and curtails efforts to bring about autonomy of the country’s institutions of higher learning, according to student leaders. The protests at Dagon University in the northeast of Myanmar’s commercial capital Yangon and Dawei University in Thaninthary region in the country’s south were the latest by universities against the National Education Bill passed by parliament in July. At the protest in Dagon University, student leaders gave speeches about the bill and demanded a meeting with the government, parliament and the National Network for Education Reform (NNER), a group of civil societies pushing for reforms in educational institutions. Under the bill, the government would establish a National Education Commission (NEC) that would “control the entire country’s education sector, make policies for it and dete