Tuesday, 4 September 2012
Sunday, 2 September 2012
The world is running out of water
02 September 2012 Issue No:237
Humans may have to switch almost completely to a vegetarian diet over the next 40 years to avoid catastrophic shortages of water, according to a report by the Stockholm International Water Institute.
''There will not be enough water available on current croplands to produce food for the expected nine billion population in 2050 if we follow current trends and changes towards diets common in Western nations,'' the report says.
Prepared by Malin Falkenmark and colleagues at the institute, the report says there will be just enough water if the proportion of animal-based foods is limited to 5% of total calories. It says considerable regional water deficits could be met by a reliable system of food trade between countries with surpluses and deficits.
The report says adopting a vegetarian diet is one option to increase the amount of water available to grow more food in a climate-erratic world. Animal protein-rich food consumes five to 10 times more water than a vegetarian diet, yet a third of the world's arable land is used to grow crops to feed animals.
''Nine hundred million people already go hungry and 2 billion people are malnourished in spite of the fact that per capita food production continues to increase. With 70% of all available water being in agriculture, growing more food to feed an additional 2 billion people by 2050 will place greater pressure on available water and land.''
The report was released to coincide with the start of the annual world water conference in Stockholm, where 2,500 politicians, UN bodies, non-governmental organisations and researchers from 120 countries were meeting to tackle water supply problems.
Competition for water between food production and other uses will intensify pressure on essential resources, the institute report states. ''The UN predicts that we must increase food production by 70% by mid-century. This will place additional pressure on our already stressed water resources.''
The institute also notes that research into water is growing faster than the average 4% annual growth rate for all research disciplines. In a report, The Water and Food Nexus: Trends and development of the research landscape, institute staff analysed the major trends in water- and food-related article output at international, national and institutional levels.
Global publisher Elsevier and the institute collaborated in preparing the report, which is based on the analysis of Scopus citation data by Elsevier’s SciVal Analytics team. It says the growing discrepancy between supply and demand for water is becoming more challenging each year but developments in water research have the potential to help solve the issue.
The report examines the dynamics of global water research between 2007 and 2011, focusing on two strands of research: water resources research, referring to natural and social science studies on water use, and food and water research focusing on the study of water consumption and recycling to produce food.
Water research has expanded rapidly, with both strands growing above the 4% average for all other disciplines. Water resources research is growing at a rate of 9.2% per year while research into food and water is growing by 4.7% each year.
Research is also becoming more collaborative and interdisciplinary, with a dramatic rise in publications from the fields of computer science and mathematics in water resource research; research from fields within the social sciences have become the fastest growing fields in the food and water research strand, the report states.
Research output is the highest in the United States in both water resources and food and water research, but growth between 2007 and 2011 was low.
On the other hand, China is experiencing ongoing growth in water research output and, if its trajectory continues, it could be the leading producer of water research within the next few years. Other countries experiencing high growth rates in both water resources and food and water research include Malaysia and Iran.
Humans may have to switch almost completely to a vegetarian diet over the next 40 years to avoid catastrophic shortages of water, according to a report by the Stockholm International Water Institute.
''There will not be enough water available on current croplands to produce food for the expected nine billion population in 2050 if we follow current trends and changes towards diets common in Western nations,'' the report says.
Prepared by Malin Falkenmark and colleagues at the institute, the report says there will be just enough water if the proportion of animal-based foods is limited to 5% of total calories. It says considerable regional water deficits could be met by a reliable system of food trade between countries with surpluses and deficits.
The report says adopting a vegetarian diet is one option to increase the amount of water available to grow more food in a climate-erratic world. Animal protein-rich food consumes five to 10 times more water than a vegetarian diet, yet a third of the world's arable land is used to grow crops to feed animals.
''Nine hundred million people already go hungry and 2 billion people are malnourished in spite of the fact that per capita food production continues to increase. With 70% of all available water being in agriculture, growing more food to feed an additional 2 billion people by 2050 will place greater pressure on available water and land.''
The report was released to coincide with the start of the annual world water conference in Stockholm, where 2,500 politicians, UN bodies, non-governmental organisations and researchers from 120 countries were meeting to tackle water supply problems.
Competition for water between food production and other uses will intensify pressure on essential resources, the institute report states. ''The UN predicts that we must increase food production by 70% by mid-century. This will place additional pressure on our already stressed water resources.''
The institute also notes that research into water is growing faster than the average 4% annual growth rate for all research disciplines. In a report, The Water and Food Nexus: Trends and development of the research landscape, institute staff analysed the major trends in water- and food-related article output at international, national and institutional levels.
Global publisher Elsevier and the institute collaborated in preparing the report, which is based on the analysis of Scopus citation data by Elsevier’s SciVal Analytics team. It says the growing discrepancy between supply and demand for water is becoming more challenging each year but developments in water research have the potential to help solve the issue.
The report examines the dynamics of global water research between 2007 and 2011, focusing on two strands of research: water resources research, referring to natural and social science studies on water use, and food and water research focusing on the study of water consumption and recycling to produce food.
Water research has expanded rapidly, with both strands growing above the 4% average for all other disciplines. Water resources research is growing at a rate of 9.2% per year while research into food and water is growing by 4.7% each year.
Research is also becoming more collaborative and interdisciplinary, with a dramatic rise in publications from the fields of computer science and mathematics in water resource research; research from fields within the social sciences have become the fastest growing fields in the food and water research strand, the report states.
Research output is the highest in the United States in both water resources and food and water research, but growth between 2007 and 2011 was low.
On the other hand, China is experiencing ongoing growth in water research output and, if its trajectory continues, it could be the leading producer of water research within the next few years. Other countries experiencing high growth rates in both water resources and food and water research include Malaysia and Iran.
Increasing internationalisation in PhD education
Jan Petter Myklebust and Jacquie Withers02 September 2012 Issue No:237
A recent survey suggests that Norway boost its efforts to
internationalise PhD education and includes the recommendation that for
PhD dissertation evaluation, at least one member of the three-member
committee should be drawn from outside Norway.
A June report, PhD Education in a Knowledge Society: An evaluation of PhD education in Norway, maintains that Norway’s PhD education system is of a high quality, being well funded and well organised and offering “very good working and learning conditions for PhD candidates, as well as good career prospects”.
The report was published by the Nordic Institute for Studies in Innovation, Research and Education (NIFU) and commissioned by the Research Council of Norway on behalf of the Ministry of Education and Research.
It argues that since the previous similar evaluation in 2002, “Norway has taken a definitive step towards becoming a standardised PhD education system with a strong focus on monitoring quality and efficiency”.
Among the report’s key recommendations is “improving practices in international recruitment at the PhD level, and finding ways of reducing the administrative burden of international recruitment of PhD candidates”.
The report continues: “Norway needs to be thinking more broadly about how the internationalisation of PhD education is occurring and how it should be promoted – with a focus that goes beyond concerns for outward mobility and longer stays abroad.”
More foreign input into PhD evaluation
At the same time, the country is pushing to include more foreign academics on its PhD evaluation committees.
The NIFU report details how the researchers sent out a survey questionnaire to the members of PhD evaluation committees who are from outside Norway. The objective was to map how highly these ‘external members’ judge the quality of the country’s PhDs.
In the survey, which had a response rate of 79%, members were asked their opinion of the quality of PhD dissertations recently assessed.
Those surveyed were asked to rate quality in terms of a number of different factors: originality; depth and coverage; theoretical level; methodological level and skills in written presentation; contribution to the advancement of the field; and external (applied, societal, cultural or industrial) relevance. There were five response options, ranging from 'excellent' to 'poor'.
Overall, 20% of the respondents rated the survey elements ‘excellent’, with a further 40% rating them ‘very good’ and 25% to 60% evaluating them as ‘good’.
The quality aspect that was ranked highest was skills in written presentation, as either ‘excellent’ or ‘very good’ by two-third of the evaluators, followed by depth and coverage listed by 65% and originality by 60% in the excellent-very good category.
When broken down according to PhD dissertation evaluators from different regions, interesting patterns emerged from the survey responses: North American evaluators gave the Norwegian PhD theses better ratings than their European colleagues, who in turn were more positive in their responses than members from the other Nordic countries.
On how the thesis evaluated contributed to the advancement of the field, 48% of the Nordic evaluators said ‘excellent’ or ‘very good’, compared to 64% of those coming from the rest of Europe and 68% of those from North America.
When broken down according to academic field, PhD dissertations in the natural sciences and the humanities got the strongest ratings, while those in the social sciences, and agriculture or veterinary medicine, were ranked beyond average. Theses in engineering or technology and medicine or health received very high scores among the North American examiners.
The majority of the survey respondents said the assessment procedures were rigorous and fair to the candidate, but also more time-consuming than in other countries. In Norway a joint examiners’ evaluation report is required before the doctoral defence, which is not the case in most other countries.
Need for internationalisation in PhD education
In arguing the need for internationalisation in PhD education to be reconsidered, the NIFU report points out that “the world of science and academic labour markets are increasingly global”.
The report states that in Norway currently about 33% of PhD graduates are not Norwegian citizens, and in the areas of natural sciences and technology 73% of PhD programme units report having a majority of international PhD applicants, reflecting “increased opportunities for internationalisation in PhD education”.
The report concurs that the increasing international recruitment that is being seen in Norway at the PhD level is positive “but poses short and long term challenges for the higher education institutions”.
The report specifies: “Recruitment procedures and quality control of PhD applicants is important, as is the integration of international PhD candidates and finding efficient ways to promote international experiences for all Norwegian PhD candidates.”
One of the concerns raised by the NIFU report is the issue of “critical time” for the research training part of the PhD, and “the risk that too many and too diverse a set of demands are being placed on the PhD period, in a way that has negative long-term consequences for the development of science”.
The report concludes in this regard that: “Better integration between the master and PhD levels and further training in the post-doc period are international trends which might help to address such challenges in Norwegian PhD training.”
A June report, PhD Education in a Knowledge Society: An evaluation of PhD education in Norway, maintains that Norway’s PhD education system is of a high quality, being well funded and well organised and offering “very good working and learning conditions for PhD candidates, as well as good career prospects”.
The report was published by the Nordic Institute for Studies in Innovation, Research and Education (NIFU) and commissioned by the Research Council of Norway on behalf of the Ministry of Education and Research.
It argues that since the previous similar evaluation in 2002, “Norway has taken a definitive step towards becoming a standardised PhD education system with a strong focus on monitoring quality and efficiency”.
Among the report’s key recommendations is “improving practices in international recruitment at the PhD level, and finding ways of reducing the administrative burden of international recruitment of PhD candidates”.
The report continues: “Norway needs to be thinking more broadly about how the internationalisation of PhD education is occurring and how it should be promoted – with a focus that goes beyond concerns for outward mobility and longer stays abroad.”
More foreign input into PhD evaluation
At the same time, the country is pushing to include more foreign academics on its PhD evaluation committees.
The NIFU report details how the researchers sent out a survey questionnaire to the members of PhD evaluation committees who are from outside Norway. The objective was to map how highly these ‘external members’ judge the quality of the country’s PhDs.
In the survey, which had a response rate of 79%, members were asked their opinion of the quality of PhD dissertations recently assessed.
Those surveyed were asked to rate quality in terms of a number of different factors: originality; depth and coverage; theoretical level; methodological level and skills in written presentation; contribution to the advancement of the field; and external (applied, societal, cultural or industrial) relevance. There were five response options, ranging from 'excellent' to 'poor'.
Overall, 20% of the respondents rated the survey elements ‘excellent’, with a further 40% rating them ‘very good’ and 25% to 60% evaluating them as ‘good’.
The quality aspect that was ranked highest was skills in written presentation, as either ‘excellent’ or ‘very good’ by two-third of the evaluators, followed by depth and coverage listed by 65% and originality by 60% in the excellent-very good category.
When broken down according to PhD dissertation evaluators from different regions, interesting patterns emerged from the survey responses: North American evaluators gave the Norwegian PhD theses better ratings than their European colleagues, who in turn were more positive in their responses than members from the other Nordic countries.
On how the thesis evaluated contributed to the advancement of the field, 48% of the Nordic evaluators said ‘excellent’ or ‘very good’, compared to 64% of those coming from the rest of Europe and 68% of those from North America.
When broken down according to academic field, PhD dissertations in the natural sciences and the humanities got the strongest ratings, while those in the social sciences, and agriculture or veterinary medicine, were ranked beyond average. Theses in engineering or technology and medicine or health received very high scores among the North American examiners.
The majority of the survey respondents said the assessment procedures were rigorous and fair to the candidate, but also more time-consuming than in other countries. In Norway a joint examiners’ evaluation report is required before the doctoral defence, which is not the case in most other countries.
Need for internationalisation in PhD education
In arguing the need for internationalisation in PhD education to be reconsidered, the NIFU report points out that “the world of science and academic labour markets are increasingly global”.
The report states that in Norway currently about 33% of PhD graduates are not Norwegian citizens, and in the areas of natural sciences and technology 73% of PhD programme units report having a majority of international PhD applicants, reflecting “increased opportunities for internationalisation in PhD education”.
The report concurs that the increasing international recruitment that is being seen in Norway at the PhD level is positive “but poses short and long term challenges for the higher education institutions”.
The report specifies: “Recruitment procedures and quality control of PhD applicants is important, as is the integration of international PhD candidates and finding efficient ways to promote international experiences for all Norwegian PhD candidates.”
One of the concerns raised by the NIFU report is the issue of “critical time” for the research training part of the PhD, and “the risk that too many and too diverse a set of demands are being placed on the PhD period, in a way that has negative long-term consequences for the development of science”.
The report concludes in this regard that: “Better integration between the master and PhD levels and further training in the post-doc period are international trends which might help to address such challenges in Norwegian PhD training.”
Higher education participation rate to rise to 40% by 2020 – PM (SINGAPORE)
Adele Yung28 August 2012 Issue No:237
Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has announced that the
proportion of young people attending higher education will rise to 40%
by 2020 compared to 27% now, with two new publicly backed universities
planned for the city-state.
Education is “Singapore’s most important long-term investment in its people and it is a key response to the changing world”, Lee said during his annual National Day Rally policy speech, delivered at the Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT) on 26 August.
Lee said that SIT and the Singapore Institute of Management University (UniSIM) would be upgraded to become Singapore’s fifth and sixth universities, offering applied as well as part-time degrees.
This would open up an additional 3,000 full-time university places, offering 16,000 university places by 2020 against the current 13,000.
The Ministry of Education, in a statement on 28 August, described the expansion as “carefully calibrated”.
The figures include planned increases in enrolment at Singapore’s main existing universities, including the National University of Singapore in collaboration with Yale University in the US; Nanyang Technological University; Singapore Management University; the new Singapore University of Technology and Design in collaboration with Massachusetts Institute of Technology; and two arts education institutions.
Panel review of university education
The prime minister’s announcement comes a year after he initiated a wide ranging review of university education, to investigate how to increase the number of university places available for Singaporeans.
Lee said the review panel led by Senior Minister of State for Education Lawrence Wong “concluded that we should create more university places”, but that “we should focus on applied practice-oriented degrees, for example, engineers, physiotherapists, social workers – skills that are in demand and which will help get graduates jobs, and we should not just churn out graduates regardless of the quality or employment opportunities”.
Pointing to some other countries, including Britain, the United States and China, with unemployment or underemployment of graduates, he added: "Singapore must avoid leading people up the wrong path, misleading them that if you spend three years of your life doing this, at the end you will have a happy outcome.”
"We must make sure that if we encourage people to go that way, that at the end the prospects are good."
UniSIM, a private college that is part of the Singapore Institute of Management, currently offers only part-time programmes but will add full-time programmes.
Meanwhile, part-time undergraduate students, including working adults at UniSIM, could become eligible for government grants and loans to enable them to “get the same support” as students at the National University of Singapore and Nanyang Technological University, Lee said – although UniSIM would remain a private university.
Providing more details, the Ministry of Education said UniSIM had a strong track record in providing part-time degree programmes in close collaboration with industry, and provided “a good balance of theoretical and real-world education”.
The review panel noted in its final report published this month: “UniSIM remains the only private institution to date that the Ministry of Education has assessed as being of sufficient quality to be accorded university status and degree-awarding powers.”
SIT, a multi-campus institution designed to allow polytechnic students to upgrade their qualifications, would begin to award its own degrees, the ministry said.
Instructive experience of other countries
The decision to increase university enrolment without expanding Singapore’s research-intensive universities further, or opening new research universities, was based on an examination by the review panel of higher education in the UK, Hong Kong, Germany, France, Canada and Finland.
The panel said problems with the UK university system had been “particularly instructive”.
In 1992 the UK government granted university status to polytechnics, which had been mainly teaching institutions
“This proved to be a double loss for the wider higher education sector – the vast majority of these post-1992 new universities still struggle with their new mission and are unable to rise in quality and standing; and the UK tertiary system is now devoid of a tier of institutions that was previously instrumental in producing a technically skilled workforce,” the panel said.
“Therefore, it would be prudent for us to avoid this path while there are other more viable options.”
Singapore also has around 70 registered private higher education institutions offering external degree programmes of overseas university partners. They enrolled some 47,500 Singaporean students full-time and part-time in 2011.
Education is “Singapore’s most important long-term investment in its people and it is a key response to the changing world”, Lee said during his annual National Day Rally policy speech, delivered at the Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT) on 26 August.
Lee said that SIT and the Singapore Institute of Management University (UniSIM) would be upgraded to become Singapore’s fifth and sixth universities, offering applied as well as part-time degrees.
This would open up an additional 3,000 full-time university places, offering 16,000 university places by 2020 against the current 13,000.
The Ministry of Education, in a statement on 28 August, described the expansion as “carefully calibrated”.
The figures include planned increases in enrolment at Singapore’s main existing universities, including the National University of Singapore in collaboration with Yale University in the US; Nanyang Technological University; Singapore Management University; the new Singapore University of Technology and Design in collaboration with Massachusetts Institute of Technology; and two arts education institutions.
Panel review of university education
The prime minister’s announcement comes a year after he initiated a wide ranging review of university education, to investigate how to increase the number of university places available for Singaporeans.
Lee said the review panel led by Senior Minister of State for Education Lawrence Wong “concluded that we should create more university places”, but that “we should focus on applied practice-oriented degrees, for example, engineers, physiotherapists, social workers – skills that are in demand and which will help get graduates jobs, and we should not just churn out graduates regardless of the quality or employment opportunities”.
Pointing to some other countries, including Britain, the United States and China, with unemployment or underemployment of graduates, he added: "Singapore must avoid leading people up the wrong path, misleading them that if you spend three years of your life doing this, at the end you will have a happy outcome.”
"We must make sure that if we encourage people to go that way, that at the end the prospects are good."
UniSIM, a private college that is part of the Singapore Institute of Management, currently offers only part-time programmes but will add full-time programmes.
Meanwhile, part-time undergraduate students, including working adults at UniSIM, could become eligible for government grants and loans to enable them to “get the same support” as students at the National University of Singapore and Nanyang Technological University, Lee said – although UniSIM would remain a private university.
Providing more details, the Ministry of Education said UniSIM had a strong track record in providing part-time degree programmes in close collaboration with industry, and provided “a good balance of theoretical and real-world education”.
The review panel noted in its final report published this month: “UniSIM remains the only private institution to date that the Ministry of Education has assessed as being of sufficient quality to be accorded university status and degree-awarding powers.”
SIT, a multi-campus institution designed to allow polytechnic students to upgrade their qualifications, would begin to award its own degrees, the ministry said.
Instructive experience of other countries
The decision to increase university enrolment without expanding Singapore’s research-intensive universities further, or opening new research universities, was based on an examination by the review panel of higher education in the UK, Hong Kong, Germany, France, Canada and Finland.
The panel said problems with the UK university system had been “particularly instructive”.
In 1992 the UK government granted university status to polytechnics, which had been mainly teaching institutions
“This proved to be a double loss for the wider higher education sector – the vast majority of these post-1992 new universities still struggle with their new mission and are unable to rise in quality and standing; and the UK tertiary system is now devoid of a tier of institutions that was previously instrumental in producing a technically skilled workforce,” the panel said.
“Therefore, it would be prudent for us to avoid this path while there are other more viable options.”
Singapore also has around 70 registered private higher education institutions offering external degree programmes of overseas university partners. They enrolled some 47,500 Singaporean students full-time and part-time in 2011.
Call for improved access to HE in the Commonwealth
Maina Waruru02 September 2012 Issue No:237
The 18th Conference of Commonwealth Education Ministers held in
Mauritius last week saw the launch of a pan-Commonwealth student body
and a call for governments to tackle lack of access to higher education,
which is entrenching inequalities in society.
Students from around the 54-country Commonwealth formed the Pan-Commonwealth Students Association following a four-day Youth Forum alongside the ministers’ conference, or 18CCEM, which was held from 27-30 August on the Indian Ocean island.
The theme of the ministers’ gathering was “Education in the Commonwealth: Bridging the gap as we accelerate towards internationally agreed goals”.
Among four meetings held parallel to 18CCEM was the Post-secondary and Higher Education Leaders' Forum convened by the 500-member Association of Commonwealth Universities, or ACU, in partnership with the Mauritius government and the University of Mauritius.
It called on post-secondary education to “feature prominently in any international development objectives established to succeed the Millennium Development Goals”. Education ministers agreed to set up a working group to advise on new goals to follow the MDGs after 2015.
According to a statement, ACU Deputy Secretary General Dr John Kirkland told the ministers that including post-secondary education in post-MDG goals was a “natural step in the process that was started 15 years ago.
“It would be a tragedy if governments, after setting out to improve access for all at primary level, then decided that their aspirations for disadvantaged groups only extended to the ages of seven or 11.”
Noting that many Commonwealth countries had made huge strides in ensuring access to primary and secondary education, the ACU forum agreed that the translation rate to higher education remained low. Some countries cited lack of funds and facilities as major obstacles.
In some countries, post-secondary systems were stretched far beyond capacity despite efforts made by institutions to expand. Growing further would require governments to invest more in the sector.
Nigeria was cited as an example, where despite massive expansion of facilities, only one in five of some 1.5 million qualified applications secures a place in higher education each year.
What message would it convey to the generation of children who have entered formal education, that after school “we are happy to tolerate exclusion?” asked Dorothy Garland, director of professional networks at the the ACU.
The forum, attended by 130 delegates from 25 Commonwealth countries, asked member states to adopt targets for increased participation in post-secondary education and to table a progress report at the next ministers' meeting for debate.
“Member governments should actively identify priority groups, and publish strategies to increase participation, where necessary providing institutions with the appropriate resources – both financial and human – to enhance access,” said Garland.
One way to achieve increased participation, the forum pointed out, was to diversity from traditional learning methods and expand open and distance education as part of a “blended portfolio of opportunities, which students can match to their own skill and employment needs,” said the ACU statement.
At the same time, quality must not be compromised and career guidance and efforts to produce employable graduates must be enhanced.
The ACU also called for “designated funds to develop staff working in the sector, and more progress towards access for excluded groups.
“Recognising that governments alone cannot meet expanding demand for post-secondary education, delegates proposed a range of approaches, including working more collaboratively with the private sector,” said the ACU statement.
The Pan-Commonwealth Student Associations' aim is to enable student leaders from across the Commonwealth to shape post-secondary education thinking and decisions. Its launch was the culmination of years of consultation following a decision to form a student body taken at the previous Youth Forum in Malaysia in 2009.
Student participation in shaping higher education in member countries ranked high on the 18CCEM agenda.
Commonwealth Deputy Secretary General Mmasekgoa Masire-Mwamba said an organised youth voice would facilitate student access to deliberations and policy outcomes in education.
“We in the Commonwealth are taking bold steps to embrace the vast potential in our young people. We have sought to listen to them and are working together to implement the priorities they have emphasised.”
A steering committee of student representatives from all four Commonwealth regions was elected last week and will take forward a mandate to set the association agenda.
The chair is Stanley Njoroge from Kenya, who saluted his fellow students for their hard work in making the Pan-Commonwealth Students Association a reality. “You have made your flags proud,” he said.
Students from around the 54-country Commonwealth formed the Pan-Commonwealth Students Association following a four-day Youth Forum alongside the ministers’ conference, or 18CCEM, which was held from 27-30 August on the Indian Ocean island.
The theme of the ministers’ gathering was “Education in the Commonwealth: Bridging the gap as we accelerate towards internationally agreed goals”.
Among four meetings held parallel to 18CCEM was the Post-secondary and Higher Education Leaders' Forum convened by the 500-member Association of Commonwealth Universities, or ACU, in partnership with the Mauritius government and the University of Mauritius.
It called on post-secondary education to “feature prominently in any international development objectives established to succeed the Millennium Development Goals”. Education ministers agreed to set up a working group to advise on new goals to follow the MDGs after 2015.
According to a statement, ACU Deputy Secretary General Dr John Kirkland told the ministers that including post-secondary education in post-MDG goals was a “natural step in the process that was started 15 years ago.
“It would be a tragedy if governments, after setting out to improve access for all at primary level, then decided that their aspirations for disadvantaged groups only extended to the ages of seven or 11.”
Noting that many Commonwealth countries had made huge strides in ensuring access to primary and secondary education, the ACU forum agreed that the translation rate to higher education remained low. Some countries cited lack of funds and facilities as major obstacles.
In some countries, post-secondary systems were stretched far beyond capacity despite efforts made by institutions to expand. Growing further would require governments to invest more in the sector.
Nigeria was cited as an example, where despite massive expansion of facilities, only one in five of some 1.5 million qualified applications secures a place in higher education each year.
What message would it convey to the generation of children who have entered formal education, that after school “we are happy to tolerate exclusion?” asked Dorothy Garland, director of professional networks at the the ACU.
The forum, attended by 130 delegates from 25 Commonwealth countries, asked member states to adopt targets for increased participation in post-secondary education and to table a progress report at the next ministers' meeting for debate.
“Member governments should actively identify priority groups, and publish strategies to increase participation, where necessary providing institutions with the appropriate resources – both financial and human – to enhance access,” said Garland.
One way to achieve increased participation, the forum pointed out, was to diversity from traditional learning methods and expand open and distance education as part of a “blended portfolio of opportunities, which students can match to their own skill and employment needs,” said the ACU statement.
At the same time, quality must not be compromised and career guidance and efforts to produce employable graduates must be enhanced.
The ACU also called for “designated funds to develop staff working in the sector, and more progress towards access for excluded groups.
“Recognising that governments alone cannot meet expanding demand for post-secondary education, delegates proposed a range of approaches, including working more collaboratively with the private sector,” said the ACU statement.
The Pan-Commonwealth Student Associations' aim is to enable student leaders from across the Commonwealth to shape post-secondary education thinking and decisions. Its launch was the culmination of years of consultation following a decision to form a student body taken at the previous Youth Forum in Malaysia in 2009.
Student participation in shaping higher education in member countries ranked high on the 18CCEM agenda.
Commonwealth Deputy Secretary General Mmasekgoa Masire-Mwamba said an organised youth voice would facilitate student access to deliberations and policy outcomes in education.
“We in the Commonwealth are taking bold steps to embrace the vast potential in our young people. We have sought to listen to them and are working together to implement the priorities they have emphasised.”
A steering committee of student representatives from all four Commonwealth regions was elected last week and will take forward a mandate to set the association agenda.
The chair is Stanley Njoroge from Kenya, who saluted his fellow students for their hard work in making the Pan-Commonwealth Students Association a reality. “You have made your flags proud,” he said.
Yale President Richard Levin to step down
Bloomberg02 September 2012 Issue No:237
Yale University President Richard C Levin, the longest-serving leader in
the Ivy League, said he will retire at the end of the current academic
year, writes Janet Lorin for Bloomberg.
An economist, Levin has been a member of Yale’s faculty since he received his PhD at the New Haven, Connecticut, university in 1974. Levin (65) became president in 1993. He helped make Yale’s endowment – valued at $19.4 billion in June 2011 – the second largest in higher education, behind Harvard University.
After completing a fundraising campaign, beginning construction on a new business school building, establishing a campus in Singapore and other endeavours, the timing was a “natural juncture”, Levin said in an interview last week. Decisions about the next slate of buildings, at a cost of about $1 billion, should be made by the next president, he said.
An economist, Levin has been a member of Yale’s faculty since he received his PhD at the New Haven, Connecticut, university in 1974. Levin (65) became president in 1993. He helped make Yale’s endowment – valued at $19.4 billion in June 2011 – the second largest in higher education, behind Harvard University.
After completing a fundraising campaign, beginning construction on a new business school building, establishing a campus in Singapore and other endeavours, the timing was a “natural juncture”, Levin said in an interview last week. Decisions about the next slate of buildings, at a cost of about $1 billion, should be made by the next president, he said.
Harvard University probes plagiarism outbreak involving 125 students
Half the students in Ivy League college's Introduction to Congress class may have copied each other's final exams
To be caught cheating at Harvard is bad enough. The august university prides itself on incubating America's elite in the world of law, business and politics.
But now it has been revealed that scores of Harvard students are suspected of cheating on a single class. And the course's title? An Introduction to Congress.
Though that will likely fail to surprise the many cynical observers of American politics, it has certainly stunned college officials. Harvard has immediately launched an investigation.
"These allegations, if proven represent totally unacceptable behaviour that betrays the trust upon which intellectual inquiry at Harvard depends," said Harvard president Drew Faust in a statement.
After the allegations first became public the college refused to reveal the exact nature of the course in question. But the student newspaper, the Harvard Crimson, broke the story of the politics link and immediately sent a ripple of shock, mixed with humour, around the blogosphere.
"That's funny on so many levels," tweeted Andreas Goeldi, who works for an online video marketing firm in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where Harvard is located.
The Crimson said the politics course in question was taught during the spring by Professor Matthew Platt. After similarities were noticed in up to 20 student exam papers by an examiner the matter was brought to the attention of the administrative board and an investigation was launched.
That probe has now found some 125 of the course's final papers were suspicious and has begun contacting students involved.
Possible punishments range from being suspended for a year to an official warning. The class was taken by only 250 students meaning a staggering half are now suspected of cheating.
The newspaper quoted an email sent to students taking the exam that said it was "completely open book, open note, open internet, etc.." but warned them not to discuss it with each other and to treat it as an "in-class" exam.
The Associated Press reported that Harvard had now launched a committee on academic integrity to be headed by Jay Harris, the university's dean of undergraduate education. The panel may even consider bringing in an "honour code" for academic honesty.
"We believe in due process for students and fairness. Everyone wants it done yesterday, but we have to be patient. It's going to take as long as it takes," Harris told the news agency.
The rise of the internet, and the ubiquity of laptops among a student body, has led to many complaints that it is now too easy for students to take exam answers and course work from the world wide web.
However, the Boston Globe said that it appeared the Harvard students in question had not taken material from outside sources but appeared to have copied parts of the answers from each other. If the scandal is proved true it will doubtless be the largest cheating ring to have hit an elite Ivy League college in recent memory.
យុវជនដែលប្រឡងជាប់បាក់ឌុបព្រួយបារម្ភអំពីការសិក្សានៅមហាវិទ្យាល័យ
លទ្ធផលប្រឡងបាក់ឌុបដែលទើបតែត្រូវ បានក្រសួងអប់រំប្រកាសថ្មីៗបានធ្វើឲ្យយុវជនជាច្រើនដែលប្រឡង ជាប់សប្បាយចិត្ត។ ប៉ុន្តែក្នុងខណៈដែលពួកគេត្រៀមខ្លួនចូលមហាវិទ្យាល័យនៅចុងឆ្នាំ នេះ សិស្សដែលទើបតែទទួលបានសញ្ញាបត្របាក់ឌុបថ្មីៗ មានការព្រួយបារម្ភអំពីការជ្រើសរើសជំនាញរបស់ខ្លួន ពីព្រោះតែពួកគេមិនដឹងថា ខ្លួនឯងពូកែអ្វី ហើយត្រួវជ្រើសរើសមុខវិជ្ជាអ្វីយកមកសិក្សាបន្តនៅមហាវិទ្យាល័យ នោះទេ។
សិស្សមួយចំនួនសម្រេចចិត្តទៅតាមក្តីប្រាថ្នារបស់ឪពុកម្តាយដែល
មិនដឹងពីសមត្ថភាពរបស់កូននេះ
ជាហេតុនាំឲ្យពួកគេអាចបោះបង់ចោលការសិក្សា។ដោយឡែក
សិស្សមួយចំនួនទៀតបានសម្រេចចិត្តទៅតាមតម្រូវការនៃទីផ្សារដោយមិន
មើលពីសមត្ថភាពរបស់ខ្លួនទេ នេះជា
ហេតុផលមួយទៀតនាំអោយពួកគេមិនបានទទួលជោគជ័យនៅក្នុងជីវិត។
នេះជាអ្វីដែលបាននិងកំពុងកើតមាននៅកម្ពុជា។
ការជ្រើសរើសបន្តការសិក្សានៅកម្រិតឧត្តមសិក្សាមុខវិជ្ជាដែលសិស្ស
រៀន ភាគច្រើននោះ គឺធនាគារ ហិរញ្ញវត្ថុ គណេនយ្យ ទីផ្សារ
ភាសាអង់គ្លេស គ្រប់គ្រង និងច្បាប់។
ការកង្វះខាតនូវពត៌មាននៃការសិក្សានៅកម្រិតឧត្តមសិក្សារបស់សិស្ស
ធ្វើឲ្យពួកគាត់ជ្រើសរើសមុខវិជ្ជាដែលមិនសមបំណងរបស់ខ្លួន។
សិស្សខ្លះ ជ្រើសរើសទៅតាមការអូសទាញរបស់មិត្តភ័ក្តិ
ហើយខ្លះទៀតតាមឪពុកម្តាយរបស់ពួកគេ។
លោកបណ្ឌិត សុខ ទូច
សាកលវិទ្យាធិការនៃសាកលវិទ្យាល័យខេមរៈមានប្រសាសន៍ថា
សិស្សដែលបញ្ចប់បាក់ឌុបមិនបានជ្រើសរើសមុខវិជ្ជាដែលខ្លួនស្រឡាញ់
និងពេញចិត្តនោះទេ។ ភាគច្រើន
ពួកគេជ្រើសរើសទៅតាមតែទីផ្សារការងារសព្វថៃ្ង
តាមអ្នកដែលផ្តល់លុយអោយ និងតាមរយៈមិត្តភ័ក្តិ។ លោកថា
ពួកគេនឹងប្រឈមមុខជាមួយនឹងកង្វះការងារធើ្វ
និងធ្វើការងារមិនត្រូវតាមមុខជំនាញរបស់ខ្លួននាពេលអនាគត។
ការជ្រើសរើសមុខវិជ្ជាខុសក្នុងការបន្តការសិក្សានៅកម្រិតឧត្តម
សិក្សាពិតជាមានផលប៉ះពាល់ យ៉ាងខ្លាំងដល់សង្គមដូចជា
ភាពគ្មានការងារធើ្វការ តាមមិនទាន់នៃបច្ចេកវិទ្យានៅពេល
បច្ចុប្បន្ន អនាគត
និងការប្រឈមចំពោះទីផ្សារសេរីនៃអាស៊ានឆ្នាំ២០១៥ ។
យ៉ាងណាក៏ដោយ ក្រសួងអប់រំក៏បានចាប់អារម្មណ៍លើបញ្ហានេះដែរ។
លោក សំ សេរីរត្ន័
អគ្គនាយកដ្ឋានអប់រំនៃក្រសួងអប់រំមានប្រសាសន៍ថា
ក្រសួងអប់រំបានណែនាំទៅដល់សិស្សទាំងអស់អំពីមុខវិជ្ជានីមួយៗដែល
ពួកគេត្រូវជ្រើសរើសរួចហើយ ប៉ុន្តែ
ការសម្រេចចិត្តយ៉ាងណានោះវាអាស្រ័យទៅលើសិស្សទាំងអស់នោះ
ថាតើមុខវិជ្ជាមួយណាដែលពួកគេពេញចិត្ត។
ការសម្រេចចិត្តដែលត្រឹមត្រូវទាមទារឲ្យសិស្សទទួលបានព័ត៌មានច្រើន
ពីមុខវិជ្ជាដែលខ្លួនបម្រុងនឹងរៀនតាមរយៈសាកលវិទ្យាល័យនីមួយៗដែល
ខ្លួនចង់ទៅរៀន
និងការសាកសួរអ្នកដែលធ្លាប់មានបទពិសោធន៍ពីមុនមក។
ការជ្រើសរើសមុខវិជ្ជាដែលត្រូវនឹងសមត្ថភាព
និងចំណង់ចំណូលចិត្តរបស់ខ្លួនគឺជាការត្រៀមរៀបចំអនាគតរបស់ខ្លួន
សម្រាប់ទីផ្សារការងារនាពេលខាងមុខ។
នេះជាដំបូន្មានរបស់ក្រុមអ្នកជំនាញ៕
វប្បធម៌គាំទ្រសម្ដីអ្នកធំឬមេដឹកនាំប្រទេសចាក់ឫសក្នុងសង្គមខ្មែរ
ដោយ សេក បណ្ឌិត
2012-09-02
វប្បធម៌គាំទ្រសម្ដីរបស់អ្នកធំ ឬមេដឹកនាំប្រទេស ទោះចេញពីដួងចិត្តពិត ឬគ្រាន់តែបំពងសំឡេងហៃអើៗតាមក្រោយ ដើម្បីលាភសក្ការៈក្តី កំពុងចាក់ឫសយ៉ាងជ្រៅក្នុងសង្គមខ្មែរ។អ្នកតាមដានការវិវឌ្ឍន៍នៃស្ថានការណ៍សង្គម មើលឃើញថា វប្បធម៌នេះកើតឡើងដោយឥទ្ធិពលអំណាចខ្លាំងក្លាពេក ហើយវាបានឆ្លុះបញ្ចាំងឲ្យឃើញថា ប្រទេសមួយនេះមិនទាន់ជឿនលឿនខាងការគោរពសិទ្ធិមនុស្ស និងលទ្ធិប្រជាប្រជាធិបតេយ្យនោះទេ។
អ្នកជំនាញវិទ្យាសាស្ត្រសង្គមបានបង្ហាញថា វប្បធម៌ហៃអើដែលមនុស្សមួយក្រុមគេតែងតែកៀរគរគ្នាគាំទ្រលើសម្ដី មេដឹកនាំប្រទេស ឬតំបន់ណាមួយនោះ បានបង្ហាញថា មេដឹកនាំនោះបានប្រើប្រាស់អំណាចរបស់ខ្លួនដល់កំពូលហើយ។
ការប្រើប្រាស់អំណាច ឬសមត្ថកិច្ចគ្រប់យ៉ាងបែបនេះ បានធ្វើឲ្យក្រុមមនុស្សនៅជុំវិញខ្លួនមិនហ៊ានពិភាក្សាផ្លាស់ប្ដូរ យោបល់ ឬជំទាស់នោះទេ ផ្ទុយទៅវិញមានតែការភ័យខ្លាច ហើយមានតែវិធីម្យ៉ាងគត់ គឺគាំទ្រគំនិតរបស់មេធំ បើទោះបីជាការគាំទ្រនោះខុសក៏ដោយត្រូវក៏ដោយ។
អ្នកវិភាគ និងស្រាវជ្រាវលើការអភិវឌ្ឍន៍សង្គម លោកបណ្ឌិត កែម ឡី បានបង្ហាញជុំវិញបរិបទដែលកំពុងតែកើតមានក្នុងសង្គមសព្វថ្ងៃថា ទម្លាប់បែបនេះវាស្ទើរតែជាប្រពៃណីមួយទៅហើយ អោយតែអ្នកដឹកនាំជាន់ខ្ពស់សម្រេចលើរឿងអ្វីមួយ គឺអ្នកនៅខាងក្រោមឱវាទចាំបាច់ត្រូវតែនាំគ្នាគាំទ្រ ដោយមិនបានគិតពីចំណុចអវិជ្ជមាន ឬគុណវិបត្តិទៅថ្ងៃអនាគតយ៉ាងណានោះឡើយ។
លោក កែម ឡី៖ «ជាវប្បធម៌ ឥឡូវនេះទោះបីជាអង្គការក្រៅរដ្ឋាភិបាលក៏ដោយ ស្ថាប័នក្នុងរដ្ឋាភិបាលក៏ដោយ ច្រើនតែចុះហត្ថលេខានឹងគេដែរ ព្រមនឹងគេដែរ ទោះបីក្នុងចិត្ត ក្នុងបេះដូងមិនពេញចិត្តក៏ដោយ។ ចំណុចនេះឆ្លុះបញ្ចាំងនូវបរិយាកាសនយោបាយ ដែលពុំទាន់មានលទ្ធិប្រជាធិបតេយ្យ សេរីភាពពេញលេញក្នុងការបញ្ចេញមតិ ជាពិសេសមតិផ្ទុយនេះឯង»។
កន្លងមកថ្មីនេះៗ ក្រោយពីលោកនាយករដ្ឋមន្រ្តី ហ៊ុន សែន បានទៅធ្វើបទបង្ហាញមួយនៅរដ្ឋសភាពីបញ្ហាបោះបង្គោលព្រំដែន កម្ពុជា-វៀតណាម ដោយមិនឲ្យបក្សប្រឆាំងដែលជាម្ចាស់សំណួរតមាត់កាលពីថ្ងៃទី១៣ សីហា នោះ គេឃើញមានស្ថាប័នរដ្ឋ និងឯកជនមួយចំនួនបានសរសេរលិខិត ឬញត្តិគាំទ្រជាហូរហែ ក្នុងនោះក៏មានបទអត្ថធិប្បាយគាំទ្រផងដែរ។
បទអត្ថាធិប្បាយមួយដែលវិទ្យុអាស៊ីសេរី ទទួលបានកាលពីថ្ងៃ ២២ ខែសីហា របស់លោក អេង យេង ទីប្រឹក្សាអមទីស្តីការគណៈរដ្ឋមន្រ្តីបានសសេរលើកតម្កើងថា "កម្លាំងចលករដ៏ខ្លាំងក្លានៃសម័យសម្ដេចតេជោ សែន"។
អ្នកសរសេរបទអត្ថាធិប្បាយនេះបានសម្ដែងនូវក្តីរំភើបចំពោះការ បកស្រាយបំភ្លឺរបស់លោក ហ៊ុន សែន អំពីការបោះបង្គោលខណ្ឌសីមាកម្ពុជា-វៀតណាម កាលពីថ្ងៃទី០៩ សីហា ឆ្នាំ២០១២ នៅរដ្ឋសភាជាតិ។ បទអត្ថាធិប្បាយបានបង្ហាញថា សំនួនវោហារស្ដីពីបញ្ហាព្រំដែនក្នុងរយៈពេលជាង ៥ម៉ោងដោយគ្មានការឈប់សម្រាកនោះ គឺល្អឥតខ្ចោះ និងបានចូលទៅអង្រួនដល់ក្រអៅដូងចិត្តប្រជាជាតិទាំងមូល ដែលមិនធ្លាប់មានពីសម័យមុនៗមក។
គេចាត់ទុកព្រឹត្តិការណ៍ជាប្រវត្តិសាស្ត្រខាងលើនេះបានបញ្ជាក់ យ៉ាងច្បាស់ថា គ្មានអនុភាពណាខ្លាំងជាងការដឹកនាំប្រកបដោយវីរភាពស្នេហាជាតិដ៏ ឧត្ដុង្គឧត្ដមរបស់សម្ដេចតេជោ ហ៊ុន សែន បានឡើយ។
អត្ថបទអត្ថាធិប្បាយមួយទៀតបានសរសេរដោយឈ្មោះឧត្តម សក្តិ ដែលវិទ្យុអាស៊ីសេរី ទទួលបាននៅក្នុងខែសីហា នេះដែរ បានសរសេរបន្ទរបែបចំអកឲ្យបក្សប្រឆាំងផង និងលើកសរសើរលោក ហ៊ុន សែន ផងថា "បក្សប្រឆាំងអស់លេសសម្រាប់បោករាស្ត្រក្នុងរឿងព្រំដែន"។
បទអត្ថាធិប្បាយដដែលនេះបានសរសេរទៀតថា បទបង្ហាញស្តីពីបញ្ហាព្រំដែនកម្ពុជា-វៀតណាម ដោយសម្ដេចតេជោ ហ៊ុន សែន ប្រៀបបានទៅនឹងបំណាក់ផ្ទាំងថ្មភ្នំដ៏ធំសង្កត់លើក្រុមប្រឆាំង ឱ្យដួលផ្ងាកងើបខ្លួនលែងរួច ហើយអំនួតរបស់ពួកគេនៅពេលកន្លងមកដែលយកបញ្ហាព្រំដែនក្នុងការកេង ចំណេញនយោបាយក៏ត្រូវបានបញ្ចប់។
នេះជាការឆ្លើយតបទៅគណបក្សប្រឆាំង និងអង្គការសង្គមស៊ីវិលមួយចំនួនក្នុង និងក្រៅប្រទេស ដែលតែងតែរិះគន់ថា រាជរដ្ឋាភិបាលកម្ពុជា បានកាត់ទឹកដីឲ្យទៅប្រទេសជិតខាង ហើយបានបណ្ដែតបណ្ដោយឲ្យវៀតណាម រំកិលបង្គោលទ្បាក់ចូលក្នុងដីកម្ពុជា ជាច្រើនរយគីឡូម៉ែត្រក្រឡាទៀតផង។
ស្របពេលគ្នានេះដែរ ប្រធានអង្គការសហព័ន្ធសិទ្ធិមនុស្ស និងអភិវឌ្ឍន៍នៅកម្ពុជា លោក ថៅ វាសនា។ លោកមានប្រសាសន៍គាំទ្រចំពោះការអត្ថាធិប្បាយបែបនេះ ហើយអង្គការលោកក៏បានចេញសេចក្ដីថ្លែងការណ៍គាំទ្រនយោបាយឈ្នះៗរបស់ លោកនាយករដ្ឋមន្ត្រី ហ៊ុន សែន ដែរ ដូចជាបញ្ហាព្រំដែន ការកែទម្រង់លើបញ្ហាដីធ្លី និងបញ្ហាផ្សេងៗទៀត។
លោក ថៅ វាសនា៖ «សម្ដេចតេជោដែលយើងគាំទ្រនោះ គឺគាំទ្រនយោបាយដែលមិនស៊ីសាច់គ្នានោះ គឺនយោបាយឈ្នះៗ ហេតុនេះបានជានាយករដ្ឋមន្ត្រីជាវីរជនមួយដែលមានតម្លៃលេចធ្លោជាសកល ដែលយើងមិនអាចនឹងមិនសរសើរមិនបាន»។
លោកបន្តថា កន្លងមកលោកសង្កេតឃើញថា បក្សប្រឆាំងក្ដី ឬសង្គមស៊ីវិលមួយចំនួនក្ដីហាក់ខ្វះសេចក្ដីក្លាហានក្នុងការលើក សរសើរដល់ប្រមុខរដ្ឋាភិបាលដែលបានខិតខំបំពេញកិច្ចការជូនជាតិ ត្រឹមត្រូវ និងទទួលបានជោគជ័យ។
ចំពោះលោកបណ្ឌិត កែម ឡី វិញ លោកមើលឃើញថា ការគាំទ្រទាំងឡាយហាក់មើលឃើញតែមួយជ្រុង ចំណែកមួយជ្រុងទៀត គឺប្រជាពលរដ្ឋរស់នៅតាមព្រំដែនដែលជាអ្នកជួបបញ្ហាបាត់បង់ដីធ្លី ជាកេរដំណែលពីដូនតាននោះ គឺពុំទាន់មានការសិក្សាស្រាវជ្រាវឲ្យដឹងច្បាស់ថា ខាតបង់ប៉ុន្មាន ចំណេញប៉ុន្មាននោះទេ គឺបានត្រឹមតែបង្ហាញឲ្យឃើញតែនៅលើផែនទីលើក្រដាសប៉ុណ្ណោះ៖ «ពុំមានអ្នកជំនាញព្រំដែនណា ស៊ាន ប៉េងសែ ឬក៏ វ៉ា គឹមហុង ឬក៏គណៈកម្មការទាំងអស់នឹងមិនដឹងថា បាត់នៅត្រង់ណាទេ អ្នកដែលដឹងបាត់ពិត គឺប្រជាពលរដ្ឋនៅតាមព្រំដែន»។
លោកបារម្ភខ្លាចសកម្មភាពលើកសរសើរថ្នាក់ដឹកនាំបែបនេះក្លាយទៅជា ទម្លាប់ថ្មីមួយទៀត ដែលមនុស្សបង្រៀនគ្នាឲ្យចេះនិយាយកុហក មិនហ៊ាននិយាយត្រង់ និយាយអ្វីដែលចេញពីបេះដូងដែលខ្លួនមើលឃើញពិតប្រាកដនោះទេ។ បញ្ហានេះអាចបណ្ដាលមកពីពួកគេចង់សន្សំសុខ ឬមិនចង់នាំទុក្ខដល់ខ្លួន អ្នកខ្លះទៀតចង់បានមុខមាត់ បុណ្យសក្ដិ និងលាភសការៈផ្សេងៗជាដើម៖ «បើយើងនៅតែអ៊ីចឹងបានន័យថា អាជ័យធ្លាក់ទឹកហៃអើៗ ដោយអត់នាំគ្នាជួយកែលំអនោះទេ ខុសក៏គាំទ្រត្រូវក៏គាំទ្រ»។
ទន្ទឹមគ្នានេះចំពោះអ្នកណាដែលហ៊ានរិះគន់ ឬជំទាស់នឹងគំនិតរបស់អ្នកធំនោះ គេតែងតែចោទប្រកាន់ថា ជាក្រុមប្រឆាំងនឹងរដ្ឋាភិបាល ធ្វើឲ្យខូចសណ្ដាប់ធ្នាប់សាធារណៈ បង្កអសន្តិសុខសង្គមជាដើម។ ជាក់ស្ដែងដូចជាសកម្មជនព្រំដែន លោក រ៉ុង ឈុន លោក ម៉ម សូណង់ដូ ជាដើម សុទ្ធតែធ្លាប់បញ្ចេញមតិពីបញ្ហាព្រំដែន ហើយអ្នកទាំងនោះត្រូវរដ្ឋាភិបាលចោទប្រកាន់ និងបានចាប់ដាក់គុក ហើយមានខ្លះទៀតត្រូវរត់ចោលស្រុករហូតមកដល់សព្វថ្ងៃនេះ។
អ្នកវិភាគបញ្ហាសង្គមនិយាយថា បញ្ហានេះជាការឆ្លុះបញ្ចាំងឲ្យឃើញពីការដឹកនាំសង្គមមួយជាលក្ខណៈ បុគ្គលនិយម និងបក្សពួកនិយម ហើយការដឹកនាំរបៀបនេះគេតែងតែរកលេសដើម្បីបំបិទសំឡេងអ្នកដែល មានទស្សនៈផ្ទុយពីបក្ស ឬក្រុមរបស់គេនោះ។
អ្នកវិភាគយល់ឃើញទៀតថា បើសិនជាបញ្ហានេះកាន់តែរីកធំធាត់ទៅនោះ វាជាគ្រោះថ្នាក់មួយដល់ការអភិវឌ្ឍន៍ និងការកសាងប្រទេសមួយប្រកបដោយនីតិរដ្ឋ និងមានលទ្ធិប្រជាធិបតេយ្យពិតប្រាកដ និងមិនមានតុល្យភាពនៃអំណាច និងការរកទទួលទាននៅក្នុងសង្គមនោះឡើយ៕
Saturday, 1 September 2012
សិស្សប្រឡងជាប់បាក់ឌុបឆ្នាំនេះមានចំនួនច្រើនជាងឆ្នាំមុន ប៉ុន្តែលោក រ៉ុង ឈុន មិនសាទរ
នៅឆ្នាំសិក្សា២០១២នេះ
សិស្សប្រឡងជាប់បាក់ឌុបមានចំនួនជាង៨៦%
ពោលគឺកើនជាងឆ្នាំមុនចំនួន៤%។ ប៉ុន្តែ លោក រ៉ុង ឈុន
ប្រធានសមាគមគ្រូបង្រៀនកម្ពុជាឯករាជ្យមិនសាទរចំពោះលទ្ធផលប្រឡងនេះ
ទេ ពីព្រោះការប្រឡងនាពេលកន្លងមកមានភាពមិនប្រក្រតីច្រើន។
លោក សម មុនីរ័ត្ន អគ្គនាយកដ្ឋានអប់រំនៃក្រសួងអប់រំ
យុវជននិងកីឡា បានបញ្ជាក់ប្រាប់នៅថ្ងៃសៅរ៍នេះថា នៅឆ្នាំ២០១២នេះ
សិស្សដែលប្រឡងជាប់បាក់ឌុបមានចំនួនជាង៨៦%ពោលគឺកើនជាងឆ្នាំមុន
ចំនួន៤%។ មន្ត្រីជាន់ខ្ពស់ក្រសួងអប់រំរូបនេះបានពន្យល់ថា
នៅឆ្នាំនេះសិស្សធ្វើត្រូវច្រើន
អ៊ីចឹងហើយទើបពួកគេប្រឡងជាប់ច្រើនជាងឆ្នាំមុន។
មិនត្រឹមតែប៉ុណ្ណោះ
លោកអគ្គនាយកដ្ឋានអប់រំនៃក្រសួងអប់រំបានបន្ថែមទៀតថា
សិស្សដែលទទួលបាននិទេ្ទស A នៅឆ្នាំនេះមានចំនួន១០៥នាក់
រីឯកាលពីឆ្នាំមុនមានចំនួនតែ៥០នាក់ប៉ុណ្ណោះ។
ទាក់ទងទៅនឹងលទ្ធផលប្រឡងបាក់ឌុបនៅឆ្នាំនេះ លោក រ៉ុង ឈុន បានអត្ថាធិប្បាយនៅថ្ងៃនេះថា លោកមិនសាទរទេពីព្រោះការប្រឡងនាពេលកន្លងមកពោពេញទៅដោយភាពមិន ប្រក្រតី។ ភាពមិនប្រក្រតីទាំងនោះជារួមមាន៖ អំពើសូកប៉ាន់និងការបើកមើលវិញ្ញាសារព្រាងជាដើម។ លោក កែម ឡី អ្នកស្រាវជ្រាវឯករាជ្យនៅក្នុងប្រទេសកម្ពុជាដែលបានធ្វើការ ស្រាវជ្រាវលើការប្រឡងបាក់ឌុបនាពេលកន្លងមកបានទទួលស្គាល់ថា ការប្រឡងនាពេលកន្លងមកមានភាពមិនប្រក្រតីមែនប៉ុន្តែលោកបានបញ្ជាក់ តាមរយៈការអង្កេតរបស់លោកថា ការប្រឡងឆ្នាំនេះមានភាពតឹងរឹងជាងឆ្នាំមុន។
លោក រ៉ុង ឈុន បានបន្តបញ្ជាក់ទៀតថា លទ្ធផលនៃការប្រឡងនេះមិនឆ្លើយតបទៅនឹងសមត្ថភាពជាក់ស្តែងរបស់សិស្ស ទេ មានន័យថា ប្រសិនបើការប្រឡងប្រព្រឹត្តិទៅប្រកបដោយយុត្តិធម៌និងត្រឹមត្រូវនោះ ចំនួនអ្នកប្រឡងជាប់ត្រូវទាបជាងនេះ។ លោក ឈុន បានបន្តទៀតថា លោកមានការព្រួយបារម្ភពីគុណភាពមនុស្សនាពេលអនាគត។ គុណភាពធនធានមនុស្សខ្មែរមិនឆ្លើយតបទៅនឹងតម្រូវការទីផ្សារឡើយ។ លោក រ៉ុង ឈុន ចោទប្រកាន់វិស័យអប់រំខ្មែរថា បណ្តុះបណ្តាលធនធានមនុស្សយកតែបរិមាណប៉ុន្តែមិនគិតពីគុណភាព។
ក្រៅពីបញ្ហាគុណភាព លោក កែម ឡី អ្នកស្រាវជ្រាវឯករាជ្យបានលើកឡើងថា នៅក្នុងប្រទេសសិង្ហបុរី យុវជន២នាក់ក្នុងចំណោមយុវជន៣នាក់បានចូលរៀននៅមហាវិទ្យាល័យ រីឯនៅកម្ពុជាវិញ យុវជនម្នាក់ក្នុងចំណោម២០នាក់បានចូលរៀននៅមហាវិទ្យាល័យ៕
ទាក់ទងទៅនឹងលទ្ធផលប្រឡងបាក់ឌុបនៅឆ្នាំនេះ លោក រ៉ុង ឈុន បានអត្ថាធិប្បាយនៅថ្ងៃនេះថា លោកមិនសាទរទេពីព្រោះការប្រឡងនាពេលកន្លងមកពោពេញទៅដោយភាពមិន ប្រក្រតី។ ភាពមិនប្រក្រតីទាំងនោះជារួមមាន៖ អំពើសូកប៉ាន់និងការបើកមើលវិញ្ញាសារព្រាងជាដើម។ លោក កែម ឡី អ្នកស្រាវជ្រាវឯករាជ្យនៅក្នុងប្រទេសកម្ពុជាដែលបានធ្វើការ ស្រាវជ្រាវលើការប្រឡងបាក់ឌុបនាពេលកន្លងមកបានទទួលស្គាល់ថា ការប្រឡងនាពេលកន្លងមកមានភាពមិនប្រក្រតីមែនប៉ុន្តែលោកបានបញ្ជាក់ តាមរយៈការអង្កេតរបស់លោកថា ការប្រឡងឆ្នាំនេះមានភាពតឹងរឹងជាងឆ្នាំមុន។
លោក រ៉ុង ឈុន បានបន្តបញ្ជាក់ទៀតថា លទ្ធផលនៃការប្រឡងនេះមិនឆ្លើយតបទៅនឹងសមត្ថភាពជាក់ស្តែងរបស់សិស្ស ទេ មានន័យថា ប្រសិនបើការប្រឡងប្រព្រឹត្តិទៅប្រកបដោយយុត្តិធម៌និងត្រឹមត្រូវនោះ ចំនួនអ្នកប្រឡងជាប់ត្រូវទាបជាងនេះ។ លោក ឈុន បានបន្តទៀតថា លោកមានការព្រួយបារម្ភពីគុណភាពមនុស្សនាពេលអនាគត។ គុណភាពធនធានមនុស្សខ្មែរមិនឆ្លើយតបទៅនឹងតម្រូវការទីផ្សារឡើយ។ លោក រ៉ុង ឈុន ចោទប្រកាន់វិស័យអប់រំខ្មែរថា បណ្តុះបណ្តាលធនធានមនុស្សយកតែបរិមាណប៉ុន្តែមិនគិតពីគុណភាព។
ក្រៅពីបញ្ហាគុណភាព លោក កែម ឡី អ្នកស្រាវជ្រាវឯករាជ្យបានលើកឡើងថា នៅក្នុងប្រទេសសិង្ហបុរី យុវជន២នាក់ក្នុងចំណោមយុវជន៣នាក់បានចូលរៀននៅមហាវិទ្យាល័យ រីឯនៅកម្ពុជាវិញ យុវជនម្នាក់ក្នុងចំណោម២០នាក់បានចូលរៀននៅមហាវិទ្យាល័យ៕
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