The Conflict Of Interests: The Policy-Making Study Of The Popularization Of Higher Education In Britain

The Popularization of higher education is an important issue of higher education policies in Britain. The dissertation not only explains the characters, the path and the impetus of higher education policies' evolution in Britain, but analyzes the influencing factors and their interaction from a view of policy-making. Furthermore, all levels of governments, elite, interest groups, office and civil servants' roles will be discussed deeply so as to unfold their endeavor for the maximal interests. The dissertation gives a thorough review for higher education popularizing policies in Britain based on problem research and policy-analyzing.The preface investigates the importance of the study of higher education in Britain, discusses the reason and the value of the issue, defines some key words, summarizes the research situation home and overseas, and expounds the dissertation's research layout and research methods further.The first four chapters give a review about policy-making during the Popularization of higher education in Britain respectively.Chapter one: the policies' outset of the Popularization of higher education in Britain: war andprofessional(post-world warII——early days in 1960s). In the reconstructed period, realizing the lackof scientist and technologist from world warII, everyone appealed to expand in higher education. The universities with elitism were averse to take on technology, but the technical colleges were earnest to assume more work independently. Opinions diverged from each other on the status and rank between universities and technical colleges. After Percy Report, Barlow Report and White Paper on Technical Education, both universities and technical colleges made progresses, the latter got more progresses so as to compete with universities in future. During this time, the policies of the Popularization of higher education are in a threshold, it still didn't come into the decision-makers' eyes, the social circumstances and interest groups were the crucial factors of policy-making.Chapter two: the policies' primary issues of the Popularization of higher education in Britain:scale and structure(early days in1960s——metaphase in 1970s). Robbins Report which resulted inexpansion and the Binary System which designed administrant system were important issues this period. Despite agreeing to expand, both of them had different plans about the administrant system. Robbins Report with elitism made by the Conservative Party claimed that there should be a unified system based on ladder principle. The Labor Party claimed that another system should be set up which consisted of technical college and educational colleges as egalitarian. The public higher education sector and the universities co-operated, that was so-called binary system. During this time, conflicts of interests arose between universities and technical colleges, the Labor Parry and the Conservative Party, the central and the local authorities and so on, which made for the policies' process. The conflicts of interests were the crucial factors of policy-making.Chapter three: the policies' second issues of the Popularization of higher education in Britain:grants and obligation (metaphase in 1970s——metaphase in 1980s). Because of economic crisis inthe middle of 1970s, the state broke its promise and cut the expenditure of higher education, especially in the Thatcher Government The cut was full of conflicts between the government and universities, universities and polytechnics, the central and the local authorities. On the impact of social changes, the traditional decision-making in group was broken in place of decision-making by elite. The elite were the crucial factor of policy-making.Chapter four: the policies' deep issues of the Popularization of higher education in Britain:quality and efficiency(metaphase in 1980s——now). The higher education popularizing policies' pathhad transformed from extension to intension which put emphasis on educational quality and efficiency. In this period, problems in higher education itself were focus in the policies' process, so there were only some interest groups adhere to higher education. Issues would be discussed in the branch sector rather than state level. Thatcherism was the major guideline in the higher education. Conflicts between universities and polytechnics, polytechnics and the local authorities, the central and the local authorities were coming to an end, the relation of the state and the higher education began to a new era. Interest groups were the major factor of policy-making.According to the first four chapters, the dissertation analyzes the policies' process from three aspects: First, the dissertation studied the stage characters approach, the continuity and the reason of higher education popularizing policies from a view of holistic. Second, after commenting on some conclusions about the drive of higher educational system in Britain, the dissertation brought forward the interests' driving by reference to System Changes theory of new institutional economics. Third, the dissertation analyzes the influencing factors and their interaction in policy-making in virtue of the Advocacy Coalition Framework of Paul A.Sabatier.Epilogue, on the one hand, the dissertation sums up the interest groups during policy-making of the Popularization of higher education in Britain. On the other, gives some viewpoints about the methodology of educational history research.