28 November 2021  Issue No: 670

Higher education has a vital role to play in actively, aggressively defending democracy – not just because it is the right thing to do, but because otherwise the rise of authoritarian, anti-knowledge movements will put democracy at further risk and threaten higher education itself.

Research and higher education are crucial to change the ‘politics of pandemics’ being played out in the global COVID-19 vaccine distribution patterns, with G20 member countries having received 15 times more vaccine doses per capita than Sub-Saharan Africa.

There will be no business as usual post-pandemic, agreed public higher education leaders from five countries at a gathering of the International Association of University Presidents. There has been an explosion of innovation in teaching and research, the best of which must be part of a future that vigorously tackles inequalities.

The University of California System – the largest and most prestigious public university system in the United States – has announced it will stop using any admissions tests for students seeking a place at its institutions, amid concerns over potential bias against minorities and low-income students and poor predictive power.

Academic concerns about the quality of transnational education and educational equality in transnational universities in China – particularly about the quality of English-medium instruction and Chinese students’ linguistic competence – reflect an urgent need to review the effectiveness of this way of teaching.

Gun violence and anti-Asian hostility are hot topics for parents of Chinese students looking to study in the United States. They have acute fear of US gun culture and concerns about racist attacks against Asians. Universities need to offer reassurance and address safety issues.

Students who are neurodiverse and-or suffer from mental health issues can succeed in their PhD studies if they understand how this affects them and develop strategies to deal with it. Getting a diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder or ADHD helped me make sense of my own behaviours.

Tackling community challenges should be a core element of higher education. But when such engagement involves underprivileged or marginalised communities, care must be taken to avoid imposing on the community what amounts to a colonial structure, students tell the Talloires Network Leaders Conference.

Nigeria’s inability to engage a large proportion of her youth meaningfully through job creation has the potential for social dislocation. The dire unemployment situation many graduates and those with advanced education in the country face is a cause for widespread concern.