WHAT IS ARC?
The ASEF Regional Conference on Higher Education (ARC) – formerly referred to as the ASEF Rectors’ Conference and Students’ Forum – is the Official Dialogue Partner of the ASEM Education Ministers Meeting (ASEMME) and the only bi-regional multi-stakeholder dialogue platform for university and student leaders, policymakers and ministers to discuss higher education issues and shape the education landscape in Asia and Europe. Its results, including policy recommendations, feed into the ASEM Education Process and contribute to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
WHAT WAS ARC8?
The 8th ASEF Regional Conference on Higher Education (ARC8) titled “Outlook 2030: Inclusive and Diverse Higher Education in Asia and Europe”, was a response to the universal call to action for the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
In July 2020, UNESCO invited higher education institutions to put the values of inclusion and equity in the recovery roadmap for education post-COVID-19. UNESCO invited national officials and international organisations to develop new partnerships and improve policies and inclusive online learning solutions during the decade of action. In addition to this, the ASEM Education Ministers highlighted the aim of the ASEM Education Process to ensure inclusion and equality in education by building comprehensive education systems that are accessible to all.
ARC8 explored how universities and students can foster inclusion and diversity in the final decade of the Agenda 2030, and raise awareness of potential risks and opportunities along 4 subthemes:
1 | Inclusive Learning and Teaching in a Digital World
2 | Inclusive and Flexible Lifelong Learning Pathways
3 | Inclusive International Mobility of People and Knowledge
4 | Equitable Access and Success in Higher Education
25 experts across Asia and Europe were engaged by ASEF to provide insights into these subthemes and to draft a chapter along the lines of the themes. The theme aligned with the priority areas of the ASEM Education Process and the upcoming 8th ASEM Education Ministers’ Meeting (ASEMME8).
PROJECT ELEMENTS
ARC8 Conference | Friday, 10 September 2021
Leading up to the ARC8 Conference, 25 experts participated in Expert Group Sessions throughout 2020-21, to discuss the subthemes of ARC and draft subsequent chapters aligned which now compresses the ARC8 Outlook Report 2030, click here to learn more about the ARC8 Experts.
A one-day long online conference titled “Outlook 2030: Outlook 2030: Inclusive and Diverse Higher Education in Asia and Europe” took place on 10 September. Over 1,500 university managers, academics, students, policymakers and representatives of higher education networks registered for the ARC8 Conference online, of which over 120 were Policymakers and Government Officials. Revisit the ARC8 Conference and view the video recording of the sessions:
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- Watch the video recordings of the conference sessions here.
- See the detailed Overview and Programme here.
Capacity Building Workshop | Equitable Access and Success in Higher Education
The Capacity Building Workshop was a 5-week learning journey, conducted online from 15 November – 17 December 2021, which brought together 34 university managers, academics, and researchers engaged in promoting equitable access and success in their respective higher education institutions. Weekly synchronous sessions were guided by facilitators, featured experts, and promoted discussions on good practices.
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- To learn more about the participants’ background information, view the Participants Booklet Here.
- To learn more about the workshop output, view the Action Plan Booklet Here.
- To learn more about equitable access and success in higher education, view the Experts’ Presentations Here.
Capacity Building Workshop | Advancing Inclusion in International Higher Education in ASEAN
The Capacity Building Workshop was done in cooperation with the EU-SHARE Programme to promote the advancement of inclusion in the international activities of ASEAN Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). The 5-week online learning journey between 15 November -17 December 2021 brought together 34 higher education managers, academics and researchers interested in advancing inclusion in international activities of their respective universities.
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- To learn more about the participants’ background information, view the Participants Booklet Here.
- To learn more about the workshop output, view the Action Plan Booklet Here.
- To learn more about inclusion in international higher education in ASEAN, view the Experts’ Presentations Here.
ARC8 Policy Dialogues | Engaging Policy Makers and Senior Officials
As ARC8 is the Official Dialogue Partner of the ASEM Education Ministers’ Meeting (ASEMME), members of the ARC8 Expert Group engaged in policy dialogue with ASEM policy makers based on the findings and recommendations of the Outlook Report 2030 and the outputs of the capacity-building workshops.
ASEM Education Senior Officials First Meeting (SOM1), 15 September 2021
Professor Graeme Atherton, Head of Centre for Levelling Up, University of West London and Director, National Education Opportunities Network (NEON), presented findings of the ASEM National Equity Policies in Higher Education Study 2021. To view the PPT, click here.
8th ASEM Education Ministers’ Meeting (ASEMME8), 13 December 2021
ARC8 Experts, Assoc. Prof Nopraenue Sajjarax DHIRATHITI, Vice President for International Relations and Corporate Social Communication, Mahidol University, Thailand; and Ms Irina FERENCZ, Director, Academic Cooperation Association (ACA), presented the findings of the ARC8 Outlook Report 2030. To view the PPT, click here.
ARC8 OUTCOMES
Outlook Report 2030: Inclusion and Diversity in Higher Education in Asi and Europe
The “ARC8 Outlook Report 2030: Inclusive and Diverse Higher Education in Asia and Europe” was launched during the conference, on Friday, 10 September 2021.
The Outlook Report outlines emerging issues that could grow into major challenges and/or opportunities in the coming 10 years related to inclusion in higher education. Inputs for the report came from an in-depth consultation process and from previous research done by Asian and European stakeholders. The Report consists of 4 chapters:
Chapter 1. Equitable Access and Success in Higher Education
Chapter 2. Inclusive Learning and Teaching in a Digital World
Chapter 3. Inclusive International Mobility of People and Knowledge
Chapter 4. Inclusive and Flexible Lifelong Learning Pathways
The Report analyses the future of inclusion from different perspectives and makes two sets of recommendations for: (1) for ASEM policymakers, to serve as a basis for policy dialogues and as an input to their discussions on the ASEM Education Strategy and Action Plan 2030 (2) for ASEM university leaders, to outline capacity building directions for institutions and inspire joint action to make universities more inclusive in the next decade.
ASEM National Equity Policies in Higher Education Report
As part of the ARC8 project, a study examined the various approaches by governments across Asia and Europe to support students from all social backgrounds and circumstances to enter higher education. The geographical focus was on countries within the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) constituency. The study draws upon a survey of national policies in 47 ASEM countries focused on equitable access and success across the two continents assessing what strategies are in place, where targets exist and how they are being measured and whether COVID-19 has impacted this work.
Some of the key findings include:
- In all countries, higher education equity features in government-produced higher education policy documents.
- Less than a third of countries – 30%, have a specific higher education equity strategy with 6 from Europe and 7 from Asia.
- There are 28 countries where at least 6 different equity target groups are identified. The most common equity target groups are lower income/socioeconomic backgrounds students and students with disabilities.
As part of the report, country-specific reports are made available to provide insights into the equity policy frameworks, to access these, click here.
ARC8 OUTLOOK 2030 PODCAST
The ARC8 Oulook 2030 Podcast provides food for thought concerning inclusive and diverse higher education in Asia and Europe in the next 10 years. Every episode of Outlook 2030 features conversations with leading experts and thought leaders from Asia and Europe. Listen to experts on the ARC8 Outlook 2030 podcast here:
Episode 1: Conversations with Prof Tian Belawati from the Universitas Terbuka (UT), Indonesia and Dr Sandra Kucina Softic the European Distance and E-Learning Network(EDEN).
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Episode 2: Conversations with Dr Choltis Dhirathiti, Director, ASEAN University Network (AUN) and Mr Alexander Knoth, Chief Digital Officer, German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD)
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Episode 3: Conversations with Prof Sarah O’SHEA, Director, National Centre of Student Equity in Higher Education, Curtin University (NCSEHE) and Prof Dr Maurice CRUL, Chair, International Migration, Integration and Social Cohesion in Europe (IMISCOE).
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Episode 4: Conversations with Dr Christopher TREMEWAN, Secretary-General of the Association of Pacific Rim Universities (APRU) and Mr Andreas SCHLEICHER, Director for Education and Skills, and Special Advisor on Education Policy to the Secretary-General at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)
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