JOURNAL OF RESEARCH AND PLANNING IN HIGHER EDUCATION
Year:2007 | Volume:12 | Issue:4 (42)|Papers Count:8

This article was written based on strategic plan of Vali-e-Asr University of Rafsanjan. The first part is related to developing vision that is based on the model presented by J. Collins and J. Porras (1996). The model includes two sections, core ideology and envisioning future. In this article, core ideology of the university was developed. Core ideology itself is divided into two sections of core goals and core values which are identified based on factor analysis.

Change as the only constant of our age, is one of the characteristics of today’s ever-accelerating world. Based on theory of acceleration history (which points out to the rapid growth of changes in recent ages), science and technology are two main reasons for changes. Universities as the center of production and dissemination of these two key factors and taking advantage of them advantage nations have been also in the focus point of organizations and governments with accurate understanding of competition and development. Although in every society, universities are the driving force of development. The findings shows, a different ways of viewing universities in Iranian society This article presents the findings of a study which has assessed and systemically conceptualized nine active barriers of learning and five potential growth loops. In this research, X University has been selected as the case being studied and Y University has been selected as the case being compared to.

This research is based on the feasibility study of using ICT in curriculum development in higher education. The possibility of using ICT in the process of curriculum development in higher education has been researched from the view point of three important and concerned groups with the subject namely professors, curriculum planners and the ICT professionals. The main purpose of this research is to answer to the question that in which fields and to what extent we can use the ICT's new development in curriculum development in higher education?This research is descriptive. A questionnaire is designed in six section using Lickert scale with three options. The findings show that three mentioned groups do not have much difference in their views about the importance in application of ICT in curriculum development. They also believe that in many occasions, this application of ICT will create new opportunities and enhances the curriculum development in order to meet the challenges in higher education.

Curricula are the main and important components of the higher education quality progression. In addition, alumni's attitudes, knowledge and skills should be based on latest scientific, technological outcomes and the market needs. Therefore, the revision of the educational programs and updating them has always been emphasized. The aim of this study was to investigate the status of university programs during the Third Economic, Social, Cultural, and Political Development Plan (1998 – 2002) Using qualitative method, a sample of 31 universities was selected. Then, a series of researcher-made checklists and semi-structured interviews were administered. The data were analyzed using various descriptive statistics. Results indicated that: 1. The revision rate of the curricula across the universities having a audit board is higher, 2. The highest and least rates of the curricula cessions belong to the humanities and arts groups respectively, 3. The highest and least rates of the curricula revision belong to the undergraduate and doctoral levels respectively, 4. The highest rate of the curricula cession belongs to the universities located in Tehran (particularly, University of Tehran), and 5. The lai of appropriate infrastructures, the shortage of competent and professional specialists within the curricula framework, the lack of the commitment to the scientific principles in various stages of the curricula, the shortage of financial sources, the lack of models or practical guidelines for the academic curricula, the lack of a monitoring and evaluation process, a narrow interpretation of the curricula, the resistance of a group of faculty members against any changes in the curricula, the lack of adjustment of the spirit of the cession powers with the centralized examinations of the postgraduate level and the lack of faculty members' motivation to participate, are among the universities problems for the academic curriculum revision and development process.

The purpose of this study is to identify the factors that influence the students’ contribution in research activities and scientific production. The method of this research is based on survey and correlation analysis. The target population consists of M.S. students who study in the agricultural college in Tarbiat Modarres University (N=95). By full enumeration, finally 75 questionnaires were filled out and analyzed. The findings showed that the contribution of the students was desirable. The results obtained from Pearson correlation coefficient showed that the contribution in research activities have significant and positive relationships with variables such as: - Students research in the country,- Students scientific exchange,- Access to research facilities,- Views on financial and scientific capabilities of the professors.The results obtained through step by step regression indicated that the variables concerning the professors’ scientific capabilities and access to research facilities explains ٪58.2 of changes in students, scientific and research activities.

Scholarship systems in almost all countries have supported postgraduate students to continue their studies abroad because of its importance in expanding knowledge and skills. In order to obtaining the objectives of scholarship, assessment of the granted students' problems is extremely essential.In this study, all of Iranian students in Britain who awarded a scholarship from Iran were questioned. They were asked about the importance of the influencing factors in the duration of their Ph.D. courses. Our results showed that the limitation in English skills, the incompetence of supervisors and insufficient wages were the most influencing factors. In addition, ٪57 expressed that the economical pressure was considerable in their daily life.We suggest that the scholarship system should support students to improve their English before leaving Iran. In addition, students are usually accepting the first offer without exploring the capability of their supervisors; hence the scholarship system should encourage students to pay more attentions to this essential factor. Moreover, the scholarship system should support students financially during their courses sufficiently to allow them to study calmly.