Canada needs a set of explicit, well-defined national goals and objectives for post-secondary education, according to a first national overview of the sector released in December.
     
In “Canadian Post-secondary Education: A Positive Record — An Uncertain Future,” the Canadian Council on Learning warns that without action, the country’s long-term productivity and continued prosperity are at risk.
     
“We have been well served by our post-secondary education sector and as a result, Canada boasts one of the world’s best-educated populations. But in order for us to advance as a country, we need to know whether progress is being made and where there are problems,” said council president and CEO Paul Cappon. “To do that, we must first decide where we want to go as a country, how we can get there and then be able to measure whether we are succeeding.”
     
According to the report’s analysis, most leading industrialized countries are actively addressing their post-secondary education challenges. Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom have adopted national strategies to ensure their systems adapt and respond to the demands of the knowledge-based economy.
     
“Canada lacks a shared vision, and there are prominent gaps in the information and analysis of post-secondary education. This is preventing us from identifying problems and developing
appropriate and innovative solutions,” Cappon said.
     
Because Canada doesn’t have a process of quality review at the national level, nor a regionally-based institutional accreditation system such as the American model, the report suggests there is a strong risk that Canadian institutions, anxious to attract and retain students, especially from abroad, will turn to American accrediting agencies.
     
“This may lead naturally to the Americanization of Canadian post-secondary education priorities, perspectives, content and language — with negative results for the integrity of Canadian higher education and a sense of distinctive Canadian identity,” the report states.
     
The report also emphasizes that Canada’s approach to post-secondary education must include young people headed for university and college, as well as support for apprenticeships, adult literacy, workplace learning, technical skills training and university research.

The council undertook the study to inform Canadians of how well Canada’s post-secondary education and training sector is meeting Canadians’ social and economic objectives, and to report on Canada’s ability to respond to a fast-changing global environment and how Canada’s approach to higher education compares with other leading developed countries.
     
“Although there has been much talk about the importance of post-secondary education for the social and economic future of Canada, no agency until now has made a meaningful attempt to chart the sector’s performance,” said CAUT executive director James Turk.
     
“We applaud the council’s attempt to look at the sector as a whole. Hopefully its report will stimulate discussion about how Canada can develop a true post-secondary education system that serves the needs of all Canadians while maintaining quality and improving
access.”

The CCL report is available at www.ccl-cca.ca/CCL/Home/index.htm?Language=EN.