ARTICLE
Breaking the deadlock of mistrust? A participative model of the structural reforms in higher education in Poland
Dominik Antonowicz,
Emanuel Kulczycki,
Anna Budzanowska,
Dominik Antonowicz
Department of Science and Higher Education Research, Nicolaus Copernicus University, Toruń, Poland
Search for more papers by this authorEmanuel Kulczycki
Scholarly Communication Research Group, Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznań, Poland
Search for more papers by this authorDominik Antonowicz,
Emanuel Kulczycki,
Anna Budzanowska,
Dominik Antonowicz
Department of Science and Higher Education Research, Nicolaus Copernicus University, Toruń, Poland
Search for more papers by this authorEmanuel Kulczycki
Scholarly Communication Research Group, Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznań, Poland
Search for more papers by this authorAbstract
enPolish higher education provides a particular example of a system that, until very recently, has been largely reform-resistant as it has a long-standing tradition of bottom-up ‘academic self-governance’ at both the system and the institutional levels. This article explores the process of the structural reforms of the higher education system, commonly known as ‘Law 2.0’ (the original term being ‘Ustawa 2.0’) which proceeded between 2016 and 2018. By doing so, it examines in detail the process of policy formation that has been often advertised as a ‘reform different than others’ due to paying special attention to mechanisms of engaging various stakeholders (mostly internal) and an intellectual contribution from the academic community. This study is conceptual by nature but empirically focused. The paper claims that the major reasons for failure were a radical shift in policy process and a departure from the well-entrenched patterns of policy formation and the highly politically sensitive nature of the content of the reform.
Abstrakt
plSektor szkolnictwa wyższego w Polsce jest szczególnym przykładem, który do niedawna był w dużym stopniu odporny na reformy, ze względu na długą tradycję oddolnej „samorządności akademickiej” zarówno na poziomie systemowym jak i instytucjonalnym. Niniejszy artykuł przedstawia proces reform strukturalnych systemu szkolnictwa wyższego, zwany „Ustawą 2.0”, który przebiegał w latach 2016–2018. Celem artykułu jest przebadanie procesu kształtowania polityki, który był przedstawiany jest jako "reforma inna niż wszystkie". Nacisk położony jest na mechanizm angażowania różnych interesariuszy (głównie wewnętrznych) oraz wkład merytoryczny środowiska akademickiego. W artykule tym mającym charakter konceptualny z mocnym komponentem empirycznym, stwierdzono, że głównymi przyczynami niepowodzenia analizowanego procesu była radykalna zmiana – w trakcie trwania procesu – sposobu kształtowania polityki oraz odejście od dobrze zakorzenionych wzorców, jak również politycznie wrażliwa natura samego sektora szkolnictwa wyższego.
CONFLICT OF INTEREST
The authors declare the following potential conflict of interest: DA and EK were members of one of the selected three teams of experts whereas AB—during the analysed period of reforms and submitting this paper—was General Director at the Ministry of Science and Higher Education in Poland.
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