A View of Postsecondary Education Research from the National Institute of Education

10 A VIEW OF POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION RESEARCH FROM THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION Michael Timpane National Institute of Education Historically, NIE has not devoted extensive resources to research and development in postsecondary education. There are several reasons for this history. First, is the heritage of Federal research and evaluation emphasis on elementary and secondary education, much of which grew out of the intel­ lectual controversies of the mid- and late-sixties and early seventies revol­ ving originally around evidence for starting new Federal programs and then around evidence of the impact of those programs. These controversies domi­ nate the development of new agendas in federally-sponsored education R & D. There is, second, an interesting assumption in Washington (and in most state capitols, too) about postsecondary educational policy: educational ef­ fectiveness is not an issue. Most of the debate in Washington about postsec­ ondary education seems to revolve around issues of access. The opposite is the case for public education where policymakers spend their lives worrying about why elementary and secondary education is not doing a better job and what can be done to improve it. There exists for postsecondary matters a casual assumption that the market takes care of these things: people buy what they want, they attend postsecondary educational institutions as a mat­ ter of choice or selection, and somehow they get what they pay for. In this way, quality is assured, and many important assumptions about postsecondary education remain unexamined. Third, the academic community in postsecondary education is not overly concerned with itself as an object of research. Few academics investigate the institutions which they inhabit. The critical faculties which have been honed to a sharp edge are rarely turned upon themselves. To paraphrase Pat Graham, Director of NIE: The subject of the teaching-learning process in higher education brings from most college and university faculties and admi­ nistrators what can best be described as a polite yawn. Unlike elementary and secondary education where both professionals and the public understands that what is going on is essentially a pedagogical process, many in higher education have preferred to believe that colleges and universities have transcended pedagogy and deal only with the discipline. I know very few col­ lege and university presidents who in seeking research funds for their insti­ tutions have as a high priority funds to understand the educational enter­ prise in which they are engaged. Finally, the dismal budget history of NIE has left little room for large-scale initiatives in postsecondary education. While this year's budget is larger than those of the last several years, it is largely mortgaged as we work our way out of earlier obligations. In the future, we will surely find flexibility to carry on more extensive efforts in postsecondary educa­ tion . What specifically does NIE intend to do to change its pattern of under­ investment in research and development in postsecondary education? Our first approach to this problem has been organizational. Previously, it was dif­ ficult to find an NIE office or unit which a researcher might identify as primarily interested in postsecondary matters. In our new organizational structure at NIE, we will have identified research activities in the areas of postsecondary finance, of postsecondary management, and of adult learning. The next step will be budgetary. Each of these research activities is now being addressed in our Fiscal Year 1979 and 1980 planning. We are well fortified with planning studies and agendas to begin those activities (such as the work of the Keystone Conference in the areas of finance, productivi­ ty, and management). Specific activities will soon be proposed to us, though substantial funding for them is probably at least a year away. We hope even­ tually to devote up to 25% of our research to the concerns and problems of postsecondary education. This represents a substantial increase over our current effort. 11 What issues and concerns in postsecondary education will be important in future research? In answering this question, NIE will be guided mostly by two overriding priorities: educational equity and improving educational practice. Research on equity means, in our view, examining the educational opportunities, barriers and experiences of these groups of students who have in the past profited least...