Outcome-Driven Learning: Creating Opportunities for Change

Public administration education plays an important role in social governance in contemporary society with rapid development of globalization and information technology. In the face of the increasing complexity and challenge of public administration, public administration education has to innovate and adapt to new requirements. In this context, cultivation of critical thinking is widely recognized as the key to improve public administration education effectiveness. Based on Bruner’s constructivism theory, this research explored how to promote the active construction and practical application of knowledge by integrating critical thinking and reshape the teaching and learning processes of public administration education. The aim of this research was to fill the gap between theoretical and practical research on the combination of critical thinking and public administration education in existing literature and to provide a systematic framework for educators and policy makers to better understand and play the role of critical thinking in public administration education.

Diverse public administration teaching traditions exist across African countries, yet some common strands can be identified. These teaching traditions were initially profoundly influenced by the colonial heritage across Africa especially in the first two decades after independence. Post-independence priorities linked to development and nation-building were also dominant post-independence themes in public administration teaching. More recently, globalisation has played a vital role in shaping public administration teaching as African universities have endeavoured to adopt more innovative global pedagogies as students particularly at the postgraduate level have become more demanding and quality conscious based on emerging global standards. An important distinction still exists between the teaching of public administration in private and public universities in Africa. Private universities in Africa have generally been faster in adopting more innovative methods of teaching public administration such as case methodology than public universities, although considerable variability still exists. The teaching of public administration in African states has also been greatly affected by distinct political and social realities in African states. Remaining authoritarian states in Africa have generally allowed less innovation in teaching public administration as it has been important for them to support the official line on key political issues compared to democratically oriented African states where teaching has been more innovative.

Over the past decades, Public Administration (PA) education programmes in Europe shifted their focus from a predominantly law-oriented approach to a more multidisciplinary, social science and managerial one. This paper deals with the tenacity of traditional, law-oriented PA education programmes that can be found in a limited, but not insignificant, range of countries throughout Europe. The paper has two aims. Firstly, it attempts to test hypotheses which seek to explain this tenacity. Secondly, it wishes to examine the extent to which this tenacity is related to new forms and paradigms of government emerging in certain Central and Eastern European countries, sometimes referred to as “illiberal democracy”. The method is a two-case comparative study of Germany and Hungary.

Our current IT innovations will alter the way government agencies operate. The relationship between public administration education and new forms of governance, such as e-government, is thus something to consider. Public administration education must be updated to reflect the structure of future governments. The paper discusses a number of key topics that are connected to the topic. Evolving aspects start to appear in public management in this century of information and information technology. Also, numerous books analyse the needed change in public administration. And finally, the curricula used nowadays for public administration education will have take into account these new evolutions. And third, these new developments will need to be accounted for in the curricula utilized today for public administration education. To ensure the connection between government and public administration education, the current curriculum must undergo at least a few major adjustments as a result of the evolving aspects of public management in the information society. Current curriculum urgently need to be updated to meet the needs of emerging concerns, and decision-makers need to learn more about government in order to make the necessary changes to the way the government operates. Medical crisis managed to the best of the abilities for an issue unprecedented as magnitude and economic and social impact - economic and administrative system has been saved by digital tools and platforms. A non representative sample was used in order to analyse the behaviour of more than 55 public institutions. The aim was to identify common patterns in approaching challences induced by the citizens expectations in relation with public system. Additionally, there is need for improvement in how public decision-makers view and relate to IT tools. As long as professionals and academics analyze and pinpoint a route for these developing issues in the public administration education, these goals can be achieved.

Public relations in public administration: a disappearing act in public administration education

Public administration education has an interesting history rooted in numerous scholarly disciplines, such as sociology, political science, economics, and engineering. The article reflects on the last 100 years of scholarship on public administration education, starting with an article on the topic in the first issue of Public Administration in 1923. We provide a concise review focused on the development of public administration education over this time. Next, we discuss scholarship in top journals on public administration education, Journal of Public Affairs Education and Teaching Public Administration. We use Denhardt's (2001) big questions in public administration education as a framework to examine this scholarship. We conclude by discussing the future of public administration education and advocating a community‐based approach to pedagogy practice and research in the field.

Public Administration, as a discipline emphasizing practical application, places significant emphasis on practical teaching within its academic framework. The effectiveness and comprehensiveness of the practical teaching system directly affect students’ capacity for practical application and their overall skill sets. This, in turn, is essential for the discipline’s ability to nurture innovative and practically-oriented professionals that meet the evolving needs of society. However, existing public administration education in China is predominantly confined by traditional educational concepts and teaching methods, leading to an overemphasis on classroom instruction which tends to prioritize theoretical knowledge dissemination. Consequently, the planning and implementation of practical teaching content, methodology, and duration are inadequate and lack coherence. This status quo has had a detrimental impact on the quality of talent development within the domain of Public Administration. Addressing this, there is an evident need to transcend prevailing educational concepts and teaching paradigms, integrating practical teaching as an integral element of the broader public administration education system. In this regard, the innovation of teaching methods is crucial to adapt proactively to the “new normal” of socio-economic development, underlined by the pivotal role of “innovation, creativity, and practical application” as vital benchmarks for evaluating talent development. This study explores the “Integration of Theory and Practice” model in the context of practical teaching for public administration, constructing a practical teaching framework that seamlessly unites theory and practice within the domain, placing students at the forefront and educators at the center. This model encompasses the alignment of teaching content, methodology, evaluation, and resources, achieving the “3+N” teaching effectiveness. By exemplifying the specific application of the Simulated Training in Public Administration course, it sheds light on the profound importance of the “Integration of Theory and Practice” model in enhancing the development of public administration and talent cultivation. The aim is to provide valuable insights for the reform of public administration education in China.

Education and Research in Public Administration in Africa Education and Research in Public Administration in Africa, edited by A. Adedeji and C. Baker. Hutchinson, 1974. 432pp. Tables, index. £6.00. The Administration of Change in Africa, edited by E. P. Morgan. Dunellan, New York and London, 1974. xxvii+420pp. £8.80. G. GLENTWORTH G. GLENTWORTH Institute of Local Government Studies, University of Birmingham Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar African Affairs, Volume 75, Issue 299, April 1976, Pages 265–266, https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.afraf.a096729 Published: 01 April 1976

As the scale and frequency of disasters continues to intensify, public administration programs in both China and the United States are increasingly acknowledging the importance of integrating emergency management into public administration education. After briefly reviewing and comparing their respective emergency management systems, this study describes the development of emergency management in the field of public administration in both countries. Using data collected from multiple sources, this study provides a synopsis of emergency management education within public administration programs in China and compares its progress, development, and challenges with the American emergency management programs. While the development of emergency management education is driven by practical needs and national initiatives, in China it remains in its development stage.

Creating an engaging and educational experience in an ethics class can be difficult. But media, such as TV and movies, can supplement ethics education in public administration. For this study, I used the TV show “The Good Place” as a case study for a masters-level Administrative Ethics class. Through this, I explore the themes presented in the show and discussion questions which can be used to encourage conversation. Furthermore, building on previous literature, I explore how TV and movies can accent the ethics education in a public administration classroom.

The purpose of doctoral education and research in public administration might seem almost self-evident. If public administration were thought of like most other social science disciplines, the traditional purpose of the doctorate - the development and dissemination of knowledge relevant to the field and preparation of the professoriate - would hold for public administration as well. Most academics in public administration may continue to think of the doctorate in our field in precisely that way. However, the evidence simply does not support this view. Indeed, the public administration doctorate appears to advance knowledge and theory development in the field only to a rather limited degree. Doctoral education and research is one aspect of the larger debate in public administration concerning the status and nature of research in the field, and more broadly, the question of knowledge and theory development in public administration. A number of studies in recent years have focused on the research issue (White and Adams, 1994); some of these have discussed doctoral research (Adams and White, 1994; Cleary, 1992; McCurdy and Cleary, 1984; Stallings, 1986; and White, 1986b), and some have examined the kinds of research manifested in journal publications (Houston and Delevan, 1990; Perry and Kraemer, 1986; Stallings and Ferris, 1988). Another group of studies has addressed the broader philosophical issues related to the generation of knowledge and the development of theory in the field (Adams, 1992; Balfour and Mesaros, 1994; Box, 1992; Hummel, 1991; and White, 1986a). We examine the publication records of the 1981 through 1987 classes of public administration doctorate recipients and assess their contribution to knowledge and theory development in the field, as measured by publication in refereed journals. These findings are compared with other data on publication rates of public administration doctorate recipients, and then, we take a closer look at the class of 1987. These data on publications are contemplated in light of the research on the quality of dissertation scholarship. Taken together, evidence from these two streams of research renders the traditional view of doctoral education and research untenable for public administration and also shows that doctoral education and research appear not to be making significant contributions to knowledge and theory development in the field, at least as measured by publication in scholarly, peer-reviewed journals. Finally, we offer some suggestions for improving the condition of the public administration doctorate. However, we are unable to paint an optimistic portrait of what appears to be a doctorate with multiple, and possibly conflicting, purposes. Recent Research on the Doctorate Published assessments of doctoral education and research in public administration in the 1980s and 1990s have raised serious questions for those who hold that the doctorate should advance knowledge and theory in the field. In 1984, McCurdy and Cleary examined public administration dissertations and found that the majority lacked a central focus on the field, addressed relatively unimportant questions, and failed to meet the standards of mainstream social science research. White (1986b) agreed with them in a replication of their research. He also found that much of the nonmainstream research lacked methodological rigor according to the standards of interpretive or critical research. Stallings (1986) has also raised several significant questions about the scope and role of the doctorate in our field. In the 1990s, Cleary's research concluded that the quality of dissertations had improved somewhat (Cleary [1992] replicated his previous research with McCurdy). Unfortunately, the amount of improvement has been modest at best (Adams and White [1994] replicated White's earlier research). Indeed, the majority of the dissertations studied lacked a theoretical framework, were methodologically unsound, and tended to address questions of moderate to low interest to the field. …

The twin processes of Europeanization and Transition provide significant opportunities for the development of Public Administration education in Europe and provide a possibility to further the ‘emancipation’ of the discipline. In terms of Europeanization, the increasing challenges of politico‐administrative interaction between national administrations and the institutions of the European Union illustrate that it is essential for Public Administration graduates to acquire an informed understanding of both the European context of policy‐making and of the administrative organization and culture of other member states and countries associated with the EU. As a second element, the transition process in Central and Eastern European states could provide the discipline with further impetus to search for its own identity and approach in a European context. This article reviews the key findings of the results of the comprehensive inventories undertaken by the SOCRATES Thematic Network in Public Administration with regard to the current direction in which Public Administration education in Europe is moving. It addresses whether attention to European issues is reflected in the curriculum as well as links with the profession and whether cross‐fertilization between the development of new programmes in the transition states and PA academic programmes in the EU member states has actually occurred.

Courses in public personnel administration form an important part of the public administration curriculum. However, public administration education has come under substantial criticism for not adequately preparing professionals for careers in the public service. This article describes some key characteristics of education for the professions and uses these characteristics as criteria to assess the course syllabi for nearly forty public personnel administration courses. After finding that the vast majority of these courses appear to lack the requirements for courses in professional education, the article presents some suggestions that instructors of public personnel administration might wish to incorporate in the design and delivery of their efforts.

Since its inception, the discipline of public administration has been challenged by its dual mission of educating both practitioner and academician (Golembiewski, 1977; Denhardt, 2001). Normative issues such as ethical behavior, social equity, and the impact of diversity on public institutions and policies are matters that conjoin public administration scholarship and practice. However, these subjects are not standard in the public administration education curriculum. Ethics and social equity have received intermittent attention in the professional journals and in the curriculum offerings of schools associated with the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration (NASPAA; Bowman, 1990; Lee and Paddock, 1992; Gooden and Myers, 2004). This study explores the question of whether the issue of diversity has received similar attention in public administration education. After reviewing the curricula at 50 NASPAA accredited-schools, this study concludes that teaching diversity in the public administration/public affairs curriculum is not, in fact, overlooked. However, our finding that the topic of diversity is relatively neglected in the published scholarship indicates a need for public affairs education programs to support such scholarship.

Statement of the problem. Improving the education system in Russia objectively acts as an essential part of the social policy of the state, as it influences the level and nature of social and personal life of each person, the formation of his/her conscious civic position and the formation of civil society as a whole. To date, the literature partially presents new experience in public administration of education and social partnership with the participation of education at the regional, municipal and secondary school levels. The main problems associated with the transition to public administration, in our opinion, are that there is a gap between the old institutional structure of the education system and new attempts to change educational institutions. The purpose of the article. The article is devoted to clarification of the nature of state and public administration in modern education in the context of the global goals enunciated in the “Forecast of long-term socio-economic development of the Russian Federation for the period till 2030” and indicators of the national project “Education” to find the means to improve administrative competence of heads of educational organizations in the field of public administration taking into account the requirements of the professional standard “PEDAGOG”. Research methodology. The research methodology is based on competence and system-activity approaches, the theory of public administration, the theory of social interaction and methods of scientific and pedagogical research: analysis, synthesis, systematization, generalization, and modeling. The article analyzes, systematizes and summarizes the Russian and foreign experience of public administration, identifies deficiencies in the training of heads of educational institutions for the implementation of public administration taking into account the requirements of professional standards. Theoretical and practice-oriented bases are defined for development of further professional programs (professional development and professional retraining) in KSPU named after V.P. Astafiev. Research results. Further professional programs are developed and tested for professional development of heads of educational organizations on state and public management implementation. Development of state and public cooperation on the basis of the secondary school system is to design, organize and develop the necessary institutions and forms of activity inside and outside the secondary school, in the selection of procedures for their successful functioning and development. The purpose of the further professional program “State and public management of preschool and general education organizations under transition to the Federal Education Standard and introduction of professional standards” is for students (i.e. management and teaching staff) to obtain competencies that ensure effective organization and activities of state and public administration to improve conditions for education and upbringing. Conclusion. Analyzing the results on assessment of further professional training programs for the heads of educational organizations on implementation of state and public administration, the authors come to the conclusion that their use in practice makes it possible to initiate and organize the management of an educational organization with participation of society, parents community, that provides openness, humanistic orientation, interested interaction and dialogue among the actors of the social and educational space.