Syntheses of Higher Education Research: What We Know

As higher education has massified there has been a greater need for higher education research: to better understand and improve practice and provision. The expansion of higher education research has in turn led to systematic reviews and meta-analyses being carried out of areas of the field, so as to synthesise or summarise the qualitative and quantitative findings of this research. These systematic reviews and meta-analyses give an account of where we are now in higher education research. Malcolm Tight takes a global perspective, looking beyond Anglophone originating English Language publishing, particularly Africa, East and South Asia, Europe, Latin America and the Middle East, bringing together their findings to provide an accessible and practical overview.

Bringing together over 96 systematic reviews and 62 meta-analyses focusing on particular topics in higher education research, Tight explores key topics: teaching and learning, course design, the student experience, quality, system policy, institutional management, academic work, and knowledge and research.

Malcolm Tight is Professor of Higher Education at Lancaster University, UK, where he directs the Doctoral Programme in Educational Research (Higher Education). He is Editor of the journals Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education and Tertiary Education and Management.