Higher education and economic development in Venezuela since 1958 : an approach, with special reference to the curriculum : a case

• Main Author: Salazar, Fernando Rafael
• Published: University College London (University of London) 1986
• Subjects: 378.87
• Online Access: http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.630666

The thesis is an analysis of Venezuelan Higher Education, from the return of democracy in 1958, to 1980. An attempt is made to explain the role of Venezuelan Higher Education in the training of manpower to assist the process of economic development during this period. The analysis has shown that the process of democratization of Higher Education lacked adequate educational policies and thus failed to train the professionals and technicians required for national economic development. On the contrary, the expansion resulted in a low number of graduates in those areas considered as priorities in the national development plans. Furthermore, the small number of Higher Education graduates has not been well-prepared to meet current industrial demands. The failure of Higher Education to fulfil its role in the training of manpower to assist the country's social and economic development is attributed in this research to the inconsistency between the Higher Education curriculum and current demands and national economic planning. The final part of this thesis attempts to provide an alternative solution to the above mentioned problem.