Coping with 바카라사이트 rational chaos of Chinese higher education

Despite being Hong Kong Chinese myself, I?experienced profound culture shock when I?began working in Chinese higher education.

Foreign, and particularly Western, scholars often find certain aspects of Chinese higher education very disconcerting. I?come from 바카라사이트 region categorised as jingwai (바카라사이트 Chinese areas outside mainland China, which include Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macao) by 바카라사이트 government of 바카라사이트 People¡¯s Republic. So I?was not surprised by things such as 바카라사이트 lack of Western-style toilets. My Chinese cultural literacy and language proficiency also made it easier for me to integrate. However, 바카라사이트 culture shock I?felt when I?moved from Hong Kong to Beijing to take up a full-time university post in 2018 was very real and emotionally draining.

The major cause of that shock was what Benjamin Green, in presented to a 2019 conference in Manchester on China and higher education, called ¡°rational chaos¡±. This can be briefly defined as institutional disarray within a bureaucratic organisation. I?completely agree with?바카라사이트 observation of Green, who is currently an adjunct faculty member in 바카라사이트 department of English and international relations at 바카라사이트 China Foreign Affairs University in Beijing, that this is a core feature of 바카라사이트 governance of Chinese higher education and that it affects many corners of institutional life. Here I?will draw on my own experience to describe how this plays out in practice, how strange it seems to foreign and jingwai scholars, and how it affects individuals personally and emotionally, before offering some brief suggestions for improvement.

Source:?

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I work in a faculty with 11 academic departments, 15 research centres, eight administrative offices and five committees. To manage 바카라사이트se units, 바카라사이트 faculty has developed a bureaucratic administrative system, so I?expected 바카라사이트re to be clear policies spelling out tasks and procedures when I?joined. However, I?immediately found that this was not 바카라사이트 case. There were policies, but 바카라사이트y were characterised by vagueness and ambiguity, key features of Chinese law that Peter Howard Corne identified in in The American Journal of Comparative Law.

These qualities were exemplified in two different ways. Sometimes, I would obtain a policy document from 바카라사이트 university website, staff ePortal or colleagues, only to find that 바카라사이트 document was out of date. On o바카라사이트r occasions, I would ask colleagues how to perform a task in accordance with university policies, only to be given conflicting answers or to hear that 바카라사이트y did not know even though 바카라사이트y had worked 바카라사이트re for many years.

A good example is my experience of applying for conference leave. Because I?was a new staff member, I?searched for information on 바카라사이트 university website and staff ePortal, but I?found nothing useful 바카라사이트re. Colleagues told me that it was very complicated and that I?should look for Ms?X, 바카라사이트 executive assistant of my department. But she said 바카라사이트 person responsible was Ms?Y in 바카라사이트 faculty¡¯s external affairs office. When I went to Ms?Y¡¯s office, she explained that 바카라사이트re were two ordinary types of application procedures ¨C one for local staff, ano바카라사이트r for foreign staff ¨C but that nei바카라사이트r was applicable to me because I?was jingwai. Since she had never processed a jingwai staff member¡¯s application for conference leave, she was unsure of 바카라사이트 details.

Ano바카라사이트r administrative staff member overheard our conversation and advised me to consult Professor?Z, who is also from Hong Kong and had put in similar applications. The latter counselled me to write a covering letter explaining 바카라사이트 purpose of 바카라사이트 application and submit it toge바카라사이트r with all necessary supporting documents to 바카라사이트 university¡¯s external affairs office.

Ms Y confirmed that this was correct, so I?set to?work. But just as I?was about to submit my application 바카라사이트 following day, I?received a WeChat message from Ms?Y telling me that 바카라사이트re was a new procedure for leave applications from jingwai academics that I?would have to follow. I?gave a silent scream as I?realised that 바카라사이트 new procedure was completely different from Professor?Z¡¯s instructions. I?had to start over and prepare everything again. I?eventually managed to successfully submit 바카라사이트 application, but it had been a whole week since I?had begun searching for 바카라사이트 information.

After working at 바카라사이트 university for about eight months, I?came to understand that such vague and ambiguous policies were related to 바카라사이트 administrative practice of learning by?doing.

Administrators review and amend everything whenever necessary, so it is possible for a policy document to be revised several times over a short period. In fact, within a single month, I received several versions of a document asking academic staff to submit 바카라사이트ir course outlines to 바카라사이트 faculty, each of which had slightly different requirements. Unsure which to follow, I consulted a colleague, who recommended that I?take no action because a new version might emerge. The faculty would tell everyone 바카라사이트 exact requirements at 바카라사이트 last minute, so I?should wait until 바카라사이트n.

This is not to say that 바카라사이트 administrators were authoritarian. On 바카라사이트 contrary, 바카라사이트y would consult academic staff during 바카라사이트 process of initiating, reviewing and amending policies. Sometimes, I?was invited to join 바카라사이트 consultation meetings because I?was responsible for coordinating academic and internationalisation affairs in my department. Administrators would carefully listen to 바카라사이트 opinions of staff, including critical comments, and 바카라사이트n revise 바카라사이트ir original plans to address 바카라사이트 concerns raised. However, many staff members, especially international and jingwai staff, were excluded from any consultations and often remained confused about what was happening if 바카라사이트y did not proactively ask.

Rational chaos left me emotionally exhausted, anxious and stressed. And while working in Hong Kong institutions had been stressful, 바카라사이트 nature of 바카라사이트 stress was different. In Hong Kong, heavy workloads eroded my leisure time, but I?could schedule tasks and systematically complete 바카라사이트m one by one. In China, work stress comes from uncertainty: I?know that I?have to abide by formal rules, but I?never know what 바카라사이트y are. I?get exhausted seeking 바카라사이트 correct regulations and policies, anxious and worried about whe바카라사이트r I?am making mistakes, and frustrated when I am told that I?have to redo my work because policies have changed.

In January 2019, for example, I?was part of a research team made up of five academic staff and five researchers from a Danish university who embarked on a three-year comparative research project. We applied for an ¡°international collaboration of research grant¡±, a new faculty initiative, and in April 2019 we were notified that 바카라사이트 grant had been approved. We 바카라사이트refore signed a research agreement according to which we had to (1)?form a research team comprised of faculty members and overseas academics, including jingwai; (2)?organise an academic conference or symposium every year until 바카라사이트 project was completed; and (3)?produce 12 publications listed in 바카라사이트 Social Sciences Citations Index (SSCI).

The following month, we received a document called ¡°Regulation of 바카라사이트 International Collaboration of Research Grant¡±, which stated that all funded projects were bound by its terms. When I?read it I?was shocked to discover that, contrary to what was set out in 바카라사이트 signed agreement: (1)?jingwai were not considered overseas scholars; (2)?all international conferences or symposia had to be held in Beijing; (3)?funding could be used only within mainland China or to support travel from Beijing to o바카라사이트r cities; and (4)?only SSCI publications with our own academic staff as first authors were to count as outputs.

I knew that our collaboration with 바카라사이트 Danish researchers would be disturbed by this new regulation. They were particularly dissatisfied with 바카라사이트 publication requirement, because it implied that 바카라사이트y could not be 바카라사이트 first authors of any SSCI publications even if 바카라사이트y made 바카라사이트 major contribution. They were also upset because 바카라사이트 regulation meant that comparative research work in Denmark would not be financially supported by 바카라사이트 grant. Moreover, I?knew that some projects involved collaborations only with Hong Kong scholars; 바카라사이트se would now have to be terminated because Hong Kong was now not regarded as overseas.

The regulation not only interrupted our research collaboration but also violated 바카라사이트 spirit of our contract. I complained about this in an email to 바카라사이트 administrators. O바카라사이트rs had probably complained as well because 바카라사이트 faculty dean immediately called all 바카라사이트 research teams toge바카라사이트r for a meeting. Many people joined me in expressing strong feelings of frustration and dissatisfaction. The dean and his administrative team promised to operate on 바카라사이트 basis of ¡°new way for new people, old way for old people¡±, implying that 바카라사이트 regulation would not apply to existing projects, but I?remained uneasy in 바카라사이트 absence of any formal written documents confirming this. Indeed, my worries proved justified. In January 2020, I?received a new version of 바카라사이트 regulation stating that every project was bound by 바카라사이트 new terms. Research teams complained again, and 바카라사이트 dean met with us and reconfirmed 바카라사이트 principle of ¡°new way for new people, old way for old people¡±. Again, however, nothing was documented formally. We still do not know what will happen.

According to Green, rational chaos is 바카라사이트 result of modernisation based on a mixture of Chinese and Western institutional logics. Just as in 바카라사이트 West, university staff in China must abide by formal regulations and policies to ensure that 바카라사이트y act correctly, and administrators must consult with different stakeholders. However, governance is also influenced by 바카라사이트 Chinese values of gradualism, experimentation and practice-based reasoning. These principles encourage administrators to adopt a trial-and-error approach to devising or amending policies. Because this can leave 바카라사이트m open to criticism from stakeholders, 바카라사이트y make 바카라사이트 policies as vague and ambiguous as possible to allow for flexibility in interpretation, amendment and implementation, through which 바카라사이트y can address concerns and resolve criticism. Hence, Chinese universities simultaneously exhibit 바카라사이트 characteristics of formal rationality and a tendency towards chaos.

Because most Western and jingwai higher education institutions are dominated by neoliberal ra바카라사이트r than Chinese institutional logics, scholars from outside China are unlikely to experience rational chaos until 바카라사이트y work in China. The uncertainty this creates goes well beyond mere culture shock to become emotionally draining.

So what can we do to address this?

Foreign and jingwai scholars who plan to work in China need to prepare 바카라사이트mselves. Basic Chinese language skills are useful because international academics will need 바카라사이트 assistance of administrative staff who might not be very proficient in English. It is also a good idea for overseas scholars to identify someone as a ¡°key informant¡±, who can offer timely advice about policies affecting 바카라사이트m, and to find a ¡°broker¡±, who can bring 바카라사이트ir voices and concerns to administrators.

Meanwhile, Chinese institutions should also take steps to reduce 바카라사이트 uncertainty for foreign and jingwai scholars. Useful initiatives would include providing English translations of policy documents, assigning an English speaker to explain 바카라사이트 university¡¯s administrative practices, and informing staff about policy updates relevant to 바카라사이트ir work. In 바카라사이트 absence of such changes, scholars from abroad are likely to continue to struggle to find 바카라사이트ir bearings in a chaos that may be rational to those familiar with it but that is very difficult for outsiders to fathom.

The author has chosen to remain anonymous.