World-Class Universities and the Global Common Good: The Role of China and the US in Addressing Global Inequality

Abstract

AbstractContemporary discourse on university reform, especially in the West, has moved more toward addressing the notion of ‘the common good’. While this idea can be traced back to Adam Smith’s The Theory of Moral Sentiments, and to Confucius’ Analects, much of its contemporary usage is rooted in demands for greater accountability. Many aspects of higher education have become targeted, including wider access, student fees and graduate employment. As different stakeholders and interest groups vie for agency, there is a lack of coherence about how universities should be serving the common good. Moreover, what is less clear is the formal agent of interpretation for the common good in the global context in which world-class universities operate. This chapter provides a comparison of Chinese and American perspectives on the ‘common good’ and how they apply to world-class universities. It also examines world-class university cases of access to learning, including both academic performance and social development, by students who come to university from rural and urban areas.