, Borrowed Educational Reform in Higher Education: Evaluating the Implementation
and Outcomes of Outcomes-Based Education (OBE)
Introduction and Contextual Background
Within the field of comparative and international education, policy borrowing has emerged
as a significant mechanism through which governments seek to reform and modernise their
education systems by drawing on ideas, models, and practices perceived to be successful
in other national contexts. This process is closely linked to globalisation, which has
intensified the circulation of educational discourses, standards, and reforms across borders,
often promoted by international organisations and policy networks. As a result, countries—
particularly those undergoing socio-political transformation—frequently look outward for
solutions to internal educational challenges. One of the most prominent examples of such
reform is Outcomes-Based Education (OBE), which originated in countries such as the
United States and Australia and was later adopted in a range of developing contexts,
including South Africa. In the South African higher education sector, the introduction of OBE
must be understood against the backdrop of the post-apartheid transition after 1994, during
which education was positioned as a central tool for addressing historical inequalities,
promoting social justice, and supporting economic development in a globalised world.
Higher education institutions were expected to contribute to this transformation by
producing graduates equipped with relevant skills, competencies, and values aligned with
democratic citizenship and labour market demands. However, while OBE was introduced
with these progressive and transformative intentions, its implementation in higher education
institutions revealed a range of challenges and contradictions, particularly in relation to the
mismatch between policy design and local institutional realities, thereby making it a critical
case for examining the complexities of borrowed educational reform.
Theoretical Framework: Policy Borrowing in Comparative and International
Education
The process of policy borrowing is best understood through theoretical frameworks
developed within comparative and international education, which emphasise that the
movement of policies across contexts is neither neutral nor straightforward, but rather
shaped by complex interactions between global influences and local conditions. Phillips and
Ochs (2004) conceptualise policy borrowing as a multi-phase process involving attraction,
and Outcomes of Outcomes-Based Education (OBE)
Introduction and Contextual Background
Within the field of comparative and international education, policy borrowing has emerged
as a significant mechanism through which governments seek to reform and modernise their
education systems by drawing on ideas, models, and practices perceived to be successful
in other national contexts. This process is closely linked to globalisation, which has
intensified the circulation of educational discourses, standards, and reforms across borders,
often promoted by international organisations and policy networks. As a result, countries—
particularly those undergoing socio-political transformation—frequently look outward for
solutions to internal educational challenges. One of the most prominent examples of such
reform is Outcomes-Based Education (OBE), which originated in countries such as the
United States and Australia and was later adopted in a range of developing contexts,
including South Africa. In the South African higher education sector, the introduction of OBE
must be understood against the backdrop of the post-apartheid transition after 1994, during
which education was positioned as a central tool for addressing historical inequalities,
promoting social justice, and supporting economic development in a globalised world.
Higher education institutions were expected to contribute to this transformation by
producing graduates equipped with relevant skills, competencies, and values aligned with
democratic citizenship and labour market demands. However, while OBE was introduced
with these progressive and transformative intentions, its implementation in higher education
institutions revealed a range of challenges and contradictions, particularly in relation to the
mismatch between policy design and local institutional realities, thereby making it a critical
case for examining the complexities of borrowed educational reform.
Theoretical Framework: Policy Borrowing in Comparative and International
Education
The process of policy borrowing is best understood through theoretical frameworks
developed within comparative and international education, which emphasise that the
movement of policies across contexts is neither neutral nor straightforward, but rather
shaped by complex interactions between global influences and local conditions. Phillips and
Ochs (2004) conceptualise policy borrowing as a multi-phase process involving attraction,
