Comparative and Systematic Study on Staff Development in European and Chinese Universities

This paper summarizes a comparative and systematic study on staff development between Chinese and European universities with North American universities as background studies. The conceptual analytical lens is two-fold, one is Boyer's multiple-scholarship perspective and the other is a four dimensional faculty development framework proposed by America National Education Association. The specific investigation framework of case studies pays attention to the following aspects: conceptual underpinning, context and policy, organizational structure, program and program delivery, incentive and reward scheme for staff development work, evaluation and effect of programs and future staff development trends. The objective of this study is to find out the staff development practices in European universities to shed light on the next phase of staff development policies and programs in China.