Through his work as director of Auburn University's Biggio Center, Dr. James Groccia has supported the university's goals of excellent teaching and enhanced learning.  In his recent efforts, however, Groccia has taken this charge to a global degree by working to enhance the teaching effectiveness of an entire country.

Groccia, who also serves as an associate professor of educational leadership in the College of Education, has formed higher education partnerships within Saudi Arabia, which promise to enhance the country's advanced learning system through some of the same tactics he employs with AU instructional faculty and campus administrators.

Last year Groccia, who was then President of the Professional and Organizational Development Network in Higher Education, attended an international conference in Sheffield, England on behalf of the organization.  At the conference Groccia made several presentations on academic training, which later led to an invitation by King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM) in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, to host a series of workshops for the campus' faculty and administrators.

"The higher education system in Saudi Arabia and in the Arab world is growing exponentially," Groccia said.  "Officials recognize that they cannot rely on current methods that they have been successful with in the past.  Critical thinking and problem solving skills gained through active and engaged learning and innovative teaching are being seen as essential outcomes for future educational and economic development."

Groccia gave presentations to department heads and academic leaders from Saudi Arabian institutions on the importance of staff development, active learning, building academic portfolios, and enhancing educational productivity and quality.  Subsequent to these presentations, he has been asked to put together a series of training programs across Saudi Arabia.  Groccia has also been invited back to KFUPM as well as to King Saud University in Riyadh—Saudi Arabia's oldest and premier university—and King Khalid University in Abha—the newest public university in Saudi Arabia—to offer similar presentations

He noted surprise during one of his early trips to discover that his book, "On Becoming a Productive University: Strategies for Reducing Cost and Increasing Quality in Higher Education," which he co-edited for publication in 2005, had been translated into Arabic and was known by Saudi Arabian education officials.

Groccia's work will help aid Saudi Arabia's transition from importing foreign workers for health, banking and communication to developing their own people for these careers.  He noted that education policies in Saudi Arabia are changing and officials recognize the need to expand higher education so more disciplines and training can be offered to more people—including more broadly to women, which represents a cultural as well as educational shift in thinking. 

His long range goal is to assist institutions in developing more effective higher education systems and teaching methods.  There are only 14 state-supported universities and eight to 10 private universities in Saudi Arabia.  The country has shown its commitment to higher education by planning to build 11 additional universities in the next five years.

"An interesting challenge is going to be how Saudis maintain their religious and social traditions while liberalizing their thinking in academics," Groccia said.

Contributed by Tuan Huynh