University's KPI, Internationalisation, Ranking: Dilemma of Writing a Papers and Research

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/9/26/nation/7105830&sec=nation

Professor Dr Ahmad Ismail, a professor of wildlife ecology and ecotoxicology from Universiti Putra Malaysia biology department is also of the opinion that academic excellence cannot be measured by publications alone.

He strongly believes that other aspects of academia should be considered.

“Publication alone is not enough. Teaching and supervising of students, attending conferences and seminars, extension and dissemination of knowledge and new findings to the public (among others) make an academician complete.”

“We would like our papers to be published in reputable, high-impact journals – but we can’t because majority are less than one to 3 impact factors,” he says.

“What is important is what we can contri­bute to our own country – at a local level. If you just concentrate on writing, then you are just a writer.

“A lecturer must develop areas of knowledge and then teach it to students, and not rely on textbooks alone.”