Transformative Identities: Journeys through the Neoliberal University in Search of Social Justice

2020 ◽  
Vol 42 (1) ◽  
pp. 52-55
Author(s):  
Jennifer Randall
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Critical Pedagogy ◽  
Academic Staff ◽  
University Management ◽  
Current Crisis ◽  
Higher Education System ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
The Social ◽  
The University ◽  
Marketing Material

Abstract This paper discusses the current crisis in the United Kingdom higher education system and how the introduction of market forces has left academic staff and students dissatisfied. With shrinking budgets, increased competition, and classrooms full of students with complex lives and backgrounds, this glossy marketing material feels disingenuous. I reflect on how the university classroom can become a radical space in which the neoliberal university is challenged through a participatory, reflective, and inclusive critical pedagogy modeled on hooks' and Freire's philosophy. Describing and interpreting a three-year program delivered in a university in London, I consider how an anthropological curriculum helped students and teacher alike reflect their experiences back to university management, articulated a critique of current neoliberal policies, and ultimately embodied the social justice ethos that was previously just marketing copy of commodified educational experiences.

scholarly journals Importance of Stakeholders within University Social Responsibility

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 46-58
Author(s):  
Lenka Smolíková ◽  
David Schüller
Keyword(s):  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Foreign Students ◽  
Academic Staff ◽  
Group Method ◽  
University Management ◽  
The Social ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
The University ◽  
Science And Research

Abstract Research purpose. The paper follows a definition of University Social Responsibility (USR) recently formulated by Kouatli in 2019. In accordance with the definition, the main objective of this study is to identify and establish the importance of individual stakeholders to the university. The article also includes several case studies demonstrating the possibilities of cooperation between university management and other stakeholders to address the social aspects of sustainable development primarily. Design / Methodology / Approach. The focus group method was used to identify all stakeholders. For individual focus groups, respondents rated their importance for universities on a scale from 1 to 7. Subsequently, different stakeholders were divided into relevant groups by factor analysis. The obtained outputs were used for the identification of important university stakeholders in the field of education and science. Findings. The university’s most important stakeholders in education were found to include applicants for study and their parents, student, and academic staff, and last but not least, foreign students. In the field of science and research, the university’s main stakeholders are academics, enterprises, and the professional public. Emphasis is placed on how the university can cooperate with its stakeholders in CSR activities. Originality / Value / Practical implications. The value of the proposed stakeholder framework can be seen in the identification of important stakeholders for universities. The paper also includes case studies related to the cooperation with the Czech university to fulfil its USR objectives.

scholarly journals Town-Gown Relationships: Perceptions and Expectations about Bartın University Town-Gown Relationships

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 14-24
Author(s):  
Fatma Ünal
Keyword(s):  
Social Life ◽  
Academic Staff ◽  
Rapid Development ◽  
Human Power ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Contributions ◽  
University Town ◽  
Perceptions And Expectations ◽  
The University ◽  
The City

Universities have missions to conduct scientific research, produce information and technology, fulfill the function of qualified human power needed by the societies at the universal level, as well as lead the transformation of the region and the city regarding social, cultural and economic perspective. The growth and development of universities and effective fulfillment of their functions are associated with the people’s perception about universities’ economic and social contributions to society along with getting approval and support from them. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to examine the perceptions, evaluations and expectations of Bartın people towards Bartın University, which celebrated the 11th anniversary of the foundation in 2019. In the study, which used a mixed research method, 255 people were reached by using the criterion sampling method and the data were collected by demographic information form, scale and interview form. Findings revealed that Bartın people had little participation in the activities organized by the university and were not aware of these activities sufficiently. Findings also showed that socio-cultural activities organized by the university had enriched the social life, the development of the university had increased the possibilities of transportation both in the city and intercity and the increase in the number of the students positively affected the tradespeople. Additionally, it was concluded that the trainings and activities organized in the university contributed to the personal and professional development of the society. Moreover, the activities should be increased and cityoriented researches should be conducted. Participants, who stated the rapid development of the university as the most powerful aspect of the university, shared the suggestion that the academic staff should be increased in quantity and merit should be taken as the basis for the improvement.

scholarly journals Critical pedagogy in the university: Can a lecture be critical pedagogy?

2018 ◽  
Vol 16 (8) ◽  
pp. 985-999 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lauren B Clark
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Critical Pedagogy ◽  
Student Satisfaction ◽  
Case Study Research ◽  
Pedagogical Practice ◽  
Higher Education System ◽  
Curriculum And Pedagogy ◽  
Banking Education ◽  
The University

In a higher education system driven by student satisfaction, there has been a recent push towards more student-centred methods of teaching such as collaborative learning and seminar discussions despite an increase in student numbers. In contrast, some academics defend the transformative and educative possibilities of the lecture by challenging its conception as ‘banking education’, asking us to reflect on the purpose of education in a way that calls into question our assumptions about the transmission of information through lecturing. While acknowledging the place of the lecture in higher education, I want to consider whether a lecture can be critical pedagogy by interrupting previous ways of thinking and being. As the teacher lectures he/she models what it means to know, to think and to act, but is this enough to make it critical pedagogy? Looking at conceptualisations of the transformative intellectual and the relationship between curriculum and pedagogy alongside data from case study research, this article will explore what critical pedagogical practice looks like in the university.

scholarly journals Entry barriers and “Glass Roof” in University Management in Colombia

2019 ◽  
Vol 35 (65) ◽  
pp. 18-30
Author(s):  
Cristian Bedoya Dorado ◽  
Mónica García-Solarte ◽  
Juan Sebastián Peña-Zúñiga ◽  
Steven Alejandro Piñeros Buriticá
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Social Role ◽  
Institutions Of Higher Education ◽  
University Management ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
The Social ◽  
Management Positions ◽  
The University ◽  
The Relationship

Management in the context of higher education has been characterized by the predominance of male participation, mainly in senior management positions. As a result, women’s low participation is mainly concentrated in lower management positions, and their chances of escalating hierarchical positions are mediated by various factors ranging from subjective to socially naturalized. The objective of this research is to analyze the barriers women face to enter and escalate positions in university management in Colombia. Under a qualitative design, 26 semi-structured interviews were applied to university managers from different institutions of higher education in Colombia. The transcripts were analyzed using discourse analysis through three categories: individual, internal, and external barriers of the university. It was found that women face entry and promotion barriers marked by experiences, and conditions of inequality and discrimination in a male-dominated context. These barriers are conditioned by personal elements, organizational culture, and the social role of women. In addition, women’s trajectories involve mediation between professional development and family life. The study reveals experiences that contribute to understanding the research phenomenon from the webbing of senses and meanings. It is posited that the “glass ceiling” is mediated by variables in the internal order, and by the relationship between universities and their context.

scholarly journals nnovative Educational Technologies: Professional Development Programs for University Staff

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 9023-9029
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Professional Development ◽  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Academic Staff ◽  
Educational Technologies ◽  
Professional Activity ◽  
University Staff ◽  
Higher Education System ◽  
Executive Staff ◽  
The University

A key role in improving the quality of higher education belongs to the executive staff, teaching employees, and academic staff as direct performers. The purpose of the article is to analyze the possibilities of advanced training of university academic staff using innovative educational technologies based on information and communication technologies (ICT). The article notes the relevance of the search for new approaches to the organization of the professional development of the higher education system employees, as well as analyzes the experience of European countries in the professional development of university academic staff. The authors specify the requirements for the meaningful components of methodical system of training at the university, the prospects of ICT use in professional activity of academic and administrative employees of the university, training areas of university staff of different professional orientation, as well as highlight innovation areas of professional development of the academic staff in Russian universities.

scholarly journals University Solidarity Management

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (8) ◽  
pp. 487-504
Author(s):  
Fabiana Pinto de Almeida Bizarria ◽  
Mônica Mota Tassigny ◽  
Flávia Lorenne Barbosa
Keyword(s):  
Social Systems ◽  
University Management ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Social Agents ◽  
Reflective Process ◽  
Theoretical Synthesis ◽  
The Social ◽  
Epistemological Conception ◽  
Symbolic Interactions ◽  
The University

In the perspective of discussing a university management proposal that places an alternative epistemological conception and understands the multidimensionality of human beings and social systems (as a critique of economic instrumentality) and the multidimensionality of the educational phenomenon, this article presents a theoretical synthesis, an essay of idea, in the sense of proposing a model of solidarity management, in the perspective of its dimensions (Cosmopolitan Rationality; Multidimensional Model of Administration Management; Intercultural Translation). The solidary management of the university centralizes the debate on interculturalityfrom the perspective of emancipation, while activating the reflective process on how to strategically operationalize actions that are guided by an integrative rationality and coordinate the dimensions of the educational phenomenon, in this case: culture, politics, pedagogy and economics. It is in the scope of a democratization of knowledge that this management advances from the “societal” management, as it comprehends a perspective on participation that qualifies the knowledge and practices of social agents in building proposals as credible, and the social organization should focus its efforts and trigger the experiences of the subjects so that the intercultural translation process incorporates comprehensive and purposeful practices within symbolic interactions.

scholarly journals Distance Education in Social Work During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Changes and Challenges

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suzanne Lischer ◽  
Seraina Caviezel Schmitz ◽  
Paula Krüger ◽  
Netkey Safi ◽  
Cheryl Dickson
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Building Blocks ◽  
Support Needs ◽  
University Management ◽  
The Social ◽  
Initial Survey ◽  
School Of Social Work ◽  
The University ◽  
Hybrid Forms

The COVID-19 pandemic has had an extensive impact on the global higher education sector. In a written survey, staff and students at the Lucerne School of Social Work reported how they had coped with the challenges to their teaching or respective learning situation. The initial survey was conducted during the lockdown in spring 2020, and the follow-up survey was performed in the period of relaxed sanitary measures in summer 2020. During the first wave of the survey, 51 employees and 225 students participated. In the follow-up survey, 28 employees and 117 students partook. Findings indicate that the increased workload created by the transition was stressful for both staff and students but overall was handled well. Staff and students who felt supported by the university management experienced less psychological distress. Since the outbreak of the pandemic, there has been an effort to develop hybrid forms of teaching. Because the social work curriculum contains building blocks that are difficult to implement in the form of distance learning, the transition posed challenges for both staff and students. During times of transition, university management must carefully assess the support needs of staff and students and take appropriate action.

scholarly journals O modelo de governança corporativa na educação superior e as repercussões no trabalho docente: Um estudo de caso

2020 ◽  
Vol 28 ◽  
pp. 9
Author(s):  
Fabíola Bouth Grello Kato ◽  
Vera Lúcia Jacob Chaves ◽  
Rosimê Da Conceição Meguins
Keyword(s):  
Work Conditions ◽  
Social Recognition ◽  
University Management ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Professional Management ◽  
The Social ◽  
Political Roles ◽  
The University ◽  
And Control

This paper analyses the repercussions of the adoption of a corporative government model for professor work inside a higher education institute within the State of Pará, managerially organized as a university and belonging to Grupo Ser Educational S.A. since 2014. This case study adds to the analyses of report documents and of three semi-structured interviews with professors of the University of Amazônia/Ser Educacional to understand the changes that the selling of the university to the Grupo Ser Educacional brought to professor work, in terms of the learning activities, the work conditions, and the university management. The analyses reveal that incorporation of the professional management system guided by the model of corporative management brought changes in the pedagogical culture, collegiate management, and in the conditions of work. The results show conflict between the social and political roles of education, especially from the incorporation of a policy of austere pedagogical management, one in which the current corporate world demands from educational companies that use this model, characterized by the deep heteronomy of professor’s work, fragmentation and control of pedagogical work, as well as the impoverishment and loss of social recognition.

scholarly journals Investigation into Common Errors in English Writing among Non-Academic Staff at a Malaysian Public University

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ahmad Taufik Hidayah Abdullah ◽  
Mohd Nazri Latiff Azmi ◽  
Isyaku Hassan ◽  
Engku Suhaimi Engku Atek ◽  
Zailani Jusoh
Keyword(s):  
English Language ◽  
Academic Staff ◽  
Public University ◽  
University Management ◽  
Word Use ◽  
English Writing ◽  
The Government ◽  
The University ◽  
Writing Competence ◽  
Writing Errors

The Malaysian government has long recognized the significance of mastering the English language among its citizenry. The government has planned, and subsequently, implemented many policies to ensure Malaysians master the English language. Although civil servants have a strong desire to master the English language to perform their duties more efficiently, poor English communication skills have become a major concern in this regard. Therefore, this research aims to investigate common errors in writing the English language among non-academic staff at Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin (UniSZA), a public university in Malaysia. The study employed an Error Analysis approach by conducting document analysis where every respondent was required to write a paragraph in the English language in about 150-200 words on the topic“My greatest challenge as a UniSZA officer”. The findings revealed that a sizeable number of non-academic staff committed different types of errors in writing the English language, including errors related to subject-verb agreement, passive voice, plurality, choice of word, omission of word, use of article, tense sequence, word ordering, gerund, addition of word/redundancy, and comparison of adjective. It was observed that lack of linguistic skills, lack of exposure, and inadequate practices in written English were the main factors contributing to the English writing errors among the non-academic staff. These findings could help the university management to develop appropriate programs that can assist the non-academic staff to develop English writing competence. However, this study is limited to English writing errors. Further research may focus on other language skills such as speaking and listening.

Embracing Technology and Community Engagement as a Teaching and Learning Medium in Social Justice Education

2011 ◽  
Vol 1 (4) ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Loshini Naidoo
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Community Engagement ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Cultural Theory ◽  
Educational Achievement ◽  
Marginalised Groups ◽  
The Social ◽  
Subject Content Knowledge ◽  
E Learning ◽  
The University

This paper examines the varied learning experiences that integrated socio-cultural theory, community engagement and e-learning offered by the “Diversity, Social Justice and Schooling” subject at the University of Western Sydney. This subject engaged university students in the learning process in a reflective and critical way, by responding to a need identified by community. Together with education technology, subject content knowledge and community engagement, the social justice subject aimed to enhance the educational achievement of marginalised groups, while simultaneously supporting pre-service teachers in the context of their development as educators committed to a social justice ethos.

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