scholarly journals ‘Insane with courage’: Free university experiments and the struggle for higher education in historical perspective

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Amsler

This article considers the role of experiments in learning in movements to democratise higher education ‘under the rule of capital’ (Gutierrez, Navarro and Linsalata 2017). It focuses on the emergence of a new generation of ‘free universities’ in the United Kingdom, situating these in a historical tradition of educational experimentation and a current context of global movements for autonomy from the state, capital and dominating epistemologies. It argues that free universities can contribute to transforming the relationship between knowledge, university and society, but that these contributions are often invisible within the logic of the dominant institutional systems. Conceptualising the projects as struggles for autonomy renders these contributions visible and valuable for educational reformers working both within and independently of the university.

Author(s):  
Holden Thorp ◽  
Buck Goldstein

The role of faculty forms the heart of the university in terms of its scholarship, patient care, and teaching. It is important that the university and the faculty rededicate themselves to outstanding teaching; the erosion of teaching by tenured faculty is contributing to the strain in the relationship with the public. Tenure, academic freedom, and shared governance are all indispensable concepts in the functioning of a great university that are mysterious to those outside the academy. Communicating the importance of these concepts is a critical need for higher education.


2019 ◽  
Vol 35 (65) ◽  
pp. 18-30
Author(s):  
Cristian Bedoya Dorado ◽  
Mónica García-Solarte ◽  
Juan Sebastián Peña-Zúñiga ◽  
Steven Alejandro Piñeros Buriticá

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.


Author(s):  
MOROZ S.,

За результатами аналізу відповідей студентів з Європейськогопростору вищої освіти було з’ясовано думку респондентів щодо місця таролі держави у забезпеченні контролю за якістю надання освітніх послугзакладом вищої освіти. Розглянуто особливості взаємовідносинінституту держави та інституції університету в контекстізабезпечення якості вищої освіти. Крім того, в статті обґрунтованонапрями вдосконалення змісту та практики використання механізмівдержавного управління якістю вищої освіти, а також визначенопріоритети використання суб’єктами державного управління окремихметодів впливу на систему забезпечення якості вищої освіти в Україні. Basing on the results of survey of answers of students from the Europeanhigher education space, there was determined an opinion of respondents as fora place and role of state in provision quality control of educational services ofhigher educational institutes. The features of the relationship between theInstitute of state and the institutes of the University in the context of provisionof higher education quality. In addition, the article substantiates the directionsof improving the content and practice of usage of mechanisms of statemanagement of the higher education quality, as well as determined thepriorities for the subjects of public administration to use certain methods ofinfluence on the system of quality assurance of higher education in Ukraine.


Author(s):  
Ekaterina A. Smirnova

The article considers government measures to establish professorial disciplinary court at higher education institutions of the capital (the court conducted its work from August 27, 1902 to February 22, 1917), the work of the commission on the development of regulations for this body, and the main normative legal acts to implement it. The article examines the issues of the activity of the professorial disciplinary court and the relationship between the participants of this disciplinary system: students, professors, and the authorities. The students who appeared before the professorial disciplinary court were accused of violation of the norms of administrative law of their educational institution, and in accordance with the university charter and the rules of the university, they had to abide by the decision of the court. Professors were in the same position of dependence: membership in the Council of the educational institution obliged them to assume the role of judges. The article explains why the professorial courts did not have the opportunity to become an autonomous body, why the professors themselves did not want to take on the responsibility of judges, and whether all students were hostile to their work. Analyzing the cases of violations which were considered at that time and concerned the rules and order at a university, the author comes to the conclusion that it was not possible to ensure order and create conditions for the restoration of the proper course of academic life by introducing the system of university disciplinary proceedings. The compromise between the authorities and the students, which should have been facilitated by the existence of the professorial court, was not reached. Resistance from students and professors forced the Ministry of Public Education to reconsider the need for the existence of professorial courts and exclude them from the draft of the new university charter.


Author(s):  
Esra Aldhaen

Higher education institutes around the world are facing serious challenges in particular to strategic planning, accreditation, and deriving high-priority operations. Various studies declared that one of the main aspects that is causing higher education institutes a tremendous failure is leadership styles, specifically the random selection of leaders to run the operations to match with the recruitment cycle. In some countries such as the United Kingdom, leaders of the higher education institute or the school within the university must be changed after a specific year handling the position. This change normally impacts the change of leadership styles and strategies, including knowledge management and sharing strategies. This was found to be one of the important factors that could hinder the operations and may lead to failure in implementing the planned targets.


Author(s):  
David Willetts

Universities have a crucial role in the modern world. In England, entrance to universities is by nation-wide competition which means English universities have an exceptional influence on schools--a striking theme of the book. This important book first investigates the university as an institution and then tracks the individual on their journey to and through university. In A University Education, David Willetts presents a compelling case for the ongoing importance of the university, both as one of the great institutions of modern society and as a transformational experience for the individual. The book also makes illuminating comparisons with higher education in other countries, especially the US and Germany. Drawing on his experience as UK Minister for Universities and Science from 2010 to 2014, the author offers a powerful account of the value of higher education and the case for more expansion. He covers controversial issues in which he was involved from access for disadvantaged students to the introduction of L9,000 fees. The final section addresses some of the big questions for the future, such as the the relationship between universities and business, especially in promoting innovation.. He argues that the two great contemporary trends of globalisation and technological innovation will both change the university significantly. This is an authoritative account of English universities setting them for the first time in their new legal and regulatory framework.


2021 ◽  
pp. 174619792098136
Author(s):  
Sansom Milton

In this paper, the role of higher education in post-uprising Libya is analysed in terms of its relationship with transitional processes of democratization and civic development. It begins by contextualising the Libyan uprising within the optimism of the ‘Arab Spring’ transitions in the Middle East. Following this, the relationship between higher education and politics under the Qadhafi regime and in the immediate aftermath of its overthrow is discussed. A case-study of a programme designed to support Tripoli University in contributing towards democratisation will then be presented. The findings of the case-study will be reflected upon to offer a set of recommendations for international actors engaging in political and civic education in conflict-affected settings, in particular in the Middle East.


2007 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 49-57 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian M. Billing

In this article Christian M. Billing considers the relationship between female lament and acts of vengeance in fifth-century Athenian society and its theatre, with particular emphasis on the Hekabe of Euripides. He uses historical evidence to argue that female mourning was held to be a powerfully transgressive force in the classical period; that considerable social tensions existed as a result of the suppression of female roles in traditional funerary practices (social control arising from the move towards democracy and the development of forensic processes as a means of social redress); and that as a piece of transvestite theatre, authored and performed by men to an audience made up largely, if not entirely, of that sex, Euripides' Hekabe demonstrates significant gender-related anxiety regarding the supposedly horrific consequences of allowing women to speak at burials, or to engage in lament as part of uncontrolled funerary ritual. Christian M. Billing is an academic and theatre practitioner working in the fields of ancient Athenian and early modern English and European drama. He has worked extensively as a director and actor and has also taught at a number of universities in the United Kingdom and the USA. He is currently Lecturer in Drama at the University of Hull.


2015 ◽  
Vol 57 (4) ◽  
pp. 429-447 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark P. Bowden ◽  
Subhash Abhayawansa ◽  
John Bahtsevanoglou

Purpose – There is evidence that students who attend Technical and Further Education (TAFE) prior to entering higher education underperform in their first year of study. The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of self-efficacy in understanding the performance of students who completed TAFE in the previous year in a first year subject of microeconomics in a dual sector university in Melbourne, Australia. Design/methodology/approach – The study utilises data collected by surveys of 151 students. Findings – A student’s self-efficacy is positively associated with their marks in a first year subject of microeconomics. However, the relationship between final marks and self-efficacy is negative for those students who attended TAFE in the previous year suggesting that they suffer from the problem of overconfidence. When holding self-efficacy constant, using econometric techniques, TAFE attendance is found to be positively related to final marks. Research limitations/implications – The findings are exploratory (based on a small sample) and lead to a need to conduct cross institutional studies. Practical implications – The research points to the need for early interventions so that TAFE students perform well in their first year of higher education. It also points to potential issues in the development of Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning (VCAL) programs. Originality/value – To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first paper to examine the inter-related impact of attendance at TAFE in the previous year and self-efficacy on the subsequent academic performance of TAFE students.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (12) ◽  
pp. 6724
Author(s):  
Lien Thi Kim Nguyen ◽  
Tom Meng-Yen Lin ◽  
Hoang Phuong Lam

This study examines the role of student co-creation behavior in contributing to student satisfaction, perceived university image, and student positive word of mouth (WOM). Using a sample of 513 students from a Taiwanese university and conducting partial least squares structural equation modeling, the findings indicate that co-creating value is critical to student satisfaction, university image, and positive WOM. The results also show the effect of student satisfaction and university image on student positive WOM. This study confirms the pivotal role of student participation in co-creating value in enhancing satisfaction with the university experience, creating and sustaining a positive image, and building the credibility of the university. This research is particularly important to higher education institutions because it has practical implications for decision-makers, brand managers, and HE marketers who wish to improve understanding of the relationship between the university and students in the process of co-creating value and its outcomes.


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