Reconstructing Relationships in Higher Education


Book Description

Drawing on two international research projects, Reconstructing Relationships in Higher Education: Challenging Agendas looks behind formal organisational structures and workforce patterns to consider the significance of relationships, particularly at local and informal levels, for the aspirations and motivations of academic faculty. In practice, and day-to-day, such relationships can overlay formal reporting lines and therefore inform, to a greater or lesser extent, the overall relationship between individuals and institutions. As a result, from an institutional point of view, relationships may be a critical factor in the realisation of strategy, and can in practice have a disproportionate effect, both positively and negatively. However, little attention has been paid to the role that they play in understanding the interface between individuals and institutions at a time of ongoing diversification of the workforce. For instance, they may provide space, which in turn may be implicit and discretionary, in which negotiation and influence can occur. In this context, Reconstructing Relationships in Higher Education also reviews ways in which institutions are responding to more agentic approaches by academic faculty, particularly younger cohorts, and the significance of local managers, mentors and academic networks in supporting individuals and promoting career development. The text, which examines the dynamics of working relationships at local and institutional level, will be of interest to senior management teams, practising managers at all levels, academic faculty, and researchers in the field of higher education.




Reconstructing Identities in Higher Education


Book Description

First Published in 2013. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.




Reconstructing Undergraduate Education


Book Description

This book is designed to introduce professors and administrators in higher education to the philosophical, theoretical, and research support for using a constructivist perspective on learning to guide the reconstruction of undergraduate education. It presents an original framework for systematically linking educational philosophy and learning theories to their implications for teaching practice. In this volume, Innes summarizes the sources he found most useful in developing his own set of teaching principles and course development process, and makes an argument for a particular perspective on learning--transactional constructivism--which is consistent with the philosophy of John Dewey and supported by current theory and research in learning science. Transactional constructivism, a combined approach, builds on the strengths of two competing views: psychological constructivism and the sociocultural perspective. Reconstructing Undergraduate Education: Using Learning Science to Design Effective Courses: *overviews the philosophical and theoretical underpinnings of the teaching model that is the focus of the volume; *presents a summary of Dewey's educational philosophy and connects his work to current theory and research in learning science; *examines psychological constructivism, one of the basic positions within the range of learning theories that takes a constructivist perspective; *offers a case study example of a course designed and taught from this perspective; *reviews the sociocultural and the transactional constructivist perspectives; *explores the quality of dialogue and disciplinary discourse in the classroom--an issue that is critical to the success of models derived from a transactional constructivist perspective on learning; and *explores broader issues related to reform in higher education. This volume is a vital resource for all professionals involved in undergraduate education.




Changing European Academics


Book Description

European academics have been at the centre of ongoing higher education reforms, as changes in university governance and funding have led to changes in academic work and life. Discussing the academic profession, and most importantly, its increasing stratification across Europe, Changing European Academics explores the drivers of these changes as well as their current and expected results. This comparative study of social stratification, work patterns and research productivity: Examines eleven national, higher education systems across Europe (Austria, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Italy, The Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Switzerland and the United Kingdom) Provides a panoramic view of the European academic profession Confronts misconceptions of academic work and life with compelling results and detailed analyses Discusses new dilemmas inherent to the changing social and economic environments of higher education A thoughtful and comprehensive study of the changing academic profession in Europe, this book will be of interest to higher education practitioners, managers and policy makers, both in Europe and globally. Changing European Academics will benefit anyone whose work relates to changing academic institutions and changing academic careers.




Reconstructing the Campus


Book Description

The Civil War transformed American life. Not only did thousands of men die on battlefields and millions of slaves become free; cultural institutions reshaped themselves in the context of the war and its aftermath. The first book to examine the Civil War's immediate and long-term impact on higher education, Reconstructing the Campus begins by tracing college communities' responses to the secession crisis and the outbreak of war. Students made supplies for the armies or left campus to fight. Professors joined the war effort or struggled to keep colleges open. The Union and Confederacy even took over some campuses for military use. Then moving beyond 1865, the book explores the war's long-term effects on colleges. Michael David Cohen argues that the Civil War and the political and social conditions the war created prompted major reforms, including the establishment of a new federal role in education. Reminded by the war of the importance of a well-trained military, Congress began providing resources to colleges that offered military courses and other practical curricula. Congress also, as part of a general expansion of the federal bureaucracy that accompanied the war, created the Department of Education to collect and publish data on education. For the first time, the U.S. government both influenced curricula and monitored institutions. The war posed special challenges to Southern colleges. Often bereft of students and sometimes physically damaged, they needed to rebuild. Some took the opportunity to redesign themselves into the first Southern universities. They also admitted new types of students, including the poor, women, and, sometimes, formerly enslaved blacks. Thus, while the Civil War did great harm, it also stimulated growth, helping, especially in the South, to create our modern system of higher education.




Conceptualising the Digital University


Book Description

Despite the increasing ubiquity of the term, the concept of the digital university remains diffuse and indeterminate. This book examines what the term 'digital university' should encapsulate and the resulting challenges, possibilities and implications that digital technology and practice brings to higher education. Critiquing the current state of definition of the digital university construct, the authors propose a more holistic, integrated account that acknowledges the inherent diffuseness of the concept. The authors also question the extent to which digital technologies and practices can allow us to re-think the location of universities and curricula; and how they can extend higher education as a public good within the current wider political context. Framed inside a critical pedagogy perspective, this volume debates the role of the university in fostering the learning environments, skills and capabilities needed for critical engagement, active open participation and reflection in the digital age. This pioneering volume will be of interest and value to students and scholars of digital education, as well as policy makers and practitioners.




Researching Social Inequalities in Higher Education


Book Description

Drawing from original research and recent developments in theory, Researching Social Inequalities in Higher Education brings together insights from multiple national contexts and phases to consider a diverse range of equity issues in higher education. Authored by current and recently graduated PhD students, chapters examine the socioeconomic, ethnic and gender equalities at play within each of the following components: • access to higher education • the student experience • the academic workforce An essential read for anyone researching higher education, or wishing to address social inequalities within higher education, this volume unpacks how higher education is becoming more accessible, inclusive and beneficial to an increasingly diverse population of students and staff.







Rebuilding Higher Education Systems Impacted by Crises: Navigating Traumatic Events, Disasters, and More


Book Description

The resilience and adaptability of higher education systems are under unprecedented strain. From natural disasters to pandemics, and economic crises to political turmoil, universities and colleges worldwide have grappled with a myriad of crises that disrupt their core missions of teaching, research, and community engagement. As we find ourselves at the crossroads of these tumultuous times, the imperative to reconstruct and revitalize higher education systems becomes increasingly evident. Rebuilding Higher Education Systems Impacted by Crises: Navigating Traumatic Events, Disasters, and More is a pioneering work that addresses the critical issues surrounding the restoration of higher education systems in the wake of various crises. This book serves as a roadmap for educators, administrators, policymakers, and stakeholders who share a commitment to preserving and advancing higher education, even in the face of adversity. The 21st century has witnessed a rapid escalation in the frequency and severity of crises affecting higher education institutions. These crises span from the abrupt shift to online learning necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic to the enduring ramifications of climate change on campus infrastructure. Additional factors such as financial pressures, evolving demographics, and the ever-changing technological landscape further complicate the challenge. This book embarks on a deep exploration of these challenges and offers practical solutions, making it an indispensable resource for anyone vested in the future of higher education.




The Politics of Diversity in Music Education


Book Description

This open access book examines the political structures and processes that frame and produce understandings of diversity in and through music education. Recent surges in nationalist, fundamentalist, protectionist and separatist tendencies highlight the imperative for music education to extend beyond nominal policy agendas or wholly celebratory diversity discourses. Bringing together high-level theorisation of the ways in which music education upholds or unsettles understandings of society and empirical analyses of the complex situations that arise when negotiating diversity in practice, the chapters in this volume explore the politics of inquiry in research; examine music teachers’ navigations of the shifting political landscapes of society and state; extend conceptualisations of diversity in music education beyond familiar boundaries; and critically consider the implications of diversity for music education leadership. Diversity is thus not approached as a label applied to certain individuals or musical repertoires, but as socially organized difference, produced and manifest in various ways as part of everyday relations and interactions. This compelling collection serves as an invitation to ongoing reflexive inquiry; to deliberate the politics of diversity in a fast-changing and pluralist world; and together work towards more informed and ethically sound understandings of how diversity in music education policy, practice, and research is framed and conditioned both locally and globally.