Australian universities, for better or worse, have embraced international rankings, especially those published each year such as the Times Higher Education World University Rankings, Academic Ranking of World Universities 2020 (the Shanghai Ranking) and the QS World University Rankings released this month. But there are now signs the influence of rankings on Australian higher education is on the wane. […] … learn more→
Blog Archives
Australian universities may be at a turning point in the rankings chase. So what next?
Is critical management studies still welcome in business schools?
For the past 30 years, there has been an uneasy truce in UK business schools between those who think they’re training the next generation of business managers and those who see their mission as academic analysis and research into capitalism and the wider political economy. The latter approach, known as critical management studies (CMS), became […] … learn more→
Hip-hop professor looks to open doors with world’s first peer-reviewed rap album
As a rap artist who is also a professor of hip-hop, I always make it a point to have my songs reviewed by other artists I admire. So when I released “i used to love to dream” – my latest album – in 2020, I turned to Phonte Coleman, one half of the trailblazing rap group Little […] … learn more→
‘God, I miss fruit!’ 40% of students at Australian universities may be going without food
The COVID-19 pandemic led to food insecurity among students making headlines in Australia and the United States. But even before the pandemic, increasing numbers of students were reporting they sometimes went without food. Rising tuition and living costs combined with declining state support for students and privatised food outlets on campuses have increased students’ food insecurity in places as […] … learn more→
Finding time to write
Recently I’ve been focused on goal setting and planning. It’s down to lockdown I think and the need to be realistic about what can be achieved. One of the things I’ve not mentioned is time. In particular, writing time. I like the approach to writing time developed by the sociologist Eviatar Zerubavel in his book The clockwork […] … learn more→
Post-Covid, universities must embrace work-integrated learning
Universities are under more pressure than ever to make student employability a top priority. The pressure is coming from multiple sources: parents, employers, governments and, most of all, students themselves. In the US, for example, about 85 per cent of entering college freshman report that career placement is one of their top motivations for pursuing […] … learn more→
‘A lot of us can relate to struggling to keep on top of everything.’ This is what mature-age students need from online higher education
“I completed high school 20 years ago and wanted a ‘little break’ before furthering my study. That ‘little break’ was extended as my family grew. Life happened, and I never quite found the right time to keep my promise to myself to go to uni – until now!” “This is my first teaching period in […] … learn more→
The academic freedom of teachers is she in danger on American campuses?
Never have American universities been so taken to task in French public debates. Rare were the speeches, during the controversy generated by the recent remarks of the Minister of Higher Education on the radical research currents in the French university, which did not refer to the United States by them. ” Demonizing “. Indeed, according to a good number […] … learn more→
Universities must pay the legal costs of exposing their mistakes
Simon was a final-year undergraduate accused by his UK university of buying an essay from someone else. Despite maintaining his innocence, he was expelled. He approached a barrister, who instructed an expert in forensic linguistics. Armed with a detailed report, the student appealed and was reinstated. The university accepted that he had, in fact, written […] … learn more→
Academics aren’t content creators, and it’s regressive to make them so
The transition was never planned this way. First the course material went from print room to Learning Management System, and we said: “Great!” Then the lectures were recorded and available online for students who might have been sick that week, and we said: “Great!” Then the students stopped coming to the lectures because they could […] … learn more→
