Search

In an era of rapid change and increasing societal demands, the role of universities as knowledge producers and catalysts for change has come under scrutiny. This open access book offers a fresh perspective on the significance of universities in society, shedding light on how their knowledge can truly matter beyond academia. Drawing upon insightful inquiries from both the Swedish and international contexts, this volume delves into the multifaceted interactions between universities and various knowledge users, emphasizing the need for scholars to reflect on how their knowledge can become useful and applicable to wider society. Organized into three compelling themes, collaboration, engagement, and impact, this book explores the concept of'mattering'. Together and jointly, they point at the fluid movement of scholars and scholarly knowledge across academic, political, and public spaces, and the intentional actions of scientists to leverage their expertise for real-worldimpact. Essential reading for social science and humanities scholars, university management professionals, and individuals keen on a critical understanding of the evolving role of universities, this volume offers a comprehensive examination of how universities have mattered, continue to matter, and can shape the future.

In response to student demands reflecting the urgency of societal and ecological problems, universities are making a burgeoning effort to infuse environmental sustainability efforts with social justice. In this edited volume, we extend calls for higher education leaders to revamp programming, pedagogy, and research that problematically reproduce dominant techno-scientific and managerial conceptualizations of sustainability. Students, staff and community partners, especially those from historically underrepresented and marginalized groups, are at the forefront of calls for critical sustainabilities programming, education and collaborations. Their work centers themes of power relations, (in)equity, accessibility, and social (in)justice to study the interrelationships between humans, non-humans, and the environment. Their voices, perspectives and lived experiences are provocations for institutions to think and act more expansively. This book amplifies some of these voices and bottom up efforts toward a more critical approach to sustainability on campus. We ground our recommendations on findings from campus-wide surveys that were taken by over 8,000 undergraduates in 2016, 2019, and 2022. Furthermore, we share the design principles and lessons learned from several innovative, award-winning initiatives designed to foster critical sustainabilities at UC Santa Cruz.

This book develops a progressive program of engagement with issues, problems and critical thinking which helps universities and students understand and engage with some of the key issues of our time. It focuses on curriculum concerns, and presents a sustained and critical analysis and dialogue about knowledge, culture and ways of seeing important issues. This book provides critical and analytical insights into the importance of the emergence of mass higher education into public awareness. It explores what is termed ‘contested knowledge'as part of modern students'experiences and expectations. By broadcasting some of the future prospects for a democratic university, especially in relation to its communities, it highlights the need to grasp the significance of global change and instability in teaching and learning, and how an adequate curriculum in higher education can be constructed to address the issues that arise.

This open access book offers unique and novel views on the social innovation landscape, tools, practices, pedagogies, and research in the context of higher education. International, multi-disciplinary academics and industry leaders present new developments, research evidence, and practice expertise on social innovation in higher education institutions (HEIs), across academic and professional disciplines.The book includes a selected set of peer-reviewed chapters presenting different perspectives against which relevant actors can identify and analyse social innovation in HEIs. The volume demonstrates how HEIs can respond to societal challenges, support positive social change, and contribute to the development of international public policy discourse. It answers the question ‘how does the present higher education system, in different countries, promote social innovation and create social change and impact'. In answering this question, the book identifies factors driving success as well as obstacles. Furthermore, it examines how higher education innovation assists societal challenges and investigates the benefits of effective social innovation engagement by HEIs.The interdisciplinary approach of the volume makes it a must-read for scholars, students, policy-makers, and practitioners of economics, education, business and management, political science, and sociology interested in a better understanding of social innovation.

This book celebrates the contributions of John Weidman and his colleagues to the understanding of student socialization in higher education. It includes innovative chapters reflecting new approaches to higher education student socialization with respect to students of color, gender, STEM, and students in higher education systems outside the USA. Specifically, the book examines socialization between and within in a range of groups, including national, international and minority students, parents, doctoral students, early career faculty, and scholarly practitioners. The book assesses methodological approaches and suggests directions for reformulating theory and practice. Using sociological perspectives to address issues and concerns at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, the book gives renewed life to the college impact literature. It includes revisions and expansions of the original Weidman frameworks based on the synthesis of existing research with new work reflectingunique perspectives by a variety of authors. John Weidman has been an indisputable force in the study and understanding of student socialization in higher education. This new book by Weidman and his coeditor, Linda DeAngelo, represents an undeniably significant and welcomed expansion of the original “Weidman model” of student socialization. In updating and revising the original model, chapter authors give attention to various contemporary issues such as student diversity, gender differences, early career experiences, and internationalism. Whether one samples only some of the articles that constitute this book or reads all of them, the professional payoff will be substantial. Kenneth A. Feldman, Professor of Sociology, Stony Brook University John Weidman has made a number of groundbreaking contributions to our understanding of student socialization in postsecondary education. This book, edited with Linda DeAngelo, brings together a group of fine scholars whose contributions will push our understanding even further. It is a significant addition to the college impact literature. Ernest T. Pascarella, Petersen Chair in Higher Education, University of Iowa

This book presents a social-psychology model delineating the factors that may influence in an altruistic manner sustainable behaviour (SB) of students, faculty and administrators in four higher education institutions (HEI) with very different economic and social characteristics. It presents the areas where these individuals work (education and community management), and in which of them education for sustainability is promoted, focusing on four alternative methods of learning: play, art, group therapy, and personnel management. The book is intended for bachelors and graduated students, as well as researchers in social psychology, environmental psychology, conservation psychology, environmental education, education for sustainable development, cross-cultural psychology, and social sciences.

With higher education around the world in a period of extreme flux, this volume explores its underlying philosophy, a core element of the ongoing debate. Offering a diverse range of perspectives from an international selection of renowned scholars of higher education, the book is full of imaginative insights that add up to a substantive contribution to the discussion.As universities attempt to adapt to a new environment characterized by stiff international competition, networked remote learning, burgeoning student numbers and comparative performance assessment, how we conceptualize the purpose and ethos of our higher learning institutions is more important than ever. This publication features a multitude of distinctive approaches that illuminate potential solutions to the complex issues universities must grapple with in these uncertain times. Rather than espousing a singular philosophical approach, the editors have assembled views from across the spectrum and from differing national contexts, representing a multidisciplinary response to the situation. This collection of papers aims thus to inspire fresh developments in the way we think about the complexities of and options available to, higher education.

Globalization, the information age, and the rise of the knowledge-based economy are significantly transforming the way we acquire, disseminate, and transform knowledge. And, as a result, knowledge production is becoming closer and more directly linked to economic competitiveness. This evolution is also putting new and urgent demands on academic institutions to adjust to the changing needs of society and economy. In particular, there is growing pressure on the institutions of higher education and research in developed economies to find and affirm their new role in the national innovation system. Their counterparts in developing economies need to define their role in supporting emerging structures of the innovation system. This book examines the role of universities and national research institutes in social and economic development processes. Featuring contributions that showcase initiatives and innovations from around the world, including China, Eastern Europe, Latin America, Scandinavia, Southeast Asia, sub-Saharan Africa, and Western Europe, it offers timely insight that will be of interest to policymakers, university administrators, economic and social leaders, and researchers alike.

This book analyses higher education from cultural perspectives and also to reflect on the uses of intellectual devices developed in the cultural studies of higher education over the last decades. The first part of the book presents fresh perspectives to integrate cultural studies in higher education with wider societal processes. Professor William G. Tierney speaks about trust and culture in higher education, whereas Professor Imanol Ordorika opens a political perspective to higher education institutions. The second part of the book studies the internal life of higher education. Relying on a variety of cultural perspectives, the chapters explore the actual day-to-day practices taking place in higher education, ranging from student socialisation, student consumerism, tensions in combining academic and market-oriented targets in knowledge production to the formation of academic identities in different disciplinary and organisational cultures. The focus in the third part of the book is to use cultural perspectives developed in previous studies on disciplinary and organisational cultures as a framework to understand a variety of processes and reforms taking place at the institutional level of high education. The chapters in this part of the book analyse the Bologna Process, the evolution of scientific fields in American universities, organisational cultures in Chinese post-merger universities, and doctoral education and cooperation with industry.