Publication Date: Jan 2019
RRP: $29.95
ISBN: 9781925835038
Format: Paperback
Size: 135mm x 216mm
Pages: 240
Category: Education

The Good University

What universities actually do and why it's time for radical change

Raewyn Connell


‘She has managed brilliantly to sum up in eight chapters the main problems that the global/neoliberal world throws up for universities within the rich Global North and the developing Global South.’ University World News

‘Raewyn Connell’s case for the good university will resonate with the people who do the work to make education and research happen, who care about the students and their colleagues and know their responsibility to the public who rightly expect so much from our universities.’ Jeannie Rea, Immediate Past President, National Tertiary Education Union


The higher education industry might seem like it’s booming, with over 200 million students in universities and colleges worldwide and funds flowing in like never before. But the truth is that these institutions have never been unhappier places to work. Corporate-style management, cost-cutting governments, mobilisations by angry students and strikes by disgruntled staff have all taken their toll — in almost every country around the world. It’s no wonder that there is talk of ‘universities in crisis.’

But what should a good university look like? In this inspiring new work, Raewyn Connell asks us to consider just that, challenging us to rethink the fundamentals of what universities do. Drawing on the examples offered by pioneering universities and educational reformers around the world, Connell outlines a practical vision for how our universities can become both more engaging and more productive places, driven by social good rather than profit, and helping to build fairer societies.

Chapters

1. Making the knowledge: research
2. Learning and teaching
3. The collective intellectual: university workers
4. The global economy of knowledge
5. Privilege machines
6. The university business
7. Universities of hope
8. The good university


Raewyn Connell

Raewyn Connell is Professor Emerita at the University of Sydney and is one of Australia’s leading social scientists. Her work has been translated into nineteen languages, and she is a long-term participant in the labour and peace movements. Her recent books...
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