Academic freedom in a democratic South Africa : essays and interviews on higher education and the humanities / John Higgins.

By:

Higgins, John, 1954- [author.]

Material type: Text

TextPublication details: Johannesburg : Wits University Press, 2013.Description: xvi, 272 pages ; 22 cmISBN:

9781868147519 (pbk.)

Subject(s):

DDC classification:

23 371.104968 HIG 004453

Online resources:

Table of contents

Contents:

Part One - Essays. Part Two - Interviews.

Summary: "How do we understand academic freedom today? Does it still have relevance in the face of the managerial and ideological pressures which are reconfiguring higher education institutions? And what about the humanities? In an increasingly market-driven world, what do the humanities have to offer society? These two sets of questions provide the guiding threads of related enquiries that make up this hard-hitting and controversial study. Academic Freedom in a Democratic South Africa argues that the principle of supporting and extending open intellectual enquiry is essential to realising the full public value of higher education, and that in this task, the humanities and the forms of argument and analysis that they embody have a crucial role to play. The book examines the troubled history of academic freedom in South Africa starting with key debates raised by the 1987 O'Brien Affair through to post-apartheid government policy where it figures as an inconvenient ideal, that is paid lip service to but is neglected in practice ; questions received ideas of institutional culture and managerial authority ; and argues for a better understanding of the critical thinking arising from advanced forms of literacy made available by the humanities. Discussion of the place of the humanities in furthering democracy is deepened and extended in a series of interviews with three key figures from the critical humanities : Terry Eagleton talks about the deforming effects of managerial policies in British universities, Edward W. Said argues for the democratising potential of the humanities and Jakes Gerwel discusses the importance of the humanities in both the anti-apartheid struggle, and for contemporary South Africa. The volume as a whole ends with a consideration of the most recent challenges facing academic freedom and the humanities."--Publisher.

Tags from this library: No tags from this library for this title. Log in to add tags.

Average rating: 0.0 (0 votes)

Holdings
Item type	Current library	Call number	Status	Date due	Barcode
Book	Indian Institute for Human Settlements, New Delhi	371.104968 HIG 004453 (Browse shelf(Opens below))	Available		004453

Browsing Indian Institute for Human Settlements, Bangalore shelves Close shelf browser (Hides shelf browser)

Previous							No cover image available No cover image available	Next
Previous	371.102 WHI 004424 The ten-minute inservice :	371.1020973 ARC 009121 Better feedback for better teaching :	371.1024 DAV TESF108 Creating multi-sensory environments : practical ideas for teaching and learning /	371.104968 HIG 004453 Academic freedom in a democratic South Africa :	371.141240941 COW TESF105 Children's learning in primary schools : a guide for teaching assistants /	371.19 SCU 017738 Families, schools, and communities : building partnerships for educating children /	371.19 WOR 013631 Worlds of fear :	Next

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Part One - Essays.
Part Two - Interviews.

"How do we understand academic freedom today? Does it still have relevance in the face of the managerial and ideological pressures which are reconfiguring higher education institutions? And what about the humanities? In an increasingly market-driven world, what do the humanities have to offer society? These two sets of questions provide the guiding threads of related enquiries that make up this hard-hitting and controversial study. Academic Freedom in a Democratic South Africa argues that the principle of supporting and extending open intellectual enquiry is essential to realising the full public value of higher education, and that in this task, the humanities and the forms of argument and analysis that they embody have a crucial role to play. The book examines the troubled history of academic freedom in South Africa starting with key debates raised by the 1987 O'Brien Affair through to post-apartheid government policy where it figures as an inconvenient ideal, that is paid lip service to but is neglected in practice ; questions received ideas of institutional culture and managerial authority ; and argues for a better understanding of the critical thinking arising from advanced forms of literacy made available by the humanities. Discussion of the place of the humanities in furthering democracy is deepened and extended in a series of interviews with three key figures from the critical humanities : Terry Eagleton talks about the deforming effects of managerial policies in British universities, Edward W. Said argues for the democratising potential of the humanities and Jakes Gerwel discusses the importance of the humanities in both the anti-apartheid struggle, and for contemporary South Africa. The volume as a whole ends with a consideration of the most recent challenges facing academic freedom and the humanities."--Publisher.

There are no comments on this title.

to post a comment.