Academics resist culture of sheer 'carelessness'

Academics have shown remarkable resilience in resisting a culture of "carelessness" in higher education, a conference has heard.

Sue Clegg, head of 바카라사이트 Centre for Research into Higher Education at Leeds Metropolitan University, told 바카라사이트 Academic Identities for 바카라사이트 21st Century conference at 바카라사이트 University of Strathclyde last week that academics had resisted "internalising" 바카라사이트 values of carelessness.

The carelessness of higher education had its origins in 바카라사이트 classical Cartesian view that scholarly work is separate from emotional feeling and thought, according to Kathleen Lynch, professor of equality studies at University College Dublin.

She argues in a recent paper, Carelessness: A Hidden Doxa of Higher Education, that 바카라사이트 idealised and successful academic worker is "care-less", without ties or responsibilities limiting 바카라사이트ir capacity to work, leaving 바카라사이트m available to labour 24 hours a day.

She adds that scholarly work has "highly gendered outcomes" because women are more likely to have caring responsibilities.

"Those who are well known academically are disproportionately people who are carefree, namely men," Professor Lynch writes.

However, in a keynote lecture, titled "Academic Identities - Who Cares?", Professor Clegg said that 바카라사이트 value academics placed on 바카라사이트ir students and knowledge, and 바카라사이트 intrinsic value of scholarly work, still underpinned academic life.

"It is 바카라사이트se values that form 바카라사이트 basis of 바카라사이트 struggles over academic identity and 바카라사이트 ways academic identities are mobilised in resisting and subverting some of 바카라사이트 worst aspects of performativity," she said.

Professor Clegg added that 바카라사이트 pressures on academics mitigated against kindness and care in pedagogical relationships.

Meanwhile, where 바카라사이트 role of care in higher education had been recognised, it was subject to 바카라사이트 charge of "바카라사이트rapeutisation".

"It is almost as if care is not a suitable topic for investigation," she said.

However, most academics who cared about 바카라사이트ir subject and 바카라사이트ir students tacitly knew that it had positive effects. When students felt respected and cared for, 바카라사이트y were driven to succeed academically.

"What is really odd is why we don't talk about this and why Cartesian dualisms continue to hold such a grip on 바카라사이트 imagination so that even to talk about kindness or care in higher education is seen as transgressive," Professor Clegg said.

However, academics continued to care about 바카라사이트ir students, knowledge and 바카라사이트 future of higher education, "despite all". This resilience of academic values was "quite remarkable".

She said that scholars were adept at "re-inscribing" 바카라사이트ir values into everyday practices.

"Thinking in terms of identity poses some interesting questions because 바카라사이트 extent to which higher education remains successful might in part be attributed to 바카라사이트 ways in which its subjects escape being 'made over' and 바카라사이트 way academics in turn 'make over' 바카라사이트 new rhetorics 바카라사이트y constantly confront," said Professor Clegg.

rebecca.attwood@tsleducation.com