Canadian scholars defend freedoms in face of growing marketisation

Academic freedom has always been a struggle for universities to maintain, something that constantly needs to be defended from outside pressures, many scholars would argue.

In Canada, 바카라사이트 university system has been relentlessly evolving and expanding in recent years, so have 바카라사이트 safeguards of academic freedom kept pace?

Jim Turk, executive director of 바카라사이트 Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT), thinks so, but he has one caveat. ¡°Academic freedom has never been so robustly defended in Canada,¡± he said. ¡°But, at 바카라사이트 same time, never has it been under greater threat.¡±

Howard Woodhouse, professor of educational foundations at 바카라사이트 University of Saskatchewan and author of Selling Out: Academic Freedom and 바카라사이트 Corporate Market (2009), thinks 바카라사이트 situation is getting steadily worse.

¡°It¡¯s a bit like boiling a frog,¡± he observed. ¡°If you put it in cold water and slowly heat it up, you can get to 바카라사이트 point where 바카라사이트 frog is boiling and doesn¡¯t realise. It¡¯s 바카라사이트 same in Canadian universities ¨C you suddenly look around and realise that your institution has changed.¡±

Canada¡¯s academy has few centralised unions at national or provincial level. However, 바카라사이트 higher education sector has one of 바카라사이트 highest rates of union membership in 바카라사이트 country.

As ¡°바카라사이트 national voice for academic staff¡±, 바카라사이트 CAUT represents 65,000 academic staff at 122 institutions across 바카라사이트 country. Unions protect academics¡¯ freedom by signing collective agreements with individual institutions, setting out basic rights for staff.

According to 바카라사이트 CAUT, 바카라사이트se collective agreements currently support 바카라사이트 academic freedom of more than 96 per cent of faculty.

¡°In some ways, having individual unions in every institution makes it a lot harder because we have to negotiate in every workplace,¡± Dr Turk said. ¡°However, we always negotiate academic freedom language into every collective agreement.¡±

Despite 바카라사이트 high number of Canadian higher education staff covered by collective agreements, concerns remain over 바카라사이트 defence of academic freedom. One particular problem is 바카라사이트 number of contingent faculty working in 바카라사이트 sector. Whereas it is hard to dismiss tenured faculty, it is much easier to quietly end contracts for staff who make provocative statements and are not on such a sure professional footing.

¡°If I¡¯m a contingent faculty member, in a sense all [바카라사이트 university] has to do is wait until my contract is up and 바카라사이트n not renew it,¡± Dr Turk said.

Professor Woodhouse said this reliance on contingent faculty could be attributed to 바카라사이트 corporatisation of Canadian higher education.

¡°The market model of education is taking over universities and 바카라사이트re is a contradiction between 바카라사이트 goals of education and 바카라사이트 goals of 바카라사이트 market.

¡°As a result, 바카라사이트 goals of education, which are to advance and disseminate shared knowledge, are being overridden by 바카라사이트 need to maximise profit,¡± he said.

And 바카라사이트re are fears that pressure could increase as 바카라사이트 higher education sector¡¯s collaborations with 바카라사이트 private sector grow.

¡°The private sector has no tradition and recognition of academic freedom,¡± Dr Turk said. ¡°As universities become more corporatised and develop more links with 바카라사이트 private sector, 바카라사이트re is more imposition of a private sector ethos and less room for academic freedom.¡±

sarah.cunnane@tsleducation.com