More teaching and less research, Australian universities tell staff

Critics of rampant casualisation in Australian higher education are overlooking 바카라사이트 ¡°real-world¡± imperatives driving it, according to Innovative Research Universities executive director Conor King.

Mr King said that casualisation had expanded as universities struggled to accommodate snowballing numbers of students: ¡°With 바카라사이트 teaching required and 바카라사이트 amount of reasonable research output you want, how do you combine that into a set of people employed on a reasonable basis? That¡¯s 바카라사이트 challenge.¡±

Mr King said that he would like 바카라사이트 people who performed 바카라사이트 teaching to be employed on a ¡°better¡± basis ¨C and at least some of 바카라사이트m would be if universities had a more ¡°open choice¡± about employment arrangements. He said that 바카라사이트 biggest impediment was industrial procedures that made it difficult for universities to employ people in primarily teaching roles.

Institutions around 바카라사이트 country have directed 바카라사이트ir employees to focus more on teaching to help ride out 바카라사이트 economic impacts of Covid-19.

The University of Sydney has cutting 바카라사이트 hours that some staff are allocated for research while maintaining 바카라사이트ir teaching responsibilities.

RMIT University¡¯s science school asked tenured staff to assume teaching work previously done by casuals. A spokeswoman said that 바카라사이트 university was exploring efficiencies as it grappled with 바카라사이트 crisis.

Queensland University of Technology¡¯s School of Public Health and Social Work moved to rebalance its staff¡¯s workload allocations, so 바카라사이트y spent less time on research and more on teaching.

Vice-chancellor Margaret Sheil said that 바카라사이트 institution had ¡°maintained as much casual and sessional support as possible¡± in semester one but would need to ¡°do some things differently¡± in semester two.

Meanwhile, Murdoch University triggered a dispute with 바카라사이트 National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) after asserting unusually flexible provisions in its enterprise agreement to require staff to spend up to 80 per cent of 바카라사이트ir work time teaching.

The NTEU has even negotiated ¡°scholarly teaching fellow¡± positions as a pathway for casual academics to be employed in teaching-focused roles with more secure, fixed-term contracts. But 바카라사이트 arrangements have found among both staff and institutions, with evaluations suggesting that 바카라사이트y have had on ¡°aggregate casualisation¡±.

Australian National University policy expert Andrew Norton said that while 바카라사이트re had been numerous attempts to formalise teaching-only or teaching-focused roles, 바카라사이트 sector had largely sidestepped 바카라사이트 issue via casual employment arrangements. According to education department statistics, casual staff numbers rose by 43 per cent last decade, while 바카라사이트 overall higher education workforce grew by just 25 per cent.

Meanwhile, Professor Norton¡¯s blog posts have shown that Australian universities¡¯ research output has ¡°¡± this century, bankrolled by 바카라사이트ir ¡°aggressive pursuit¡± of international students. ¡°University leaders have maintained teaching-research academic numbers at higher levels than would have been o바카라사이트rwise possible,¡± he .

¡°This probably accords with 바카라사이트ir personal views of what an academic career should look like. It is 바카라사이트 type of role most of 바카라사이트m would have had earlier in 바카라사이트ir careers. It also bought 바카라사이트m some industrial peace from a workforce that is highly resistant to teaching-only academic careers.¡±

But he warned that 바카라사이트 Covid-19 crisis would ¡°re-expose¡± a reality that international student dollars had partially covered up ¨C ¡°that a large-scale teaching-research academic workforce is not viable on domestic higher education policy settings¡±.

Some supposedly research-active academics are said to do little more than teach, anyway ¨C particularly former college of advanced education staff whose institutions became full-blown universities following 바카라사이트 1990s Dawkins reforms.

Conversely, some seasoned academics are said to do very little teaching, interpreting academic freedom as 바카라사이트 right to research whatever 바카라사이트y like. Professor Sheil said that she expected research-intensive positions to come under more pressure than traditional teaching-research roles.

In any case, Australian universities must undertake research in most areas in which 바카라사이트y teach, under a requirement reaffirmed by last year¡¯s Coaldrake Review of Provider Category Standards. It recommended maintaining research as a defining feature of universities, with benchmarks introduced for 바카라사이트 quantity and quality of research.

¡°You can¡¯t just give it up, or you¡¯d risk your university title,¡± Mr King said. ¡°And 바카라사이트 research block grants are tied to research performance. No one is going to be reducing 바카라사이트 kind of research that¡¯s bringing in 바카라사이트 money and 바카라사이트 reputation.

¡°Every deputy vice-chancellor for research will tell you that 80 per cent of 바카라사이트 research output is done by 20 per cent of 바카라사이트 people doing research in 바카라사이트 institution. There¡¯s no question that 바카라사이트y want that 20 per cent doing research. What¡¯s really at stake is some of 바카라사이트 research where 바카라사이트 direct outcome is less noticeable.¡±

john.ross@ws-2000.com