A university culture centered on the student, not on the faculty or administration. The authority of governing is gained through the existence of levels of participation and cooperation in decision-making. The picture above shows the signature ceremony of the Magna Charta Universitatum signed in Piazza Maggiore at Bologna on September 18, 1988, by 388 Rectors of worldwide main […]
Is Higher Education Centered on the Student or the Faculty?
- November 9, 2021
- Education, Educational Philosophy, Higher Education, HigherEd Theory & Praxis, University Policy
The backdrop to many university crises has been precisely these dichotomies: the crisis of the relationship between the individual who teaches and the individual who learns, between the member of the ‘academic ethos’ and the member of the ‘social ethos’ and also between the individual who teaches and the one who administers. The academic ethos […]
What Is The Purpose of Higher Education: Knowledge or Utility?
What is the purpose of higher education – knowledge or utility? Such a question encourages a false dichotomy since both are needed for people’s genuine education; never one at the expense of the other. Higher education institutions, primarily universities, must have a two-pronged approach in the search for knowledge, to develop the highest degree of […]
Dogmatism Does Not Belong To University Culture
- December 21, 2016
- Education, Educational Philosophy, Educational Theory, Ethics, HigherEd Theory & Praxis, University Policy
Dogmatism and rigidity in the university are sources of intolerance, authoritarianism and conflict. Moreover, flexibility is not a synonym of weakness; on the contrary, it is a symbol of spiritual fortitude that grows when it rectifies mistakes and discovers its own ignorance.
From Terminal Degrees In Higher Education To Lifelong Learning
- April 1, 2014
- Essay, Higher Education, Learning, Lifelong Learning, Social Philosophy, University, University Policy
The most relevant and controversial issue facing the university is one of its «raisons d’être»: formation, the teaching-learning process. The English word ‘formation’ – among other meanings – indicates ‘the act or process of forming’ or ‘the shaping or developing of something’. The word ‘formative’ means ‘having influence in forming or developing’. Similarly, I use the term […]