Academic Freedom in an Age of Conformity : Confronting the Fear of Knowledge / / by Joanna Williams

• Record Nr.: UNINA9910254975803321
• Autore: Williams Joanna
• Pubbl/distr/stampa: London : , : Palgrave Macmillan UK : , : Imprint : Palgrave Macmillan, , 2016
• ISBN: 1-137-51479-5
• Edizione: [1st ed. 2016.]
• Descrizione fisica: 1 online resource (219 p.)
• Collana: Palgrave Critical University Studies, , 2662-7329
• Disciplina: 340
• Soggetti: Higher education; Education and state; Educational sociology; Educational sociology ; Education and sociology; School management and organization; School administration; Political science; Higher Education; Education Policy; Sociology of Education; Administration, Organization and Leadership; Political Science
• Lingua di pubblicazione: Inglese
• Formato: Materiale a stampa
• Livello bibliografico: Monografia
• Note generali: Description based upon print version of record.
• Nota di bibliografia: Includes bibliographical references and index.
• Nota di contenuto: Cover; Contents; Acknowledgements; Introduction; Part I: Academic Freedom Then and Now; 1 Free to Be Critical; 2 Conformity in the Academy; Part II: Knowledge in the Disciplines; 3 Criticality within the Disciplines; 4 Disciplines under Attack; Part III: Beyond Criticism; 5 Uncritical Theory; 6 The Impact of Feminism; 7 From Academic Freedom to Academic Justice; Conclusions; Bibliography; Index
• Sommario/riassunto: Academic freedom is increasingly being threatened by a stifling culture of conformity in higher education that is restricting individual academics, the freedom of academic thought and the progress of ; knowledge – the very foundations upon which academia and universities are built. Once, scholars demanded academic freedom to critique existing knowledge and to pursue new truths. Today, while fondness for the rhetoric of academic freedom remains, it is increasingly criticised as an outdated and elitist concept by students and lecturers alike and called into question by a number of political and intellectual trends such as feminism, critical theory and identity politics. This provocative and compelling book traces the demise of academic freedom within the context of changing ideas about the purpose of the university and the nature of knowledge. The book argues that a challenge to this culture of conformity and censorship and a defence of academic free speech are needed for critique to be possible and for the intellectual project of evaluating existing knowledge and proposing new knowledge to be meaningful. This book is that challenge and a passionate call to arms for the power of academic thought today.