What is a university? What is the University? How have universities evolved over the centuries? How might they change over the coming decades as the physical and organisational entity most identified with 'higher education' being delivered to over 250 million students? What will be the impact of digital- and distance-learning, of commercial for-profit new entrants to the higher education market, of government austerity, of globalization, of student consumerism? Exploring the origins and the concept, the idea and the ideal, of the university, this Very Short Introduction discusses one of the world's oldest, most resilient, and most adaptable institutions. David Palfreyman and Paul Temple consider the links between universities and the economy, and the role of universities within society. Highlighting some of the key questions surrounding the position of universities, they ask how the university can be politically accountable for its taxpayer funding, if it needs to be autonomous to function effectively as a public good. Are professors professional enough in their teaching practices at a time that increasing tuition fees transform students more and more into consumers? And just what does 'academic freedom' for university faculties really entail? ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.
For centuries, the idea of collegiality has been integral to the British understanding of higher education. This book examines how its values are being restructured in response to the 21st-century pressures of massification and managerialism.
Much of our writing re?ects a long-term commitment to the analysis of the col- gial tradition in higher education. This commitment is re?ected most strongly in Oxford and the Decline of the Collegiate Tradition (2000), which we are pleased to say will re-appear as a considerably revised second edition (Oxford, The Collegiate University: Con?ict, Consensus and Continuity) to be published by Springer in the near future. To some extent this volume, The Collegial Tradition in the Age of Mass Higher Education, is a reaction to the charge that our work has been too narrowly focussed upon the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge (Oxbridge). Not surpr- ingly, you would expect us to reject that critique, while responding constructively to it. The focus may be narrow, and although the relative presence and, more arguably, the in?uence of Oxford and Cambridge may have declined in English higher e- cation, they remain important national universities. Moreover, as the plethora of so-called world-class higher education league tables would have us believe, they also have a powerful international status. This, however, is essentially a defensive response dependent upon the alleged reputations of the two universities. This book is intent on making a more substantial argument. To examine the c- legial tradition in higher education means much more than presenting a nostalgic look at the past.
The global economic crisis has required governments across the globe to reconsider their spending priorities. It is within this demanding economic context that higher education systems have been steadily restructured with in many ways the English model in the vanguard of change. This book focuses in particular upon the policy of removing almost entirely public support for the payment of student fees. This has emerged from a steady process of change, which has broad political support and is underwritten by the idea that higher education is now seen more as a private than a public, good. As this shift has occurred (not a new innovation but rather a return to what once prevailed as more of a market in English higher education) so the relationship between government and the higher education has evolved with the latter now attempting to steer the development of the system through a state-regulated market. The book has a strong comparative dimension that draws upon US higher education to illustrate both the possible advantages and potential hazards to the marketization strategy. It concludes that any such strategy needs to be accompanied by state regulation if it is to function effectively, particularly to stimulate price competition, encourage innovation from new entrants, and provide consumer protection for students paying high fees.
* Why do crises arise in Further and Higher Education institutions? * How can these crises be overcome? * What lessons can be learnt? There have been several high profile crises in higher education during the last two decades. Managing Crisis draws together a number of senior academic managers to prepare, probably for the first time ever, a series of detailed institutional case-studies. These case-studies identify the nature of the crisis, describe the action taken to resolve it, and consider the lasting consequences. An important chapter gives the informed perspectives of the funding council on higher education crises, and in the final chapter the inimitable Peter Scott draws a series of significant conclusions. Managing Crisis is the first book to examine crises in higher education in detail and to identify key points on how to overcome or avoid them. Required reading for managers working within UK Higher Education Policy.
Oxford is one of the world’s great universities but this has not meant that it is exempt from pressures for change. On various fronts it has been required to meet the challenges that universities almost worldwide have to face. Given the retrenchment of public funding, especially to support undergraduate teaching, it has been required to augment its financial base, while at the same time deciding how to respond to pressure from successive governments determined to use higher education to achieve their own policy goals. While still consistently ranked as a world-class university, it has to decide how it is to acquire the funding to continue in this league, or whether this goal is worth pursuing. Oxford is a collegiate university, which means its colleges share with the University responsibility for the delivery of its central goals. Is this balance of authority shifting over time? If so, how is this to be accounted for, and what are the likely outcomes for the collegiate university? This book sets out to address these questions and arrives at an essentially positive conclusion. Oxford will continue to remain an effective collegiate university and, while its identity will change, its central character will persist.
Written by two leading practitioners, this comprehesive and practical guide to the law of higher education in the UK provides extensive analysis of the complex legal framework in which universities work and the remedies which may be sought in the event of disputes. The Law of Higher Education has been fully updated to take account of the many legislative changes which have come into force since the publication of the first edition in 2006. The impact of new charity law; changes in governance structures; developments in the law of employment; academic freedom issues; and the increasing presence of academies and other private Higher Education Institutions are all dealt with in detail, with reference to and analysis of the relevent case law throughout. Although focussing on UK laws, the new edition includes expanded material on the international context, which has become particularly important as institutions are increasingly involved in international exchanges and collaborations, as well as being subject to the increasing globalisation of higher education. The text is linked to the updating service on the Oxford Centre for Higher Education Policy Studies website, ensuring that readers are kept up-to-date with developments, even after publication.
Many higher education institutions are like small towns, meeting the needs of their members by providing not only specialist teaching and research activities but also residential accommodation, catering, telecommunications, counselling, sports facilities and so on. The management of these institutions is very complex, requiring both generalist and specialist knowledge and skills; and the move to formal strategic planning means that it is no longer acceptable for higher education managers to be aware only of their own relatively narrow areas of expertise. All new managers would benefit from an holistic perspective on managing a whole institution. As such individuals are promoted, such 'helicopter vision' becomes a precondition of their and their institution's success. Higher Education Management provides: the first comprehensive account of non-academic higher education management. contributions from distinguished practitioners of university management. a key resource for all aspiring, trainee and practising managers in higher education.
The first part of this work consists of a history of the livery companies of London from c.1100 to the present, with literary extracts describing the City, the City Corporation and Companies. The second part discusses the law as it relates to the livery companies, while the third part recalls their customs and finally addresses their role in the 21st century. Two appendices list the City companies and similar guilds in the UK.
Spaces of Interaction, Places for Experience is a book about Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), interaction design (ID) and user experience (UX) in the age of ubiquitous computing. The book explores interaction and experience through the different spaces that contribute to interaction until it arrives at an understanding of the rich and complex places for experience that will be the focus of the next period for interaction design. The book begins by looking at the multilayered nature of interaction and UX—not just with new technologies, but with technologies that are embedded in the world. People inhabit a medium, or rather many media, which allow them to extend themselves, physically, mentally, and emotionally in many directions. The medium that people inhabit includes physical and semiotic material that combine to create user experiences. People feel more or less present in these media and more or less engaged with the content of the media. From this understanding of people in media, the book explores some philosophical and practical issues about designing interactions. The book journeys through the design of physical space, digital space, information space, conceptual space and social space. It explores concepts of space and place, digital ecologies, information architecture, conceptual blending and technology spaces at work and in the home. It discusses navigation of spaces and how people explore and find their way through environments. Finally the book arrives at the concept of a blended space where the physical and digital are tightly interwoven and people experience the blended space as a whole. The design of blended spaces needs to be driven by an understanding of the correspondences between the physical and the digital, by an understanding of conceptual blending and by the desire to design at a human scale. There is no doubt that HCI and ID are changing. The design of “microinteractions” remains important, but there is a bigger picture to consider. UX is spread across devices, over time and across physical spaces. The commingling of the physical and the digital in blended spaces leads to new social spaces and new conceptual spaces. UX concerns the navigation of these spaces as much as it concerns the design of buttons and screens for apps. By taking a spatial perspective on interaction, the book provides new insights into the evolving nature of interaction design.
What are the aims of higher education? What are the strategies necessary for institutional improvement? How might the student experience be improved? The emergence of the discourse around learning and teaching is one of the more remarkable phenomena of the last decade in higher education. Increasingly, universities are being required to pay greater attention to improving teaching and enhancing student learning. This book will help universities and colleges achieve these goals through an approach to institutional change that is well founded on both research and practical experience. By placing learning at the centre of organizational change, this book challenges many of the current assumptions about management of teaching, supporting students, the separation of research and teaching, the use of information technology and quality systems. It demonstrates how trust can be restored within higher education while advancing the need for change based on principles of equity and academic values for students and teachers alike. Improving Teaching and Learning in Higher Education is key reading for anyone interested in the development of teaching and learning in higher education, as well as policy makers.
• Fully updated in reference to the latest construction standards and new building types • Sustainable design fully integrated into each chapter • Over 100,000 copies sold to successive generations of architects and designers – this book truly belongs on every design office desk and drawing board. The Metric Handbook is the major handbook of planning and design data for architects and architecture students. Covering basic design data for all the major building types it is the ideal starting point for any project. For each building type, the book gives the basic design requirements and all the principal dimensional data, and succinct guidance on how to use the information and what regulations the designer needs to be aware of. As well as buildings the Metric Handbook deals with broader aspects of design such as materials, acoustics and lighting, and general design data on human dimensions and space requirements. The Metric Handbook really is the unique reference for solving everyday planning problems. About the Author: David Littlefield is a senior lecturer at the University of the West of England, where he teaches in the department of planning and architecture. For many years he worked as a writer and journalist. David has written, co-written or edited over ten books on architecture. Customer reviews: “This book is a great investment as you will use it throughout your career as an architect.” “I have found that this book is the Bible for all planners, contains so much information that no designer or planner should be without a copy.” “An essential reference book that should be on the shelf in any design studio.”
This collection focuses on the economic development of the areas of SE Asia with which Britain had a trading relationship. Covering 1880-1939, the economic growth of the region is revealed through a selection of rare primary resources organized thematically with sections dedicated to agriculture, mining, trade, labour, finance and infrastructure.
Managing Finance' has been designed both to enable managers to use accounting in the management of their business and to show how this can be done in a socially responsible way.
The story of Captain Harold Chesterman was one of the many quiet contributors to our society heroes, really who have lived among us without widespread recognition. Master Mariner follows this remarkable man’s professional association with the sea. From when he was one of the few Australian lads enrolled in a British maritime training college to when he captained a support ship that serviced lighthouses and beacons along the Queensland coast.
Very Short Introductions: Brilliant, Sharp, Inspiring Surveillance permeates every aspect of our lives today. Once a more limited and often remote aspect of social life, today surveillance is central to political, economic, and everyday life. Every click on the keyboard, every call, text or email, every purchase, every contact with a doctor or the police or a government department, each time you walk under a video camera or pass through a security check, and in many other ways, you are recorded, identified, traced, and tracked. Who processes this free-flowing data, how, and with what consequences, is a critical question affecting everyone. This is not an alien conspiracy. It is the way today's digitally-dependent world works. Surveillance is not inherently good or bad but neither is it neutral. It urgently needs to be understood better because people's lives and life-chances depend on it. Today surveillance is central to doing business, meeting friends, organizing governance, maintaining security, and being entertained. Surveillance requires not just exploration and understanding but ethical guidance and political debate. How you get credit or welfare benefits or get on a no-fly list or are ranked as a consumer depends on surveillance. This Very Short Introduction investigates how surveillance makes people visible, how it grew to its present size and prevalence, how it came to rely on technologies of data-handling, and how it developed its own cultural features. Throughout, David Lyon also considers the ethics of surveillance, and explores its potential in prompting political struggles. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.
Philosophy of physics is concerned with the deepest theories of modern physics - quantum theory, our theories of space, time and symmetry, and thermal physics - and their strange, even bizarre conceptual implications. This book explores the core topics in philosophy of physics, and discusses their relevance for both scientists and philosophers.
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