In 2018, we received state funding for 'curriculum reform' to design an academic literacy course that would orient students to legitimate ways of reading and writing in the academy while fostering critical citizenship. Thus, drawing on the view of literacy as a social practice, the course design was shaped around relatable content, in this case,…

As service designers increasingly deal with complex systems, large-scale and multi-layered transformations and community-based initiatives, design education must evolve to adequately support students in tackling planetary challenges and navigating uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity in their practice. This article reports on a qualitative study…

My concern in this article is how the university might become more distributed, less concentrated in particular places and times, and more permeable to different sorts of interests. In order to do this, I have written a partly autobiographical reflection on an attempt to practice the work of the university differently. It is the early story of a…

Purpose: This study aims, from the perspective of the recovery of sustainability, to develop a framework on sustainability and innovation in the formation of engineers in the courses of Engineering in the Brazilian Amazon. Design/methodology/approach: For this work, a quantitative approach was adopted in the research process. A survey instrument…

Wicked problems have been characterised by their high epistemological and axiological complexities. These are the kinds of problems that may invade our classrooms because many of them concern many stakeholders, including our students. Several approaches have been developed to address wicked problems in various contexts. However, little is known…

In recent years, new expectations have been placed on universities, demanding academic contributions towards solving large-scale, interdisciplinary challenges. This is in conflict with existing insights from university governance research, which emphasises that scientific communities focus on reproducing disciplinary practices that are unsuitable…

This article reviews the educational writings of historian Edwin Judge, particularly by providing a wider context for his paper "The Undesirability of Christian Universities." It discusses differences between formal education and the churches in the Roman world and considers implications of these for modern Christian higher education.…

As part of NCHC's tribute to Dr. Ada Long (1945-2024), this response to "Honors as Neighborhood" (1995) encourages scholars and practitioners to (re)consider the problems with conceptualizing honors programs as neighborhoods given the systemic inequalities associated with both. Drawing from experience at an R1 regional institution in the…

The problematisation of a social phenomenon is a political process that both constructs the problem and, in doing so, suggests possible remedies and occludes others. Based on the first-ever comprehensive analysis of 129 UK university policies to address Gender-based violence (GBV), we examine how the 'problem' of GBV is conceptualised in…

Universities have always played a crucial role in shaping the future of the world. They are centers of knowledge, research, and innovation, producing graduates who go on to lead in their fields and make a positive impact on society. But today, the need for universities to "be the change" has never been more urgent. The world is facing a…

Worldwide, COVID-19 affected higher education, including finance, and international mobility. But some systems have been more affected than others; notably Anglophone systems that have been a preferred destination for a high proportion of international students. Australia presents a particularly interesting case. Particularly vulnerable to any…

Despite technological advancements in engineering, medicine, agriculture, food, and health; we live in a global community of incidents, challenges, and crises, contrary to the hope of living in a 21st century utopia. Child labour can be seen as a malignant symptom for which policy-makers and senior authorities must take immediate and effective…

Deliberation as a necessary attitude in contemporary life seems to be specifically rooted in the early stages of education. However, as a primarily moral and evaluative stance, it is a powerful tool for shaping more reflective, critical, and proactive citizens. Furthermore, it establishes a way of engaging with knowledge, others, and, above all,…

Ball State University's (BSU) bold strategic plan, which was drafted in 2019, states that all students will have access to one of four specific High Impact Practices (Immersive Learning, Undergraduate Research, Study Abroad, and Societal Issues) before they graduate. This article documents the key steps that occurred as the Ball State campus…

This report summarises the findings of the 2024 EUA Learning & Teaching Thematic Peer Group on 'Learning and teaching in situations of crisis: needs and support provision'. The group explored how crises--ranging from pandemics and natural disasters to political interference, armed conflicts and technological disruptions--affect higher…