In the Service of Technocratic Managerialism? History in UK Universities
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 8856483 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Mark Donnelly (History, St Mary’s University, corresponding author), Claire Norton (History, St Mary’s University) |
| Year | 2015 |
| Volume | 49 |
| Issue | 6 |
| Pages | 643-655 |
| Publication date | 2015-11-10 |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Educational Philosophy and Theory (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0013-1857 • E-ISSN: 1469-5812 |
| Publisher | Taylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/00131857.2015.1104232 |
| OpenAlex | W2291201737 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
| References cited | 10 |
This article discusses the conceptualisation, organisation and philosophical orientation of academic history culture in UK higher education. It problematises the extent to which a dominant history culture in UK universities implies and uncritically reproduces normative understandings about the subject; about its epistemological standing, sociopolitical functions, and the presumed cultural value of the discipline practices that students learn to perform. We suggest that current conceptions of history degree curricula are overly thin and organised around a dominant managerialist discourse of skills, personal development and learning outcomes. In a historicised world, in which history-focused behaviour has a crucial, ideological, affirmatory role, and in which historical narratives have a privileged cognitive function, we argue that it is critical for university history students to be able to deconstruct the processes by which history legitimises itself, and reinforces matrices of power in our societies. The positioning of history in higher education as a form of technocratic managerialism closes down spaces in which students can explore the potential of historical practices as a means of engaging with issues of current sociopolitical and ethical concern. We ask in this article, is this what we want an academic history culture to do
Curriculum · Epistemology · Higher education · Ideology · Managerialism · Normative · Pedagogy · Philosophy of education · Political science · Politics · Public relations · Social science · Sociology · Technocracy · Educator Training and Historical Pedagogy · Global Educational Policies and Reforms · Law · Philosophy, History, and Historiography
In the Scope of Logic, Methodology and Philosophy of Science
Higher Education in Liquid Modernity
Everything for Sale? The Marketisation of UK Higher Education
The University in Ruins
Imprisoned by history
On intellecticide or university driven politics of history
Institutionalized nihilism
Practising reflexivity
Knowing and becoming in the higher education curriculum
An Invitation of Reflexive Sociology
| Citations per year | 0.3 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2016 - 2020 (5) |
| Highly cited | No |