Towards the Virtuous University: The Moral Bases of Academic Practice

A good university is invariably assumed to be one which is managerially effective in terms of its economic efficiency, and is judged in terms of entrepreneurialism, self-promotion and competitive innovation. This book argues that in the majority of institutions, these goals are being pursued to the exclusion of academic excellence and public service. It proposes that there is a marked lack of intellectual leadership at senior management level within HE institutions and that academic workers must assume responsibility for the moral purposefulness of their institutions. This will not be a retreat into the old values of an elitist 'ivory tower', but a rejection of the current deeply stratified university system which prematurely selects students for differentiated institutional streams.

Written for higher education academics, staff developers, policy makers and leaders, this book aims to tackle a subject that is at the heart of higher education today: the nature of a good university.

List of figures Preface and acknowledgements Chapter 1 Universities as civic spaces The structure of the book Troubled times Civic spaces, civic leadership Academic professionalism:a learning profession Conclusion Chapter 3 Universities as deliberative spaces A failure of nerve Reclaiming a sense of purpose Whose freedom? Whose spaces? Academic professionalism: a profession of values Conclusion Chapter 4 Truthfulness: accuracy and sincerity The Socratic legacy The virtues in practice The notion of truthfulness The integrity of practice: truthfulness Conclusion Chapter 5 Respect: attentiveness and honesty The notion of respect Respect as recognition Attentiveness and honesty The integrity of practice: respect Conclusion & / a changing profession Conclusion Chapter 2 Universities as places of learning Stratification, fractionalisation and atomisation Management, money and marketing! Change from the inside-out Academic professionalism.