Facilitating University Education: A View From the North

Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articlepeer-review

  • Joachim Schmidt Wiewiura
In this small essay, I will reflect on Michael Bérubé and Jennifer Ruth's arguments on the decline of educational professionalism in the United States. The purpose is to consider this loss of professionalism, and I will consider it in light of the arts and humanities in the Danish educational debate. Two reflections are presented: first, the customer relation is reversed in a Scandinavian context where students are politically demanded products rather than informed customers. This implies that universities' output serve political agendas. Second, I suggest that the Scandinavian conception of equality in welfare might entail an inexpedient side-effect when it comes to education. Equality becomes alignment rather than educative edification of individual and, in consequence, communal autonomy. This jeopardises the historically fruitful role of the Scandinavian university – and ultimately caters to a shift from edification to serving interests that are beyond the professional heart of arts and humanities in higher education.
Original languageEnglish
JournalArts and Humanities in Higher Education
Volume15
Issue number2
Pages (from-to)223-230
Number of pages8
ISSN1474-0222
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2016

    Research areas

  • Faculty of Humanities - Differentiation, educational professionalism, equality, excellence, instability, university

ID: 171792299