The release in early 2001 of a study of Australian social science academics perceptions of the im... more The release in early 2001 of a study of Australian social science academics perceptions of the impact of commercialisation on academic freedom led to sustained public debate over the issue of academic standards and the internationalisation of higher education in Australia. This debate gave expression to growing disaffection amongst Australian academics with the pressures for increased commercialisation and entrepreneurialism in their work. In this paper I use the tools provided through the work of Michel Foucault to critically examine the terms of the debate as it was conducted in the public arena. The purpose of this analysis is to explore the ways in which international students were represented in the discourses of academic standards, and the conflation of the alleged decline in academic standards with the internationalisation of higher education, and in particular, with the presence of international students on Australian campuses.
At a recent lecture marking the 21st birthday of the Centre for Women's and Gender Studies at Mon... more At a recent lecture marking the 21st birthday of the Centre for Women's and Gender Studies at Monash University, invited presenter, Robin Weigman, Professor of Women's Studies at Duke University, posed the question: can 'gender' as a concept shoulder the burdens we ask of it? She alluded specifically to the aspirations we--as feminists committed to progressive social change--hold for it, conceptually, methodologically, politically and institutionally. Wiegman was claiming that the notion of gender is radically overburdened, which isn't to say that research related to gender is no longer relevant. Rather, she suggested it is becoming increasingly unclear what one means when one purports to be doing research on gender or announcing their field of expertise as gender and education. Our goal is not to redefine gender, but to consider the challenges presented in Weigman's problematisation. Using her notion of political desire , we analyse the ways gender has been taken up, contested and refashioned in recent years in our fields of enquiry and in our research programs.
Rethinking the subject of higher education: subjectivity, normativity and desire in student equity research
... 199915. McGregor, G., Phillips, A., Newman, J., Durie, J. and Devos, A. 1999. ... Many of us ... more ... 199915. McGregor, G., Phillips, A., Newman, J., Durie, J. and Devos, A. 1999. ... Many of us have spent at least the last decade, 'working the spaces of neo‐liberalism' as Nina Laurie and Liz Bondi put it (200514. Laurie, N. and Bondi, L. 2005. ...
International Journal of Lifelong Education, Jan 1, 2011
This article considers how a group of migrant women in the town of Shepparton, Australia, underst... more This article considers how a group of migrant women in the town of Shepparton, Australia, understand their futures in the spaces created by globalising forces. Shepparton is a 'case study' of globalisation, at the centre of the movement of peoples, skills and capital globally. The issues it faces are compounded by profound climate change. The project uses collective biography to explore women's experiences of working and learning in that place, and to scrutinise contemporary narratives of transnationalism and of the knowledge economy. The article reflects on the implications of the frameworks employed for feminist scholarship and social justice in lifelong learning.
Where enterprise and equity meet: the rise of mentoring for women in Australian universities
Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, Jan 1, 2008
In this paper I use a governmentality framework to explore the growth of women's mentoring p... more In this paper I use a governmentality framework to explore the growth of women's mentoring programmes in Australian universities over the last 10-15 years. These programmes are supported because they speak to institutional concerns with improving performance in a ...
Diverse pathways into higher education: using students' stories to identify transformative experiences
… Journal of Adult …, Jan 1, 2010
Abstract: This paper is based on findings from the first phase of a longitudinal project examinin... more Abstract: This paper is based on findings from the first phase of a longitudinal project examining how a group of students from diverse backgrounds succeed in higher education. The concept of perspective transformation is used to explore students' stories about factors that ...
14 Fashioning subjectivity through workplace mentoring
World yearbook of education 2007: educating the …, Jan 1, 2007
14 Fashioning subjectivity through workplace mentoring Anita Devos Mentoring programmes have been... more 14 Fashioning subjectivity through workplace mentoring Anita Devos Mentoring programmes have been introduced across a range of settings as a preferred model of professional development. A large number of Australian universities, for example, have introduced ...
Journal of Organisation Transformation &# 38; …, Jan 1, 2007
Abstract: This paper argues that institutional agendas associated with the development of the ent... more Abstract: This paper argues that institutional agendas associated with the development of the enterprise model of the university in many western countries are changing the nature of work and in so doing demanding new work practices and identities of academic staff (or ...
Chapter 4 Disturbing work, workspaces and working lives Three Australian case studies Anita Devos... more Chapter 4 Disturbing work, workspaces and working lives Three Australian case studies Anita Devos, Lesley Farrell and Terri Seddon The focus of this chapter is the forms and politics of regulation of work in con-temporary Australia. We explore the ways that new regimes of regulation ...
Academic Standards, Internationalisation, and the Discursive Construction of" The International Student"
Higher Education Research & Development, Jan 1, 2003
... the status of those who are charged as saying what counts as true (Foucault, 1980b, p ... Wit... more ... the status of those who are charged as saying what counts as true (Foucault, 1980b, p ... Within the discourse of economic globalisation, internationalisation is the means to supplement reduced public ... In their analysis of the flow of students globally, Chen & Barnett (2000) point out ...
The Project of Self, the Project of Others: Mentoring, Women and the Fashioning of the Academic Subject.
Studies in continuing education, Jan 1, 2004
Mentoring has become a popular form of staff development for women at Australian and New Zealand ... more Mentoring has become a popular form of staff development for women at Australian and New Zealand universities, with a number now running some form of initiative. Improved access to mentoring, it is argued, enhances the career prospects of women, and leads to an ...
Women, research and the politics of professional development
Studies in higher education, Jan 1, 2004
In recent years, a number of authors have applied Foucault's theory of governmentality t... more In recent years, a number of authors have applied Foucault's theory of governmentality to an analysis of the ways in which subjectivities are constituted in contemporary workplaces. The case has been well made that through the discursive practices of neo-liberal reform of ...
Chapter 4 Gender, work and workplace learning Anita Devos In my work as an educator of workplace-... more Chapter 4 Gender, work and workplace learning Anita Devos In my work as an educator of workplace-based adult educators and in staff development, I have felt increasingly dissatisfied with the dimensions of the debate over learning in the workplace. In my analysis, the ...
Supporting Lifelong Learning: Organising learning, Jan 1, 2002
Chapter 4 Gender, work and workplace learning Anita Devos In my work as an educator of workplace-... more Chapter 4 Gender, work and workplace learning Anita Devos In my work as an educator of workplace-based adult educators and in staff development, I have felt increasingly dissatisfied with the dimensions of the debate over learning in the workplace. In my analysis, the ...
… (HERDSA) eds C. Bond & P. Bright, …, Jan 1, 2003
In this paper we consider the role of women-only professional development programmes, in the cont... more In this paper we consider the role of women-only professional development programmes, in the context of the evaluation of the first two years of a women's research development program at the University of New South Wales, Sydney. WomenResearch 21 (WR21) is a professional development programme designed to enable and encourage women academics at the start of their research careers. Each cycle of the programme runs for twelve months and includes seminars, informal support and networking, a research project, and the opportunity to work with a research adviser. Over forty women from across all faculties of the university participated in the programme in the first two years. The programme also aimed to foster an increased understanding within the university of the issues confronting women researchers. To what extent have we been successful in achieving the programme's aims? Participant evaluations of the first two years indicate the programme has been very successful in supporting the development of most participants. Our success in regard to the second aim of contributing to institutional change is less clear. The paper concludes with a discussion of the issues involved in shifting the focus of the programme from individual professional development to using it as a vehicle for cultural change.
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