Equity, diversity and inclusion — EDI — is a trending concept these days. Many institutions now have policies, initiatives and even vice-presidents devoted to EDI — including my own institution, Ryerson University. There is much discussion about how EDI affects productivity and innovation. More...
Design lab connects autism families with research
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is the most common neurological disorder in children and it is impacting our society in profound ways. In Canada, more than 515,000 people are affected and approximately 87,000 of these are school age. ASD now affects one in 68 births. And, given this prevalence rate, it is estimated that there are 60,000 people affected by ASD in British Columbia alone. More...
The concept of ‘western civilisation’ is past its use-by date in university humanities departments
A number of NSW and ACT universities are vying for the opportunity to access funding from the Ramsay Centre for Western Civilisation, which aims to “revive” liberal arts and the humanities in university education in Australia. More...
Why being a historian is about so much more than producing displays for museums
What does society want and need from the arts and humanities? That’s a question that we’ve been asking in a recent project called Bridging the Gap, which explored the wider social, cultural and economic value of arts and humanities research and how to better unlock that value. More...
Demand for people skills is growing faster than demand for STEM skills
Advances in digital technology are changing the world of work. It has been estimated that more than 40% of human workers will be replaced by robots. This probably overstates the scale of displacement, but developments in the fields of artificial intelligence and machine learning will affect all sectors of the economy. More...
Universities need to rethink policy on student-staff relationships
The Human Rights Commission report, Change the Course: National Report on Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment at Australian Universities, was published in August 2017.
In response, Australian universities have taken various actions to address sexual assault and harassment on their campuses. More...
Five myths about Australian university graduate outcomes
Universities are vital to Australia’s sustained prosperity. However, the complexity of our current higher education policy landscape, combined with profound economic forces, have led to a number of myths and misconceptions about what happens to students after they graduate. More...
Students will suffer if Australia and New Zealand change tertiary fee agreement
The proposed tertiary funding reform suggests a division of students into three tiers: citizens (tier one), permanent residents and NZ special category visa holders (tier two), and international students (tier three). Under the new policy, students in all tiers would see their tuition fee increase. More...
How should Australia respond to China’s influence in our universities?
The federal government is concerned about Chinese influence in Australia, particularly on universities. While we don’t know exactly how deep this influence runs, we do know quite a bit. More...