Belonging to the University or Being in the World: From Belonging to Relational Being

Autor/inn/en	Graham, Cameron W.; Moir, Zack
Titel	Belonging to the University or Being in the World: From Belonging to Relational Being
Quelle	In: Journal of University Teaching and Learning Practice, 19 (2022) 4, Artikel 4 (20 Seiten)Infoseite zur Zeitschrift PDF als Volltext kostenfreie Datei Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	1449-9789
Schlagwörter	Higher Education; Group Membership; Group Unity; Sense of Community; Interpersonal Relationship; Neoliberalism; Social Behavior; Expectation; Learner Engagement; Change; Congruence (Psychology); Personality Traits; Definitions; Institutional Environment; World Views; Values + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Hochschulbildung; Hochschulsystem; Hochschulwesen; Gruppenzugehörigkeit; Gruppenidentität; Interpersonal relation; Interpersonal relations; Interpersonelle Beziehung; Zwischenmenschliche Beziehung; Neo-liberalism; Neoliberalismus; Social behaviour; Soziales Verhalten; Expectancy; Erwartung; Wandel; Congruence; Psychology; Kongruenz; Psychologie; Individual characteristics; Personality characteristic; Persönlichkeitsmerkmal; Begriffsbestimmung; World view; Weltanschauung; Wertbegriff
Abstract	In a world characterised by supercomplexity, in which higher education (HE) is in the grip of neoliberal market forces (Barnett, 2000), it is incumbent upon participants in this sector to ask; what does it mean to belong, and to what? 'Belonging' has become a buzzword used by institutions to seemingly demonstrate how they seek to include students and help them 'fit in' to specific cultures and contexts of learning. A sense of 'belonging' may be important for some students at an emotional level; however, in the context of the neoliberal university, we argue that focussing on this concept may have the effect of encouraging students to assimilate to the dominant culture. More subtly, it could be noted that this is part of an ongoing process of inculcating students to the beliefs, values and normative behaviours associated with neoliberalism, arguably reproducing and exacerbating many of the social challenges threatening education, democracy, ecosystems and ultimately our ability to survive on this planet. This theoretical paper challenges the notion of belonging, problematising it as a neoliberal construct of 21st century HE that insidiously invokes a particular notion of 'community' which functions to prioritise domestication and conformity to social and economic expectations of a higher education driven by an agenda of employability, entrepreneurialism, and acquisitive individualism. We propose a more meaningful conception of 'belonging'; based on engaging students in changing their world so as they may belong in the world authentically. We contend that belonging holds greater promise as a means of self-actualisation, liberation, and a way to develop authentic 'critical being' (Barnett, 1997) whereby students develop belonging and are not "…subject to the world but able to act autonomously and purposively within it" (ibid. p.4). (As Provided).
Anmerkungen	University of Wollongong. Available from: Centre for Educational Development and Interactive Resources. Northfields Avenue, Wollongong, NSW 2522, Australia. Tel: +61-2-4221-3140; Fax: +61-2-4225-8312; e-mail: jutlp@uow.edu.au; Web site: https://ro.uow.edu.au/jutlp/
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2024/1/01