Peter Schwerdtfeger, John Raine and David Lillis: Is the Decolonisation and Indigenisation Movement Dividing our Country?

Decolonisation and the Undermining of Sound Education

It is difficult not to be aware of cultural reshaping in New Zealand society. Moves have also been made by New Zealand’s Ministry of Education to politicise our schools’ education curriculum through casting it within a Treaty of Waitangi framework, and presenting mathematics and the sciences from a postmodern, relativist and decolonisation perspective which appears hostile to the core areas of student learning. Fortunately, the curriculum is now being further reviewed and developed but both this, and some university programmes, remain vulnerable to being used as a vehicle of cultural indoctrination. Here, we examine decolonisation, the need for open and constructive academic debate, and the imperative to protect democracy in New Zealand.

John Raine, David Lillis and Peter Schwerdtfeger: Universities or Indoctrination Centres?

The assertion that all human knowledge is equally valid and the university is a site of power contestation makes it easier to understand the abandonment of fundamental academic principles, not least that of academic freedom
- Doug Stokes in “Against Decolonisation” pp. 83-84.

Becoming Ethno-institutions?

As New Zealand Universities move further towards becoming ethno-institutions we state again our serious concerns for the survival of the New Zealand university as an independent and internationally-focused place of higher learning and research, where diverse views may be discussed on any matter and where modern world science is not diminished through promotion of “other ways of knowing.”

Garrick Tremain: Poor Sods

 Here is Garrick Tremain's cartoon commentary on the universities crisis! 

John Raine, David Lillis, Peter Schwerdtfeger: Where are our Universities Heading?

Troubled times in New Zealand Academia

A perfect storm is hitting our university sector right now. Current social-justice political activism is an aggravating factor in the present extreme financial difficulties our universities are experiencing. They will have welcomed the announcement on 27th June by the Minister of Education to inject $128 million into the tertiary education sector, but this is just a drop of water on a hot stone. A full review of the tertiary education sector funding model is long overdue. The current situation raises a long-term risk to the operational health and international reputation of our universities. This risk has in turn been intensified by the very slow post-Covid restart to international student business. What needs to be done to restore the sector to full health?

Kerre Woodham: Do we need to rethink the whole university model?

There used to be ivory towers of academic learning, elitist, only a few could enter.

Now they’re businesses that live or die based on the number of bums they can get on lecture hall seats - and yet they still seem to be lost in the past and unable to forge away into the future.

Michael Johnston, James Kierstead, Dennis Wesselbaum: Policy point.....

.....Victoria and Otago universities employ more non-academic than academic staff

New Zealand’s universities are in crisis. AUT announced 170 academic redundancies last year. Massey is planning to cut a net 36 academic roles. Otago is looking to shed ‘several hundred’ positions, while Victoria University of Wellington plans to cut some 100 academic and 150 professional staff.