The Exchange – Y Newidfa

Date: 14 December 2007
Time: 3.00 pm
Venue: Room 7, DACE / Glyndwr Building

Dr Alyce von Rothkirch
“Academic intellectuals – a contradiction in terms?”

Gerard Delanty, in his book Challenging Knowledge: The University in the Knowledge Society (SHRE and Open University, 2001, 8-9 et passim), describes the main roles of an academic as expert, teacher, professional trainer and intellectual. According to Delanty, these are roles which are related to the activities of research, teaching, higher-level skills development and engaging with the wider public. This paper looks in more detail at the fourth role – that of the academic as intellectual. Most academics do, indeed, perceive of themselves as intellectuals. But in which terms do they define intellectual work, and which part of their job is spent doing intellectual work? Do they feel that intellectual work is an integral part of their jobs, or is it something that they consider to be marginal to their activities? How easily does intellectual work sit with academics’ other activities of teaching, research and training? Which organisational freedoms and constraints are at work when academics consider their intellectual activities?

This paper reports preliminary findings of work in progress.

All welcome