Multiversities Ideas and Democracy

About this book

Multiversities are sprawling conglomerates that provide liberal undergraduate graduate and professional education. As well-springs of innovation and ideas these universities represent the core of societys research enterprise. Multiversities Ideas and Democracy forcibly argues that in the contemporary world multiversities need to be conceptualized in a new way that is not just as places of teaching and research but also as fundamental institutions of democracy. Building upon the history of universities George Fallis discusses how the multiversity is a distinctive product of the later twentieth century and has become an institution of centrality and power. He examines five characteristics of our age - the constrained welfare state the information technology revolution postmodern thought commercialization and globalization - and in each case explains how the dynamic of multiversity research alters societal circumstances leading to the alteration of the institution itself and creating challenges to its own survival. The character of our age demands reappraisal of the multiversity Fallis argues in order to safeguard them from so-called mission drift. Writing from a multi-national perspective this study establishes how similar ideas are shaping multiversities across the Anglo-American world. Ultimately Multiversities Ideas and Democracy seeks to uncover the ethos of the multiversity and to hold such institutions accountable for their contribution to democratic life. It will appeal to anyone interested in the role of education in society.