학술논문

Understanding academic agency in curriculum change in higher education.
Document Type
Article
Source
Teaching in Higher Education. Aug2023, Vol. 28 Issue 6, p1310-1327. 18p. 1 Diagram, 1 Chart.
Subject
*COLLEGE teachers
*CURRICULUM change
*HIGHER education
*CURRICULUM evaluation
*CURRICULUM planning
Language
ISSN
1356-2517
Abstract
This study explores the agency of academics and the structures that enable or impede agency in curriculum change. The study was conducted at a research university that experienced curriculum change in two waves: the first on a departmental level, and the second as a university-wide curriculum change. Interviews were conducted with the same academics after both waves. Thematic analysis generated six forms of agency. Progressive, oppositional, territorial, bridge-building, and accommodating agency appeared in both contexts. Powerless agency was identified in only the university-wide curriculum change. Individual, community, and institutional structures enabled or impeded agency. Instead of focusing on the micro or macro levels exclusively, this study highlights the interwovenness of structural-agentic processes, including the critical role of social cultures and relationships, and reveal how academic freedom is used in many ways as room for manoeuvring in curriculum changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]