The more immediate context of the events the author describes in this article is needed in order to identify the policy framework within which the Australian National University (ANU)-Canberra CAE (CCAE) merger was placed as a component of a wider public policy initiative undertaken by John Dawkins. There were four major components in that wider…

This article compares the strikingly similar experiences of Monash and Chisholm in Melbourne at the same time. The author states that Roger Scott's account of the abortive ANU/CCAE merger brought back memories of the Monash University/Chisholm Institute of Technology amalgamation, effected around the same time. The outstanding point of difference…

Over the last decade, in both Australia and Britain, universities have been under increasing pressure to make themselves accountable for the extent to which they cultivate in their students transferable skills and "attributes" that will prepare them for the rapidly-changing world of employment. The Government's "Striving for Quality" document…

Academics are prone to mythologizing a lost golden age. As a result, it is often difficult to pinpoint what about new management methods that causes frustration and resentment. The authors look at the "audit culture" of contemporary universities, and suggest that such a culture promotes verbal dishonesty and an atmosphere of mistrust.

When asked to demonstrate that they set standards for their higher education qualifications which are equivalent to Australian and international standards, Australian universities typically refer to a range of measures, and many refer to the accreditation of their programs by vocational bodies or registration boards. However, writes the author,…

Discusses how, like Australia, Canadian higher education has experienced large-scale cuts in government funding, the deregulation of tuition and general cost shifting to students, inability to accommodate increased student demand, faculty "brain drain" and shortages, and an erosion of public policy toward viewing higher education as a business.…

Describes the ways the engagement of indigenous Australian peoples with higher education have changed under the "mainstreaming" policies implemented by the administration of John Howard. Discusses reasons for and consequences of the decreasing enrollment of indigenous peoples in higher education in Australia. (SLD)

Addresses the rights asserted by indigenous peoples and recognized by the United Nations and then considers Australian performance in higher education relative to these recognized rights. Presents some options aimed at making Indigenous education an enforceable right rather than a matter of administrative and political goodwill. (SLD)

Australian universities commonly pay various combinations of "merit" and "market" salary loadings to selected academic staff members. Points out flaws in the salary loading arrangements and suggests that universities adopt policies to limit their further spread. (SLD)

Argues that a moralistic approach to plagiarism is not likely to make the problem disappear. New thinking about plagiarism and pedagogy must take its complexity into account, since plagiarism is not always the result of a willful desire to deceive, but may reflect a misunderstanding of the nature of work in the discipline. (SLD)

Summarizes prominent current arguments on academic freedom's endangerment by managerialism and discusses their limitations. Defines a new vision of academic freedom informed by thinking on globalization. Presents findings from interviews with Australian faculty about academic freedom and discusses ways to ensure that academic freedom endures in…

Explores why economics has been engaged in a bitter turf war with its disciplinary rivals in marketing and management, and its "war cry" concerning its command of science and theory. Asserts that the exodus of students to the more pragmatic rival disciplines is because economic theory is "moribund" and in comparison the "real world" disciplines…

Reviews the literature on Indigenous Australian and other nontraditional student recruitment and retention, finding most current approaches to have limited, ad hoc aims and objectives. Recommends a comprehensive and integrated approach to recruiting and retaining these students. (EV)

Explores benefits and dangers of electronic learning and the globalization of higher education, focusing on the strategic response of Australian institutions to international cartels in partnership arrangements that cross national boundaries and involve for-profit media or information technology companies in curriculum development and delivery.…

Introduces six articles that form this issue's feature section on international higher education. Uses the articles to explore issues of globalization in higher education, including the danger of a global convergence in models of higher education that may poorly serve the needs of different institutions. (EV)