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Examining the intersections of education, sociology and politics, Student Identity and Political Agency provides a unique, research-informed account of the student experience in a contemporary higher education setting. By drawing on current societal context, this book has a two-fold aim: to unpack and discuss student identity in higher education, and to identify opportunities to influence positive educational and social change.
This essential text encourages readers to critically examine and explore:
the marketisation and massification of higher education,
the homogenising model of consumerism in higher education and the impact this holds upon the diversity of the student population,
the positioning of youth and student-hood in our higher education systems,
past and present forms of student political agency - protest, unionism and consumer rights - in an attempt to influence positive change.
Informed by recent research, this is a crucial read for academics and researchers who specialise in the field of student identity and experience, or, more broadly, in higher education transformations. This book provides a timely and academically rigorous account of contemporary student identity and agency in the global context of higher education.
List of contents
Introduction; 1. Higher education for sale: Exploring marketisation and massification; 2. From diversity to a (dis)satisfied student as consumer; 3. Youth and studenthood in a market system; 4. Student activism and protest; 5. Student representation and unionism; 6. Student complaints as consumer empowerment; Conclusion
About the author
Rille Raaper is an associate professor in sociology of higher education at Durham University.
Summary
Examining the intersections of education, sociology and politics, this book provides a unique, research-informed account of the student experience in contemporary higher education. This book aims to unpack student identity in higher education, and to identify opportunities to influence positive educational and social change.
