Privatisation, Control, Surveillance and Academic Research

The round table we would like to propose for ECER 2017 will look at the topic of privatisation in an individualised society and resulting forms of control and surveillance from an educational perspective and the ways in which the existing structures might be undermined in various institutional and non-institutional contexts. The issue touches on different topics such as surveillance and control and on an academic level on changing university landscapes and changing research practices and the possible dissolutions of boundaries between academic work and private economy. We would like to connect these considerations to the following three aspects: 

1)      How are individuals influenced by processes of privatisation, globalisation and digitalisation in relation to their everyday lives and practices?

2)      How does this in turn influence academic research practices?

3)      What can be done to undermine some of the structures resulted from these processes?

The following presentations will aim at reflecting on these questions across a spectrum of national and international perspectives and from a range of educational settings, placing a special focus on self-reflectional aspects of academic research. Despite the range of presentation foci we aim to engage a discussion on the question of how individuals can negotiate their personal practices in the context of privatisation and in the light of increasing power of corporate interests, including: How can emerging researchers negotiate between intensifying pressures of having to publish and present both nationally and internationally while also writing their dissertations? How have university landscapes changed due to the processes of privatisation? How should methods of research and methodologies be adapted? What happens with data collected in various settings? Who owns, reads or uses them? And what could be done to undermine those practices?

What becomes apparent is that the process of privatisation affects both practices of everyday lives and practices of academic research. The following presentations will highlight a number of examples in relation to these practices:

Dissolution of Boundaries between the Private and the Public

(Sophie & Estella)

This contribution will reflect on the dissolution of boundaries between the private and the public in the light of privatisation processes, corporate control and social practices both in the light of everyday lives of individuals as well as particularly highlighting the situation of (young) researchers in academia.

Empirical Research on Networked and Globalised Societies

(Raquel & Pablo)

This contribution explores how being part of networked and globalized societies has impacted subjectivities and every day practices. From a self-reflective perspective as academic researchers, the contribution will raise questions on how purposes, methodologies and ethics are being challenged by new necessities and tensions.

The Denaturing of Technological Neutrality, Control and Surveillance

(Aingeru)

This contribution relates surveillance and control in contemporary society with teaching digital citizenship and activism using the example of an experience based art project developed with 30 future teachers of primary and early childhood education at the University of the Basque Country. The project highlights the importance of teacher training to construct a discourse that enables the formation of digital public criticism.

Structures of Academic Knowledge Distribution and Academic Identity Management

(Klaus)

The contribution reflects on structures of academic knowledge distribution looking at the role of Science Communication such as online journals for researchers using the example of the journal "Media Education" (www.medienpaed.com). While new platforms for the display of personal achievements like publication metadata (e.g. ORCID, Researchgate, Academia) have become increasingly interesting for academics, the contribution will tackle questions surrounding the role of article publications, publication metrics and academic identity management, also in the sense of mutual social surveillance.

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