Academic Freedom and the Transnational Production of Knowledge

Drawing on rich interviews with academics in four different countries, this book develops a transnational theory of academic freedom.

Dina Kiwan (Author)

9781108490283, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 25 January 2024

212 pages
25 x 17.5 x 1.7 cm, 0.54 kg

'Breaking new ground by deconstructing the methodological nationalism inherent in debates about academic freedom, this text offers fresh insights and new research which de-exceptionalizes the presumed sites of liberal expression. Dina Kiwan has produced a masterfully synthesized account of how knowledge, and those who produce it, are continually under constraint, politically, materially, and institutionally.' Jasbir K. Puar, author of The Right to Maim: Debility, Capacity, and Disability

Public debates on academic freedom have become increasingly contentious, and understandings of what it is and its purposes are contested within the academy, policymakers and the general public. Drawing on rich empirical interview data, this book critically examines the understudied relationship between academic freedom and its role in knowledge production across four country contexts - Lebanon, the UAE, the UK and the US - through the lived experiences of academics conducting 'controversial' research. It provides an empirically-informed transnational theory of academic freedom, contesting the predominantly national constructions of academic freedom and knowledge production and the methodological nationalism of the field. It is essential reading for academics and students of the sociology of education, as well as anyone interested in this topic of global public concern. This title is part of the Flip it Open Programme and may also be available Open Access. Check our website Cambridge Core for details.

1. Introduction
2. Constructions of academic freedom: freedom vs inclusion?
3. Constructions of knowledge
4. Producing knowledge: the role of the university
5. Challenging knowledge: internal and external restrictions
6. 'Forbidden' knowledge
7. 'Legitimate' knowledge: methodological debates and the political sociology of knowledge production
8. Conclusion: a transnational theory of academic freedom and the production of inclusive knowledge
References
Index.

Subject Areas: Philosophy & theory of education [JNA]