The slip in world rankings suffered by many Australian universities on one of the latest international rankings lists is a salient reminder of the real-life consequences of allowing pressure from rising costs and populist insularity to devalue academic knowledge and expertise.
The burden has been made heavier by Canberra’s continuing aversion to adequately funding universities, but respect for critical thought also sags under the weight of antivaxxers, internet opinions, climate change scepticism and populist politics.
As the value of knowledge for its own sake is increasingly devalued or belittled by growing sections of Australian society, it is hardly surprising that the Centre for World University Rankings has captured the impact on educational institutions, with the latest report card showing more than half of Australia’s university ratings plummeting.
The University of NSW topped the local standings, maintaining its 52 ranking. But the University of Sydney fell six places to 100. The University of Technology Sydney moved up from 314 last year to 308, Macquarie University sank from 341 to 344, the Australian Catholic University rocketed from 919 to 900, and the University of Western Sydney went from 487 to 488.
Centre president Nadim Mahassen said successive government funding failures had hurt universities, and science and education had been devalued.
“Australian universities are struggling to deliver high-quality education, attract and retain talent and produce quality research at scale. This is not just an academic problem but a national one, because the erosion of Australia’s higher education system undermines scientific development, innovation and the country’s long-term future,” he said.
Australian universities rely on international student fees to fund research and development because government money is inadequate to maintain the quality required to stay high on world rankings, but this reliance has fuelled concerns that Australia’s universities have become overly commercial and transactional.
As the Herald’s higher education reporter Sally Rawsthorne notes, Australian universities face a reckoning on international student numbers and domestic student funding as they grapple with the impact of AI on teaching, learning and assessment.
Universities still offer scholarships to students and funding to scientists and opportunities for those who pursue knowledge, but it is increasingly harder to remain a hub of critical thought when academia is turned into an economic and political scapegoat.
The federal government is also stalling on its pledge to replace the Coalition’s Jobs-ready Graduates policy, under which the price of courses offering the idea of a classical education based on reason and rhetoric has risen and taken second place to graduates studying vocational degrees to qualify for federal funds.
Fewer critical thinkers lead to complacency, weaker dialogue and a more passive society in danger of losing its critical ability to sift evidence and fact from misinformation, conjecture and conspiracy.
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