Activism in Higher Education

The 22nd issue of on_education explores controversies and problems related to activism in the context of higher education. This issue critically examines questions such as: the legitimacy and rationales of different forms of activism of academics and students, for instance in the context of recent campus protests, the limits of academic freedom, the role of academics and universities in fostering social change as well as the paradoxes and pitfalls of ideals of value-free science. In light of recent public controversies sparked by these and other questions, it seems that the social and political function attributed to higher education in democratic societies is undergoing a crisis, which forms the background for this issue of on_education.