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What is Academic Minimalism?

Definitions:*

Academe

  1. the campus activity, life, and interests of a college or university; the academic world 
  2. a scholarly or pedantic person, especially a teacher or student

Minimalism

  1. being or offering no more than what is required or essential

Given the above definitions one would assume “academic minimalism” to be an oxymoron. Few in academia offer only what is required or essential. In fact academics, the pedantic people that they are, offer far more than most of us want (no less require). But I argue, as academics do, that academic minimalism is exactly what we need today.

Academia is facing many challenges:

  • We are operating in a world of ever-shrinking budgets
  • We are losing the public’s faith
  • We are being forced to apply a business model onto a public service
  • We are charged with more and more administrative tasks but are rewarded for our scholarly work
  • We are morally bankrupting ourselves with our abuse of adjuncts
  • We are increasing our class sizes while decreasing our expectations of students
  • We are reproducing at unsustainable rate
  • We are expected to “do more with less”

Academic minimalism is about doing less with more. Academia is in need of some serious decluttering. We need to throw out all that is not required nor essential. We need more time. We need more quality. We need more resources. We can only get these by doing less.

So I’m not sure exactly what the definition of academic minimalism is and I’m not sure what it will take to be an academic minimalist. This blog is an attempt to find out.

 

 

*Gratis of Dictionary.com