Re-imagining higher education: reflections from art and design and educational perspectives

Under the influence of neo-liberal policies, the nature of higher education is changing. Giroux considers pedagogy to be a central element of resisting these changes (Giroux, 2011), and re-imagining higher education. Because many of the changes are animated and facilitated by the same forms of digitisation that support Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL), we think there is a need both to theorise and organise in the face of these emerging realities. We argue for the central role of art and design education in bringing creative practices into TEL learning communities, and its pedagogies and its research. The implications of this are considered, with examples