Backlash as academics warned to remain ‘politically neutral’ ahead of general election
The boss of the country’s mega polytech has told all staff – including academics – they are “public servants” and must remain politically neutral ahead of this year’s general election.
The apparent muzzling order from Te Pūkenga chief executive Peter Winder has prompted a swift backlash, as academic freedom has protection under law.
In a statement sent to thousands of staff, Winder said: “As a Crown entity, Te Pūkenga and all of our people are public servants.
“That means we have obligations of confidentiality, neutrality and separating our personal views from professional roles.”
No no no! Academics (and BBC Soccer commentators) are protected to speak truth to power!!!
We need more academics commentating on policy, Academics are completely different to Government appointees, we need and demand our academics engage with the debate!
On top of this gag order, Te Pūkenga has an Orwellian list of woke words that are now cancelled…
Te Pūkenga tells academics not to say words like ‘staff’, ‘students’ or ‘Treaty of Waitangi’
The row over academic freedom at Te Pūkenga – the country’s largest tertiary provider – has rumbled on after it emerged staff have been issued with a list of words they should and should not use.
The 30-page internal “style guide” was published in February, two months after Peter Winder became chief executive, to ensure its “written and verbal communication is uniform” and “in line with Te Pūkenga values and reflects the needs of our priority audiences”.
Under the guidelines, the words “student” and “trainee” are discouraged, the “preferred terms” being “ākonga” (student) or “learners”.
…ugh.
Apolitical and woke AF.
What a bland, brittle and shallow education factory.
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Here is my prediction: Sooner than later, this Pukenga will become a catastrophic failure. It has the look and feel of an ill-conceived social experiment designed by unrealistic politicians fron central control. Qualifications from TP could be worthless and become a handicap for students. I feel sorry for them because in the brutal non-ideological non-woke real world, it will be: “Don’t send me any CVs with Pukenga qualifications”. Sadly, I think most of these poor students will end up in govt type of jobs that will do little to advance NZ as a country. So that was a prediction – I could be wrong, happy to hear some views.
“Apolitical and woke AF”? Switch on your oxymoron-detector, Martyn.
I initially thought the amalgamation was a good idea – I didn’t see the point of 14? polytechs spending money on competing with each other when their respective products differ only slightly more meaningfully than those sold by BP, Caltex, Mobil etc.
How naive of me. It’s now looking like amalgamation was about ensuring uniform ideological control of educational institutions.
Soccer commentators – Gary Lineker? Gary lives in the whitest part of London, and has a second home in the whitest county within England! Gary is a bullshit artist…
awww nathan did the nasty man say a bad thing??? more rightwing snowflakery
This is an ongoing debate. And a bit of a fucking joke in this instance actually–even arch liberal Peter Hughes slapped Winder down…
“However, Public Service Commissioner Peter Hughes pointed out that, because Te Pūkenga is a tertiary education institution, it is not subject to the commission’s code of conduct or general election guidance.
“The commission has no mandate over academics in these matters.”
I recall when then Prime Minister Key attacked Eleanor Catton for daring to put her head up on neo liberalism.
https://www.ibtimes.com.au/new-zealand-pm-john-key-says-eleanor-catton-has-no-authority-political-issues-1417628
Public intellectuals and academics are an asset this country needs more of. Nicky Hager has to be the classic case of what can happen if you are isolated.
TM I’m not sure there are many Kiwis worthy of the description “public intellectual”. Maybe Anne Salmond. A genuine public intellectual is a deep thinker with an abiding concern for the public good – not an activist pushing a particular ideological barrow. It’s easier to think of British public intellectuals – George Orwell being one of the most famous examples. I think Mary Harrington can currently described as a public intellectual. Most people who open their mouths about political matters in this country aren’t deep thinkers – Eleanor Catton certainly isn’t, and neither are academic activists like Siouxsie Wiles and Shaun Hendy who imagine they’re “speaking truth to power”. Oh and neither is Mike Hosking ;).
How much longer can this madness prevail? Vote anyone but Labour, Greens or TPM come October 14 2023. Countdown to, hopefully, restoration of sanity if a new government can overhaul the woke madness. Probably only ACT can do it. There will be chaos no matter who forms the next government. I think that only a period of chaos will be able to restore our equilibrium.
Ask yourself where this will lead if it is not stopped? With Te Pukenga prescribing use of only certain Maori words for daily communications now, how long will it be before they dictate that everything is to be communicated in Te Reo?
And yeah, some people would be happy with that.
Utterly outrageous. If I worked for this organisation, it would mean I had just been told not to refer to my husband as my husband. I must call him my partner or my spouse. It’s absolutely 1984.
Chip pie set this disaster of the merged mega polytech (words its staff have been told not to use) in action. How much did the polytech merger cost again.?
How much does the authoritarian who runs the polytech earn?
not a style guide a list of proscibed words….let’s just be fuckin honest for once
Mega polytechnic merger, mega polytechnic merger, mega polytechnic merger….
Who would have thought repeating these three little words would be an act of political rebellion!
+1 Anker.