The Scholarship of Teaching and Learning and the Neo-Liberalization of Higher Education - Constructing the “Entrepreneurial Learner”

Oct 15, 2026

This article examines the strong interest in the scholarship of teaching that emerged after Ernest Boyer introduced the idea in 1990. While teaching-focused scholarship offers benefits, the SoTL “movement” has received limited critical scrutiny. The work argues that SoTL is inseparable from the entrenchment of neo-liberalization in higher education. It uses Marshall’s “busno-power” to explain how instructors and students become “entrepreneurial learners.”

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages19

Reading Time48 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Introduction

SoTL as a movement and its focus

Limited critical scrutiny and research gap

Neo-liberalism as the wider context

CSSHE SCÉES Canadian Journal of Higher Education Revue canadienne d’enseignement supérieur Volume 39, No. 2, 2009, pages 25-44 [www.ingentaconnect.com/content/csshe/cjhe](www.ingentaconnect.com/content/csshe/cjhe) The Scholarship of Teaching and Learning and the Neo-Liberalization of Higher Education: Constructing the“Entrepreneurial Learner” Laura Servage University of Alberta ABSTRACT This article examines the strong interest in the scholarship of teaching that has developed since Ernest Boyer introduced the idea in 1990. Although there are many beneﬁts to be realized from a greater emphasis on teaching in higher education, the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL)“movement” has been subjected to little critical scrutiny. This work, however, proposes that SoTL is inextricably tied to the entrenchment of neo-liberalization in higher education. Marshall’s (1996) notion of “busno-power,” an extension of Foucault’s thinking on governmentality, is used to demonstrate how SoTL may be viewed as a force that shapes both instructors and students into “entrepreneurial learners” who conceptualize education primarily for its use value. The article concludes with a consideration of how this eventuality maybe guarded against by using Foucault’s methods to situate SoTL sociologically, and historically. RÉSUMÉ Dans cet article, l’auteur examine le grand intérêt s’étant développé enversl’ « érudition de l’enseignement » depuis qu’Ernest Boyer a introduit l’idéeen 1990. Malgré les nombreux avantages pouvant être tirés en plaçant un plus grand emphase sur l’enseignement en éducation supérieure, le mouvement de l’érudition de l’enseignement et de l’apprentissage (ÉdEA) 26 CJHE / RCES Volume 39, No. 2, 2009 n’a subi que très peu de critiques. Dans cet article, l’auteur propose que l’ÉdEA est inextricablement lié à l’enracinement du néolibéralisme dans l’éducation supérieure. La notion « busnopower » de Marshall, une extension de la pensée de Foucault sur le gouvernementalisme, est utilisée pour démontrer à quel point on pourrait voir l’ÉdEA comme une force unissant les instructeurs et les étudiants en tant qu’« entrepreneurs apprenants » qui conceptualisent principalement l’éducation à sa valeur utilisée. L’auteur conclut en considérant comment on peut évitercette éventualité en utilisant la méthode de Foucault aﬁn de situer sociologiquement et historiquement l’ÉdEA. INTRODUCTION A scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL)“movement” is afoot in North American universities and colleges. This movement seeks to both improve pedagogy at the post-secondary level and enhance the value of effective teaching in higher education institutions (HEIs) relative to the traditional emphasis on research as the most prestigious and valued form of scholarly activity. SoTL has been actively studied, and the results disseminated, in the United States by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching (Bender, 2005; Glassick, Huber, & Maeroff, 1997; Huber & Hutchings, 2005). In Canada, the Society for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education (STLHE) has recently adopted the advancement of SoTL as one of its four pillars, or mandates (Hughes, n.d.); in addition, the society is presently launching the Canadian Journal for SoTL and, since 1984, has held annual conferences focused on teaching and learning in higher education. As Hughes (n.d.) observed, although no formal, funded initiatives like those of the Carnegie Foundation have occurred within Canada, the SoTL movement has grown in a “grassroots” fashion, on a campus-by-campus basis (p. 1). Globally, the International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning has been providing an interdisciplinary forum for post-secondarylevel instructors and administrators to exchange ideas and practices since 2007. Yet, while SoTL has attracted attention and interest, little of it has been of the critical variety (Boshier, 2009; Hanson, 2005; Kreber, 2005) . Instead, th

FAQs

What is the central focus of the article?

The article analyzes how the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL) is tied to neo-liberalization in higher education.

Why does the author claim SoTL needs more critical scrutiny?

Although SoTL is widely discussed, the article notes that critical examination has been limited, with attention often concentrated on effective pedagogy and supportive policies.

How does the article explain the formation of “entrepreneurial learners”?

Using Marshall’s “busno-power,” extended from Foucault’s governmentality, the article argues that SoTL shapes instructors and students to conceptualize education through its use value.

Oct 15, 2026

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