Pets in the academic workplace Petting animals can help to overcome social barriers which can lead to improved learning for students, says Erin McKenna 28 November
Twilight of the mission groups? Ourania Filippakou and Ted Tapper consider whether they are heading for extinction 28 November
Our ‘world-class’ status may be greatly exaggerated Bahram Bekhradnia warns of the clear and present dangers facing the UK academy 28 November
THE Scholarly Web - 21 November 2013 Weekly transmissions from the blogosphere By Chris Parr 21 November
Does a high price always mean high quality? Malcolm Gillies on contradictory attitudes to soaring fees and value for money 21 November
Esteem-powered academy In a world where good names are priceless, UK universities have built up plenty of credit in the reputation bank By John Gill 21 November
Corruption in universities: a blueprint for reform Corruption in the academy is being challenged by a ‘clean universities’ ranking and the power of press coverage, says Alina Mungiu-Pippidi 21 November
The threat posed by accounting reforms The changes will make sector results look worse than they are, warn Andrew Connolly and Clare Partridge 21 November
Academics ‘the rudest people on earth’? Hardly The idea that universities are hotbeds of incivility is implausible, says Emrys Westacott 21 November
Quality standards can suffer in overseas export Examining collaborative provision in an Asian partnership left John Buglear doubting the fitness of such ventures 14 November
There’s no distance left to run The 1994 Group’s break-up reflects fragmentation in the sector and leaves the ‘elite’ tag to the Russell Group alone By John Gill 14 November
Research needs more poetry, not more cash ‘Big money’ grants foster ‘bookkeeping’ work at the expense of small-scale but potentially groundbreaking efforts, says Gary Thomas 14 November
The PGCE is a teaching turn-off If universities want to keep teacher training, their courses must be more relevant to the real school world, argues Susan Bassnett 14 November
THE Scholarly Web - 14 November 2013 Weekly transmissions from the blogosphere By Chris Parr 14 November
Sweden drops language of competition Robert Appelbaum on the war of words that preceded the withdrawal of plans to privatise universities 14 November
THE Scholarly Web - 7 November 2013 Weekly transmissions from the blogosphere By Chris Parr 7 November
Austen’s powers revisited Sally Feldman welcomes a modern reimagining of the incomparable Jane 7 November
Does rudeness have a place in academia? Academics are expected to engage in rigorous intellectual sparring but do some scholars overstep the mark? By John Gill 7 November
Why are scientists off the radar? Our cultural values, media and education system are pushing science to the margins, Dame Athene Donald warns 7 November
There's no need to panic over pensions The Universities Superannuation Scheme is in deficit but has healthy assets, says Michael Bourn 7 November
Academic freedom protects academics from each other There is an essential difference between saloon-bar provocation and paradigm-shifting scholarship, argues Terence Kealey 7 November
THE Scholarly Web - 31 October 2013 Weekly transmissions from the blogosphere By Chris Parr 31 October
Lecture abroad? Talk to my avatar Christopher Bigsby struggles to see the point of travelling to give a lecture 31 October
How the vampire got his teeth On Halloween, Richard Sugg reveals how early stories of death from paralysing nightmares morphed into tales of vampires 31 October
It would be a really big help if… His portfolio safe, David Willetts can enjoy some stability and clarity, the very things v-cs would like from the minister By John Gill 31 October
Make your marque worldwide Jim Northover considers whether the next global “mega-brand” could be a UK university 31 October
James Madison and an ungovernable America Blame the ‘father of the Constitution’ for the mess in the US, says Alan Ryan 24 October
Who picks up the tab for growth? Willetts, like Robbins, envisages more graduates, but he is similarly reluctant to explain how expansion will be funded By Simon Baker 24 October
Moocs are a good alternative to books Panagiotis Tsigaris found the online learning tool to be a positive addition to his courses 24 October
Students deserve a fair hearing from universities Some institutions’ appeals panels deny students a chance of justice, says Daniel Sokol 24 October
THE Scholarly Web - 24 October 2013 Weekly transmissions from the blogosphere By Chris Parr 24 October
More than a game of numbers The unhealthy drive to score maximum REF points can cause universities to lose perspective as well as humanity By John Gill 17 October
THE Scholarly Web - 17 October 2013 Weekly transmissions from the blogosphere By Chris Parr 17 October
What we should ask on student feedback forms Felipe Fernández-Armesto on the inanity of questionnaires assessing teaching 17 October