Academic Performance Evaluation and the Organisation of Knowledge in the Research-Intensive University

Universities are widely acknowledged to play a key role in the development of advanced 'knowledge economies' and, as such, it is unsurprising that their structures and practices are coming under increasing public scrutiny. In this paper, while it does not question the view that Irish universities may be urgently in need of reform, it does raise a number of concerns about the rationale underpinning key features of the change discourse and the substantive nature of some of the reforms being introduced. In particular, it focuses on one aspect of these changes, namely the notion of academic performance evaluation. Changing the promotion procedures for academic staff at UCD was motivated, inter alia, by widespread dissatisfaction with the existing system and the changing cultural context within UCD and the wider educational sector. The UCD case study draws attention to the emergence of an important and influential discourse in the university around accountability, fairness and transparency.