ASWA responds to UWA proposal to discontinue Anthropology and Sociology

Submissions

21 July 2021

ASWA Objects to UWA’s proposal to discontinue Anthropology and Sociology

17 July 2021

For over 50 years, ASWA has furthered the interests of anthropology and anthropologists in Western Australia. As a collective of the voices of anthropologists in the State, ASWA expresses its serious objection to the proposal by the University of Western Australia to discontinue courses in the Anthropology and Sociology major and associated units.

After consulting with its membership, ASWA submitted its response to Professor Amanda Davies, Head of UWA's School of Social Sciences.

ASWA response to UWA proposal to discontinue Anthropology and Sociology

12 July 2021

ASWA members are alarmed at the proposal by the University of Western Australia to discontinue the discipline of Anthropology and Sociology and to cease offering these courses from Semester 1, 2022. The University has issued a press release rationalising its decision. ASWA member and former head of Discipline, Dr Greg Acciaoli, personally wrote to the Media Manager at the University urging it to correct significant errors of fact in its press release. ASWA supports and endorses the views expressed in the following letter about what ASWA understands to be the press release below.

Dear Ms Hewett

It has come to my attention that UWA issued this press release below over the weekend. As a former staff member (and for three years head of discipline) of Anthropology and Sociology, I would like to offer some corrections to counter the misinformation it contains.

The Department of Anthropology (as it was formerly called before reorganisation of the university) moved to change its name after discussions in 1996 in order to, firstly, acknowledge that sociology had been taught in the department for some decades with such staff as Charles Waddell, Dorothy Parker, Beverly McNamara, Loretta Baldassar and others and, secondly, to give more options for our graduating students both in the job market and for postgraduate programs down the track (i.e. the opportunity to apply for PhDs in postgraduate sociology programs internationally, as well as anthropology programs). This was our initiative, not a replacement initiated by the university.

Our program was not discontinued and then replaced. Just about every discipline and major at UWA has changed its name in the last few decades, often in response to administrative recommendations or even demands to use names that would attract more students. Phrasing our name change as a discontinuance and then replacement by the university with another program would mean that the university would have to consider most every discipline and major at UWA as having been discontinued and replaced, some of them multiple times. Singling out Anthropology with this phrasing is a misleading interpretation of both the facts of the name transition for Anthropology and Sociology and the general procedure for all disciplines and majors in the university.

Our student enrolments at that time were not low, and our name change was thus not a response to that. We have on record the minutes of the full day strategy meeting at which the name change was discussed. The high level of student satisfaction with our program (third highest in the nation across Anthropology programs at the time according to the Course Experience Questionnaire then being used nationally). Stating that our program was discontinued and replaced due to low student enrolments is a gross misrepresentation, as is the attribution of continuing low student enrolments relative to other social science disciplines.

It is also a misrepresentation to assert that other programs provide equivalent learning and skills development opportunities. No other discipline analyses social phenomena in a cross-cultural context in the way Anthropology and Sociology do, nor do other disciplines analyse such phenomena in terms of the interplay of local conceptualisations and analytic frameworks. Certainly, the major in Indigenous knowledge, history and heritage does not cover the space we occupy in those forms of analysis. Its focus is Indigenous Australia, not global Indigeneity, and it does not teach the range of subjects beyond Indigeneity that were core to the Anthropology and Sociology, including global migration, environmental anthropology and sociology, and many others. The program in Forensic Anthropology does not cover any of the concepts and methods taught in Social Anthropology and Sociology, as it is guided by biological disciplines in its analysis of human and other remains. The reason International Development covered similar concepts and methods was because members of Anthropology and Sociology taught in it. If there are no anthropologists and sociologists teaching in it because they have retired or been released, it will no longer cover those concepts and methods. Research training in Anthropology and Sociology will not be able to continue, especially at the postgraduate level, if there are no anthropologist and sociologists continuing to supervise and teach. If there are no longer members of an Anthropology and Sociology discipline supervising and teaching at UWA, the study of anthropology and sociology is being discontinued.

Please issue a press release correcting these errors of fact and interpretation in your previous press release. Many thanks for your attention.

Sincerely yours,

Greg Acciaioli

UWA Press Release

The Discipline of Anthropology and an associated major in Anthropology were discontinued at UWA some time ago, as a result of very low student enrolments. In response, UWA developed a major in Anthropology and Sociology as part of the BA and this has been managed by the School of Social Sciences. This major is now proposed to be discontinued, as a result of continuing poor enrolments. It is important to note, however, that although it is proposed to discontinue the Anthropology and Sociology major, the study of anthropology itself is not being discontinued.

As UWA has continued to develop its scope of offerings within the BA, we offer a number of programs that have proven much more attractive to students and which provide equivalent learning and skills development opportunities.

UWA has also established a major in Indigenous knowledge, history and heritage that draws directly on the experience and knowledge of staff from the School of Indigenous Studies. This major covers much of the space that our more traditional Anthropology major used to occupy but also enables our students to learn directly from indigenous scholars.

The School of Social Sciences is also proposing to continue to offer a Master in Forensic Anthropology and a Master in International Development, in which students engage with concepts and methods in anthropology with a focus on international development. We are confident there are many options available to students to engage in studies of humanity and human cultures.

Research training in Anthropology and Sociology is proposed to continue.

The School of Social Sciences has a separate discipline of Archaeology which has a developed program in Australian Archaeology, with particular specialisms in Indigenous heritage and rock art. The current proposal makes clear that the School is, in fact, proposing to further develop Australian Archaeology into a flagship research area for the School and University, ensuring the existing strong relationships with Indigenous partners can be further developed.

Background:

The University of Western Australia last year moved to address its ongoing financial sustainability and ensure its capacity to invest in providing the best campus environment, research and teaching facilities for students and staff.

The University’s structural reform is being managed in a phased, strategic manner by leaders in each academic and professional service area – as such there will be no overarching announcement of university-wide redundancies.

Regrettably, as has occurred across the university sector, some job losses will be inevitable. These will be managed fairly and respectfully, in accordance with our obligations under our enterprise agreements and with the NTEU.

Proposed changes are being considered area-by-area and being assessed on strategic merit against the University’s student-centric and broader priorities.

The University is targeting a sustainable 15% cash margin from our core operations; the plan to achieve this is through removing both our structural deficit of $70M and growing our operational income by $80M. This will enable funds to be reinvested in our future, providing the best campus environment, including technology systems, as well as research and teaching facilities for our students and staff, who are our key priorities.

The University’s structural deficit represents the operational efficiency the University is required to make to ensure we continue to spend within our means. Throughout 2021, the University is undertaking a structural reform program, which seeks to remove the remaining $40M structural deficit (of the original $70M) from our core operating funds across 2021/2022.

It is important to note that while UWA’s 2020 audited financial statements showed a consolidated operating result of $55M, much of that surplus came from restricted-use funds and investments, which meant it could not be used for operational purposes. The actual underlying result was an operational deficit of $2.4M.