The Managerial Tutor: A producer of knowledge in a global arena

Abstract

The role of the educational professional and the speed at which educational reforms have been introduced within higher education has transformed the academic into a manager. This is explained through a variety of changes; for example, technology and the transformation of traditional workplaces being replaced by virtual workplaces through the use of computing and advanced communication networks. The UK government has developed the role of the academic by producing policies that have initiated mass higher education and increased the number of knowledge‐based workers to manage employability within a global labour market. This process has produced the managerial tutor. The managerial tutor is the amalgamation of the academic and manager who must be committed to the development of total quality through the delivery of educational provision within both domestic and global markets. This discussion draws upon the national and international policies that have led to the various changes within higher educational institutions and the direct effect these changes have had on the role of the educational profession. It will be shown how tutors have been re‐positioned as knowledge producers for a knowledge economy in a global market, and who must be able to trade through a new form of currency—education.