The Tyranny of Academic Fashion: A Reject’s Lament

Abstract

Michael Newman has been making a distinctive and internationally recognized contribution to radical adult education and social action for over 40 years.  His books include Adult Education and Community Action (1975), The Poor Cousin: A Study of Adult Education (1979), The Third Contract: Theory and Practice in Trade Union Training (1993), Defining the Enemy: Adult Education in Social Action (1994), Maeler's Regard: Images of Adult Learning (1999) and Teaching Defiance: Stories and Strategies for Activist Educators (2006). In this article he reflects upon his recent experience of being ‘denied publication’ by a ‘learned’ academic journal – and what this tells us about what we’re up against today and how we must continue to struggle for what we believe in, however academically unfashionable this may be.  Now more than ever, adult education needs ‘eccentrics and enthusiasts’ to challenge and counteract the common sense of the era.