The life and times of university teachers in the era of digitalization: A tragedy

Abstract

ABSTRACT Although digitalization has become an everyday phenomenon in higher education (HE), there is still limited understanding on how HE teachers experience the digitalized work environment. In this article we utilize narrative research methodology to share HE teachers’ voices, addressing the following questions: What is the lived experience of being a teacher in digitalizing higher education? How has digitalization shaped the work environment in higher education? What meaning do HE teachers make of digitalization? The research participants are six university teachers with significant work experience. The findings are reported in the form of a classic tragedy narrative, which reveals that the rise of managerialism and neoliberalization in HE has changed teachers’ work and the role of digital tools play in it, and teachers are experiencing an increasing sense of alienation. In conclusion, we elaborate these experiences theoretically and paint a picture of today’s digitalized work environment in HE.