The Playful University

Book excerpt: This book provides philosophical, political and practical insights that open ways for the university in going beyond its tightly controlled state and into more playful and imaginative futures. In the context of a marketised and regulated environment that stifles creativity and curiosity in higher education, this collection provides an antidote that lies in the potential of play. It identifies tactics and tools for playful practices to conjure real utopias and pathways for the present and possible futures. Pulling together global perspectives from a wide array of different disciplines including higher education, sociology, philosophy, media studies, design, literature, play studies, game studies and political science, it concludes with a collaborative chapter that offers philosophically and theoretically grounded principles for the playful university. The book shows that it is possible to reimagine a higher education in which students and staff approach their studies with a sense of purpose, care, and openness to explore, imagine and build a better future. Looking beyond pedagogy to imagination, and wonder as important perspectives within the university, this is an essential read for those interested in play and subversion in higher education.