Universities are strange beasts. On the one hand they are bastions of tradition, remorselessly exploiting their reputations to promote the solidity of their degrees. On the other, they are crucibles of change and of new, sometimes radical ideas operating at the cutting-edge of society. Clark Kerr, a former chancellor of the University of California at Berkeley, famously defined a university as a series of faculties "held together by a common grievance over car parking". That flippancy has stood the test of time but, at the University of Canterbury, the words "office space" may soon replace "car parking". Vice-Chancellor Dr Rod Carr is promoting an idea from the outside world that would also shed light on the daily activities and attendance of some of the institution's more elusive academics. He wants to make better use of building space by getting academics to share offices and even desks. Bringing staff out of their offices will make students feel "less intimidated", he says. University buildings where the corridors are dark and lined with closed doors encourage "a certain type of behaviour, which is, 'this is me ... in my cupboard ... leave me alone'". The vice-chancellor is quite right in highlighting that problem. Most who have studied at a higher education institution will have experienced difficulties in tracking down some lecturers or supervisors and been left frustrated by the note on the door saying "Office hours: Tuesday, 1-2pm". The Tertiary Education Union has warned that taking academics out of their offices and making them share space may not be good for staff-student interaction, with students less likely to see supervisors in person and instead resort either to email or not asking questions. Having to book a time to catch up, in a meeting room, would formalise what before was a tap on the lecturer's door to ask a simple question. It might also result in more academics deciding to work from home, which would make the scheme backfire somewhat. Carr's argument is that academics who work on campus most of the days will be more than likely to have their own office. While the university has had a space-allocation policy for many years, he cites the new $70 million education building as an example - it has 60 office spaces but currently 85 staff will work there. Everyone has different work habits. Anyone working in an open-plan office or hot-desking knows there are drawbacks. Some find it difficult to concentrate in a noisy environment, others work better without interruptions, others need the comfort of their own dedicated space in which to work. There are also questions of whether hot-desking creates a more fragmented workforce, can worsen repetitive strain injuries and allow bugs to spread around an office more easily. Another potential shortcoming in the university environment is that academics involved in clinical teaching programmes also have to deal with complicated issues of privacy and confidentiality that make open-plan offices unfeasible. By raising the issue of sharing office space, Carr is opening himself and the university's senior management team up to suggestions they do the same, although they may already be considering that. It seems the days of dusty, book-filled university offices may be coming to an end. We think Canterbury's idea to open the doors and bring academics out into the light deserves a B.
Rod Carr, University of Canterbury Vice-Chancellor, has endorsed the idea of office-sharing, or even desk-sharing, for staff within universities in an effort to increase staff-student interaction and reduce the intimidation factor of dark corridors with closed office doors. The move comes as a number of universities, including Auckland University, have been criticised by students who say they are being forced into sharing their offices with colleagues from other institutions. decrease efficiency and create issues of privacy and confidentiality, it is a sign of the growing momentum behind then shared workspace trend.