The educator’s role in Higher Education: position papers from a project of the Special Interest Group Higher Education of the Worshipful Company of Educators

The Company of Educators was set up in the year 2017 and currently has over thirty members who are Freemen and Liverymen of the company interested in Higher Education, Higher Education policy, research, and research training. Topics of interest include educational methods and concepts for universities, training of doctoral students, training of skills relevant for higher education; mentoring and career development of junior academics. The group is chaired by Benedikt Löwe. So far, the SIGHE had two meetings, one at Christ's College, Cambridge, on 3 November 2017 and one at New College, Oxford, on 20 January 2018. During these meetings, SIGHE decided on a number of projects that would define and inform the discussion of the members of the group. The first project, entitled The educator’s role in Higher Education: What distinguishes it from other educational sectors?, is coordinated by James Crabbe and Max Weaver. The two coordinators have produced two position papers that constitute this document. The position papers are to be seen as personal statements of their respective authors rather than a description of the position of the SIGHE, let alone the company. They are supposed to provoke useful reflection and discussion. The authors of the papers encourage readers to contact them directly and discuss the content of the papers.