The Idea of Universitas Studiorum in View of the Principle Guidelines of the Act 2.0. Some Reflections on the Mission of the Contemporary University

• Published in: Roczniki humanistyczne 2021, Vol.69 (2), p.213-242
• Main Authors: Smoleń, Paweł, Świstak, Marzena
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Education; Higher Education; Social Sciences
• ISSN: 0035-7707
• DOI: 10.18290/rh21692-9

The community of students and teachers is the fundamental basis of the model of ideal university. It is generally assumed that it was in the Middle Ages that the university was created, although schools of a sort of academic nature were present as early as in Ancient Greece. Since the beginnings of universities in Europe, values such as truth, autonomy, pluralism, freedom and universality have been close to them and have intertwined in the mainstream process of seeking truth. The denial of these values was detrimental to the very heart of the idea of university. The functioning of ancient forms of scientific activity and education and the emergence of the first medieval European universities are inevitably linked to the shaping of the idea of university. This is the background for the attempt to verify and evaluate the main assumptions of the last reform of higher education in Poland (the so-called Act 2.0). The analysis covers first of all the adopted objectives of the reform, the way of defining the mission of the university and the correctness of the legislative process. The whole discussion is carried out in the perspective of the medieval idea of universitas studiorum.