Fostering and restraining a community of academic learning : possibilities and pressures in a postgraduate and early career researcher group at an Australian university

This paper is part of a series of analyses of the operations and outcomes of a postgraduate and early career researcher community of academic learning at an Australian university (see also Danaher, 2008).The study has three aims: • To map the group’s approaches and activities • To conduct a theoretically informed analysis of those approaches and activities • To link the findings of that analysis with broader issues attending contemporary higher education, including academic work and communities of learning.The purpose of the study is to contribute to the ongoing interrogation and theorisation of academic work and its potential contribution to academic learning and academics’ professional and personal identities (Beck & Young, 2005; Danaher, Danaher & Danaher, 2008; Harris, 2005; Henkel, 2005; Houston, Luanna & Paewai, 2006; Lee & Boud, 2003; Menzies & Newson, 2008; Scott, 2003).