Systemic Autonomy as an Educational Factor for Learners and Teachers

This contribution attempts to introduce a systemic view of autonomy. The author argues that systemic autonomy depends on structures, procedures and regulations that are in force at organisations and that can either hinder or promote autonomy. The article reviews traces of systemic autonomy in the literature and develops a descriptive framework of the concept. It presents a scale containing nine indicators for measuring an institution’s degree of systemic autonomy, which teachers may easily apply to their own context. The article also includes recommendations for encouraging autonomy in restrictive environments. The author further compares his experiences from two different higher-education institutions: as a teacher at a university of applied sciences and as a learner at a university. The observations gained from this comparison lead to the conclusion that the influence of organisational systems cannot be ignored when expecting autonomy to unfold.