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We are living in challenging times when the world is fighting to survive the impact of climate changes, growth of pandemics, an unprecedented flow of migrant population, war and destruction. We are also witnessing the phenomena of globalization, economic and technological growth, which are also leading to various opportunities for growth. The desire for inclusive education, equality in accessibility and sustainability has led to responsible and accountable organizations of higher education. Business houses, along with international agencies and institutions of higher education, are now putting their heads together to find a solution to societal and environmental problems. They are often engaged in debating, drafting policies and involving in active research while investing in implementing and communicating issues pertaining to corporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainability (Vogel, 2005). The concept of CSR has grabbed the attention of media, academia, national governments, intergovernmental organizations and non-governmental organizations. Universities are no longer functioning in isolation but are getting prepared to accommodate and be a part of social change by actively involving students in community life and not confining them to classroom teaching as the only means of teaching–learning method (Sengupta, Blessinger, & Yamin, 2019). This book aims to explore scientific literature pertaining to the subject of social responsibility (SR) and theoretical positions on social ethics and the value orientation of the institutions of higher education. Policies and practices used in various institutions are cited as case studies which give us an insight into the cultural environment of the organization, which is essential to embed SR into the curriculum. Policies and pedagogies that are based on inculcation of SR can lead to the social and economic benefit of students and society at large. While no one approach is prescribed as the benchmark, the chapters help us to understand the practices that academics are implementing in India, Nigeria, Canada, New Zealand and the United States.

In a context that is directly linked to the interest movement that was borrowed by institutions of higher education, authors such as Michel Freitag (1995, 2002, 2008, 2011), Bill Readings (1997) or Michel Seymour (2013) focused on the misappropriation of the foundations of education, in favor of the economic needs of the new corporatist society.

Through his work on the idea of recognition, Axel Honneth (1996, 2007a, 2007b, 2010, 2014) has managed to draw an interesting critique of contemporary Western society and the “use” it makes of individuals. With the publication of Disrespect: The Normative Foundation of Critical Theory (Honneth, 2007b) and Reification: A Recognition Theoretical View (Honneth, 2007a), Honneth sets the tone for the demanding character of his critique, which calls for a reconsideration of the intrinsic value of subjects, with regard to their own needs, their freedom and their identity.

Considering that higher education institutions tend to focus more and more on private interests, for example, by considerably diminishing professors’ academic freedom over the years, it seems imperative to question these power relations between them and civil society (which, of course, is not homogeneous). This will be the subject of our chapter, which will be based on works from both philosophy and sociology.

The importance of academic curriculum in higher education cannot be overemphasised. This explains the scrutiny to which the various models employed for the development of higher education programmes curriculum are subjected. In spite of the numerous scrutiny, higher education curriculum development is still infested with downsides. Solutions to these problems have been proffered by the strategy employed by Curriculum Development and Implementation Branch, Manitoba Department of Education in the development of the curriculum for Canadian Art Education in Manitoba.

The inability to incorporate social responsibility into curriculum of higher education programmes has been a major setback in the actualisation of social responsibility in higher education in Nigeria. The tertiary institutions therefore need to look beyond just issuing degrees and diplomas but inculcate in their students the need to think beyond individual interest to societal interest. Based on this backdrop, this chapter explores the strategies employed by the Manitoba Department of Education in the curriculum development and how these strategies can be implemented in Nigeria for the inclusion of social responsibility into the curriculum of higher education. It focuses on identifying the variables integral to the construction of curricula of higher education programmes in the south-west geopolitical zone Nigeria.

This chapter uses the re-development of an undergraduate business degree in a large Australasian university as a case study of the systematic embedding of social responsibility into the curriculum. The chapter discusses the drivers for curriculum change including the converging desires of both employers and students for business education to not only equip graduates with thinking skills for a fast-changing future but also provide guidance to students on becoming ethical leaders. The design thinking process that underpinned the curriculum re-development is outlined and the graduate profile and curriculum structure that emerged from the process are discussed. The graduate profile includes an aspirational goal for students to be future generators for sustainable value for business and society at large. Attainment of this goal is supported by development of other aspects of the graduate profile and the structure of the degree itself. Students are required to undertake multi/interdisciplinary study in order to expose them to different perspectives and ways of thinking and doing. They are scaffolded through the development of an understanding of social responsibility in business and the application of ethical frameworks to complex problems over the course of three years, through four compulsory courses. The chapter notes the importance of the hidden curriculum in teaching social responsibility and demonstrates how the teaching of social responsibility in the business curriculum is reinforced through the structure of the degree and consistency with both the Business School’s and University’s mission.

Higher education has to develop personal and professional competences of students and to improve their knowledge and skills as well as their sense of civic engagement and understanding of cultural and social issue. Moreover, higher education research suggests that the use of technology, e-learning and online course can provide a powerful learning experience for students (Volman, 2005). Thus, e-service-learning (E-SL), “…an electronic form of experiential education and incorporates electronically supported service learning” (Malvey, Hamby, & Fottler, 2006, p. 187) could be a teaching and learning methodology to reach these goals. Indeed:

it is delivered online and uses the Internet and state of the art technologies that permit students, faculty, and community partners to collaborate at a distance in an organized, focused, experiential service-learning activity, which simultaneously promotes civic responsibility and meets community needs. (Malvey et al., 2006, p. 187)

it is delivered online and uses the Internet and state of the art technologies that permit students, faculty, and community partners to collaborate at a distance in an organized, focused, experiential service-learning activity, which simultaneously promotes civic responsibility and meets community needs. (Malvey et al., 2006, p. 187)

Starting from a theoretical analysis of the evolution of E-SL, this chapter describes a case study of the use of E-SL in English Language Teaching (ELT) education and reveals the effects that it produces on the development of digital skills, teaching abilities and professional identity of pre-service teachers.

The radical center is a space of convergence among overlapping circles, a space in which various ecosystems come into contact. In this chapter, we discuss curricular approaches that take their home in this radical center, leveraging documentary mediamaking practices to connect students, disciplinary approaches, community members, and organizing efforts in relationships of transparency, accountability, and mutuality. In such contexts, students can be equipped to create responsible documentaries through engaged pedagogies that focus on critical documentary theory and understanding of individual location (Coles, 1997). This chapter presents two case studies that facilitated documentary-as-praxis in different communities in the Lehigh Valley, in Pennsylvania.