Sharon Aris
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sharonaris.bsky.social
Sharon Aris
@sharonaris.bsky.social
790 followers 1.9K following 42 posts
Sociologist, social researcher studying who succeeds in education, how and why; policy, professions & AI; Nexus Fellow, University of NSW; passionate about education for all. Occasional medievalist formerly known as LadyBertilak
Posts Replies Media Videos
Reposted by Sharon Aris
socialmedialab.ca
"Meta tolerates rampant ad fraud from China to safeguard billions in revenue" www.reuters.com/investigatio...
Meta tolerates rampant ad fraud from China to safeguard billions in revenue
A Reuters investigation reveals the owner of Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp decided to accept high levels of fraudulent advertisements from China. Internal company documents show Meta wanted to mini...
www.reuters.com
December 15, 2025 at 6:21 PM
Reposted by Sharon Aris
ryanboyd.bsky.social
There isn't a single problem "solved" by edtech that couldn't be fixed with smaller classes led by well-paid teachers given real academic freedom
December 12, 2025 at 6:23 PM
Reposted by Sharon Aris
rbreich.bsky.social
The world's richest 0.001% now control 3x as much wealth as the entire bottom half of humanity combined.

56,000 wealthy individuals have more than roughly 4 billion people.

Read that back.
Just 0.001% hold three times the wealth of poorest half of humanity, report finds
Data from World Inequality Report also showed top 10% of income-earners earn more than the other 90%
www.theguardian.com
December 12, 2025 at 7:15 PM
Reposted by Sharon Aris
chronicle.com
Teacherly authority emerges when someone seeking knowledge or skills finds someone else with that expertise, and then forms a relationship. But much of higher ed's industrialized organization works against this dynamic. https://chroni.cl/3MyUoxF
Why Higher Ed Has a Crisis of ‘Authority’
Re-establishing meaningful relationships with students is the best way for the sector to reclaim its purpose.
chroni.cl
December 12, 2025 at 7:12 PM
Reposted by Sharon Aris
abcnewsbot.bsky.social
The final report into governance has called for state and Commonwealth legislation to refocus universities on teaching and research.
'Betrayed, undermined and let down': Universities told to do better
The final report into governance has called for state and Commonwealth legislation to refocus universities on teaching and research.
www.abc.net.au
December 11, 2025 at 5:48 AM
sharonaris.bsky.social
I’m in complete support of this action against the publication of school league tables - its a misuse if the data, misleading of true performance, deeply biased against schools with more struggling students due to circumstances not teaching and against the Act, www.abc.net.au/news/2025-12...
'Irresponsible and harmful': News Corp attacked by school leaders over NAPLAN
Forty-one signatories to an open letter say they are "dismayed" and that school rankings cause "harm to our communities".
www.abc.net.au
December 4, 2025 at 7:37 PM
Reposted by Sharon Aris
insidehighered.com
Career Advice Reminder | We Can’t Ban AI, but We Can Friction Fix It

Faculty can do a lot to make it harder, and less enticing, for students to use generative AI, Catherine Savini writes. https://bit.ly/44NjezY

#EDUSky #AcademicSky #HigherEd
A close-up of a smartphone, lying atop a computer keyboard, with icons for generative AI apps ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot, Claude and Perplexity visible on the screen.
December 4, 2025 at 2:26 PM
Reposted by Sharon Aris
spavel.bsky.social
Headline: "AI can replace 11.7% of workforce"

Actual study: Anthropic paid MIT to use a "labor simulation tool" that said 11.7% of TASKS could be done by AI
MIT study finds AI can already replace 11.7% of U.S. workforce
Artificial intelligence can already replace 11.7% of the U.S. labor market, across finance, health care and professional services, according to MIT's study.
www.cnbc.com
November 29, 2025 at 9:57 PM
Reposted by Sharon Aris
gagandeep249.bsky.social
I'm excited to announce that I am on the 2025-26 economics job market!
I’m an applied microeconomist working on education, gender, and inequality—with a focus on how teachers and institutions shape student outcomes.
A 🧵on my #JMP and other projects:
#EconSky
(1/n)
November 29, 2025 at 11:49 PM
Reposted by Sharon Aris
jesbattis.bsky.social
An issue we're seeing at all levels of university is that many students are simply refusing to do *anything*. They aren't reading the syllabus, aren't following assignment guidelines, aren't engaging with material, ignoring deadlines. And this might seem like old news, but it truly has ramped up.
November 28, 2025 at 10:15 PM
Reposted by Sharon Aris
drmeagantyler.bsky.social
"They’ve already struck an in-principle deal with T&F that all Australian and Aotearoa New Zealand university research published by T&F can be freely accessed by members of the public from 1 Jan 2026. This is kind of huge." Um, yeah it is! #highered #academicsky researchwhisperer.org/2025/11/25/l...
Librarians versus the world
Photo of London’s National Art Library by Sebastien LE DEROUT on Unsplash Here at the Research Whisperer, we love librarians. They are smart, dedicated people who want to help you with your researc…
researchwhisperer.org
November 28, 2025 at 6:26 AM
Reposted by Sharon Aris
acadsocsciences.bsky.social
“If we want to build a fairer, more inclusive society, we need to understand it first. That’s the power of social science.” Watch Julia Gillard discuss the vital role of social science in a divided world in our 2025 Campaign for Social Science Annual Sage Lecture. 📽️➡️ acss.org.uk/news/watch-t...
November 27, 2025 at 2:54 PM
Reposted by Sharon Aris
ryancbriggs.net
A student recently asked me for academic job market advice and I pulled up a slideshow from a few years ago. I don't think I've shared it, but it might be broadly useful. I think the advice almost entirely holds up.

First part is about my time on the job market
1/3
brief description of my experience and a joke xkcd about selection bias my hit rate on the job market in 2012 (low) my hit rate on the job market in 2013 (low, but got a TT job) my hit rate on the job market as an AP (3/7 offers)
November 21, 2025 at 9:13 PM
Reposted by Sharon Aris
refrag.bsky.social
Today is the day to repost this meme about International Men's Day, one of the most unironically wholesome memes that has ever been made.

Shoutout to all my fellow champs, chiefs, and kings. ✊
Nerdy kid at keyboard: Hi guys, I've noticed that it is International Men's Day today, and I'm confused. Why do we need a day to talk about men? We're not a marginalised group like women, queer people, or people of colour. The media is already full of stories about men. Big buff shirtless dude at keyboard: I'm glad you asked, champ. Whatever your view on men's place in society, it's still true that we face a lot of issues - like social isolation, risk of suicide, health problems, and attitudes towards sex and child rearing. Having a day to talk about those doesn't take away from anyone else's problems. In fact, having a day to talk about them helps us be more mindful, and listen better at other times. Second shirtless buff dude on a couch at his laptop: The chief here is really on to something. I want to echo what he said, and also point out that the idea we should remain silent about our problems actually contributes to a lot of our issues. We are human beings, with human needs. Seeking mutual support and understanding isn't the same thing as placing a burden on others. Especially if we're providing it for each other. Third buff dude at his laptop: Right on, my fellow kings. We've inherited a social legacy of competition and division, and a lot of what makes a man in our era is under question. IMD is a chance for us to examine and rethink what we are together, and build the bonds of solidarity and support that will make a better way possible - like in this meme. Because in our hearts, we're all curious kids and buff guys on keyboards.
November 19, 2025 at 6:38 PM
Reposted by Sharon Aris
asherwolf.bsky.social
Relying on algorithms to assist NDIS support planning can cause significant harm to people living with disability, says Dr Georgia van Toorn from UNSW’s School of Social Sciences www.unsw.edu.au/arts-design-...
Automating NDIS support planning can dehumanise and harm people living with disability
www.unsw.edu.au
November 18, 2025 at 8:06 AM
Reposted by Sharon Aris
kiftsally.bsky.social
📢My #NeededNowLT series w @jasonmlodge.bsky.social
@unsw.edu.au Diana Turnip➕ @priyakhanna.bsky.social
👇From polyjargon 2 programs: Systems thinking in assessment
🤔Long-term thinking 4 short-sighted world
🏅Assessment design as team sport
💥Programmatic➕program-level
open.substack.com/pub/neededno...
From polyjargon to programs: Systems thinking in assessment
Diana Saragi Turnip and Priya Khanna Pathak, University of New South Wales
open.substack.com
November 13, 2025 at 3:41 AM
Reposted by Sharon Aris
hansonmark.bsky.social
We wrote the Strain on scientific publishing to highlight the problems of time & trust. With a fantastic group of co-authors, we present The Drain of Scientific Publishing:

a 🧵 1/n

Drain: arxiv.org/abs/2511.04820
Strain: direct.mit.edu/qss/article/...
Oligopoly: direct.mit.edu/qss/article/...
A table showing profit margins of major publishers. A snippet of text related to this table is below. 1. The four-fold drain 1.1 Money Currently, academic publishing is dominated by profit-oriented, multinational companies for whom scientific knowledge is a commodity to be sold back to the academic community who created it. The dominant four are Elsevier, Springer Nature, Wiley and Taylor & Francis, which collectively generated over US$7.1 billion in revenue from journal publishing in 2024 alone, and over US$12 billion in profits between 2019 and 2024 (Table 1A). Their profit margins have always been over 30% in the last five years, and for the largest publisher (Elsevier) always over 37%. Against many comparators, across many sectors, scientific publishing is one of the most consistently profitable industries (Table S1). These financial arrangements make a substantial difference to science budgets. In 2024, 46% of Elsevier revenues and 53% of Taylor & Francis revenues were generated in North America, meaning that North American researchers were charged over US$2.27 billion by just two for-profit publishers. The Canadian research councils and the US National Science Foundation were allocated US$9.3 billion in that year. A figure detailing the drain on researcher time. 1. The four-fold drain 1.2 Time The number of papers published each year is growing faster than the scientific workforce, with the number of papers per researcher almost doubling between 1996 and 2022 (Figure 1A). This reflects the fact that publishers’ commercial desire to publish (sell) more material has aligned well with the competitive prestige culture in which publications help secure jobs, grants, promotions, and awards. To the extent that this growth is driven by a pressure for profit, rather than scholarly imperatives, it distorts the way researchers spend their time. The publishing system depends on unpaid reviewer labour, estimated to be over 130 million unpaid hours annually in 2020 alone (9). Researchers have complained about the demands of peer-review for decades, but the scale of the problem is now worse, with editors reporting widespread difficulties recruiting reviewers. The growth in publications involves not only the authors’ time, but that of academic editors and reviewers who are dealing with so many review demands. Even more seriously, the imperative to produce ever more articles reshapes the nature of scientific inquiry. Evidence across multiple fields shows that more papers result in ‘ossification’, not new ideas (10). It may seem paradoxical that more papers can slow progress until one considers how it affects researchers’ time. While rewards remain tied to volume, prestige, and impact of publications, researchers will be nudged away from riskier, local, interdisciplinary, and long-term work. The result is a treadmill of constant activity with limited progress whereas core scholarly practices – such as reading, reflecting and engaging with others’ contributions – is de-prioritized. What looks like productivity often masks intellectual exhaustion built on a demoralizing, narrowing scientific vision. A table of profit margins across industries. The section of text related to this table is below: 1. The four-fold drain 1.1 Money Currently, academic publishing is dominated by profit-oriented, multinational companies for whom scientific knowledge is a commodity to be sold back to the academic community who created it. The dominant four are Elsevier, Springer Nature, Wiley and Taylor & Francis, which collectively generated over US$7.1 billion in revenue from journal publishing in 2024 alone, and over US$12 billion in profits between 2019 and 2024 (Table 1A). Their profit margins have always been over 30% in the last five years, and for the largest publisher (Elsevier) always over 37%. Against many comparators, across many sectors, scientific publishing is one of the most consistently profitable industries (Table S1). These financial arrangements make a substantial difference to science budgets. In 2024, 46% of Elsevier revenues and 53% of Taylor & Francis revenues were generated in North America, meaning that North American researchers were charged over US$2.27 billion by just two for-profit publishers. The Canadian research councils and the US National Science Foundation were allocated US$9.3 billion in that year. The costs of inaction are plain: wasted public funds, lost researcher time, compromised scientific integrity and eroded public trust. Today, the system rewards commercial publishers first, and science second. Without bold action from the funders we risk continuing to pour resources into a system that prioritizes profit over the advancement of scientific knowledge.
November 11, 2025 at 11:52 AM
sharonaris.bsky.social
theconversation.com/how-did-aust...
How did Australian universities go from free education to $50,000 arts degrees in 50 years?
Thanks to the Job Ready Graduates scheme, an arts degree today will cost over $50,000. How have five decades of government policy taken us from free education to this?
theconversation.com
November 12, 2025 at 4:59 AM
Reposted by Sharon Aris
conradhackett.bsky.social
Sociological processes are at work in the field of sociology
papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
November 11, 2025 at 7:11 PM
sharonaris.bsky.social
It is well past time for the Aus federal government to drop the unjust ‘jobs ready’ scheme. They opposed its introduction for good reasons and the negative effects on students and the sector are profound. Its continuation after 4 years suggests they support it. www.abc.net.au/news/2025-11...
'That's a house deposit': The cost dilemma facing university students
As hundreds of thousands of high school seniors consider university, they are being warned that enrolling in humanities degrees will leave them with a debt close to $55,000.
www.abc.net.au
November 11, 2025 at 7:13 PM
Reposted by Sharon Aris
socialmedialab.ca
"Why American-style polarisation is spreading across the West"

Two words: algorithms and incentives. Mostly incentives. Until we modify or eliminate incentives, all we can do is watch as the fabric of society is pulled apart, strand by strand. www.ft.com/content/5060...
November 7, 2025 at 2:57 PM
Reposted by Sharon Aris
smedleyrath.bsky.social
Find out what you can do with a sociology degree? (Answer: You can be just about anything you want to be with a sociology degree!) sociologycoach.com/what-can-you...
What Can You Do With a Sociology Degree?
There are many diverse careers that you can do with a sociology degree. Graduates work in business, social service, and criminal justice.
sociologycoach.com
November 2, 2025 at 2:07 PM
Reposted by Sharon Aris
mariapopova.bsky.social
"Let this darkness be a bell tower
and you the bell. As you ring,

what batters you becomes your strength."

Rilke's timeless spell for living through difficult times www.themarginalian.org/2023/01/11/l...
Let This Darkness Be a Bell Tower: Rilke’s Timeless Spell for Living Through Difficult Times
“What is it like, such intensity of pain?”
www.themarginalian.org
October 31, 2025 at 4:47 AM
Reposted by Sharon Aris
profdamienpage.bsky.social
After three days spent with AI researchers from around the world, one thing is very clear to me: we need the humanities and social sciences more than ever.

We need philosophers to ask about ethics and responsibility. We need sociologists to understand how technology reshapes relationships, 1/
October 30, 2025 at 5:54 AM
Reposted by Sharon Aris
kiftsally.bsky.social
📢In my #NeededNowLT blog w @jasonmlodge.bsky.social
@unsw.edu.au Steel
Valid assessment is a plausible argument not an absolute
Beyond: Exam good, Essay bad
🤔What is valid assessment?
🤔What plausible arguments do we have that this assessment is evidence of learning?
open.substack.com/pub/neededno...
Valid assessment is a plausible argument not an absolute
Alex Steel, University of New South Wales
open.substack.com
October 30, 2025 at 2:45 AM