Trust in and through Academic Development

Trust matters in higher education, yet it is often taken for granted. This book shows how trust―between students and teachers, faculty and academic developers, or individuals and institutions―shapes the ways we teach, learn, and work together.

Drawing on fresh research and first-hand accounts from across the world, this book reveals that trust is not static but a dynamic, reciprocal process. It is cultivated gradually through care, credibility, and openness, and it enables people to share vulnerabilities, take risks, and imagine new possibilities for teaching and learning. Contributors explore trust at many levels: in the classroom, in academic development programmes, and within wider institutional and cultural contexts. They demonstrate how trust allows people to share vulnerabilities, engage in honest conversations, and take risks that lead to more inclusive and effective teaching. At the same time, they address the challenges of mistrust and the work required to establish trustworthy practices and structures.

Accessible and thought-provoking, this book offers valuable insights for anyone interested in the human relationships at the heart of higher education. It makes a compelling case that trust-building is not optional but integral to effective teaching, meaningful learning, and transformative academic development.

This book was originally published as a special issue of International Journal for Academic Development.

Gabriela Pleschová leads the Centre for Scholarship and Teaching in the Faculty of Arts at Comenius University Bratislava, Slovakia, where she serves as an associate professor in the Department of Pedagogical Sciences.

Kathryn A. Sutherland is an academic developer in the Centre for Academic Development at Te Herenga Waka―Victoria University of Wellington, in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Peter Felten is Executive Director of the Center for Engaged Learning, Assistant Provost for Teaching and Learning, and Professor of History at Elon University, USA.

Rachel Forsyth is a senior educational developer at Lund University, Sweden.

Mary C. Wright is Professor of Education Scholarship at the Office of Educational Innovation, DVC (Education), University of Sydney, Australia.