The new 14-19 diplomas are leading the agenda for FE-related software and systems at Bett. Subjects from business administration and finance to construction, engineering and health and beauty get extensive resources in the form of interactive courseware and project software.
LJ Create is showing a virtual teaching resource designed to deliver the engineering diploma. The learning materials encourage teamworking and self-paced learning. Awarding body Education Development International (EDI) is launching the Project and the Extended Project - two qualifications aimed at 14-19-year-olds and designed to boost personal, learning and thinking skills by giving learners a framework within which to carry out independent, self-directed research. These study programmes are a compulsory part of the new diploma and run from levels 1 to 3.
The educational superhighway provider, Janet, has come up with Collaborate, a weblink that puts colleges, libraries and museums wanting to videoconference in touch with each other. Collaborate went live in April 2008 and is a resource bound to appeal to vocationally based diploma students.
Meanwhile, two college projects have been grabbing attention. Motor vehicle and construction apprentices at Chichester college in West Sussex have been using POV1 head-mounted digital cameras made by Action Cameras to gather evidence for their portfolios and to replay workshop techniques. And at East Berkshire college, students in engineering, construction, motor vehicle care and hairdressing have raised success rates after being issued with Sony Ericsson K770i phones and AsusMinibook laptops to record evidence of their work. Students used PhotoDJ picture editing software that came with the Sony Ericsson phones and presentation-making software that came as part of the laptops' Linux operating system. These are two of more than 30 Learning and Skills Council-sponsored projects being run in colleges across England by the Mobile Learning Network (MoLeNET) - visit its Bett seminar on January 17 (12-12.45pm).
http://ljcreate.com/engineeringdiploma
Further education for engineering diploma
Major national study aims to help young people to overcome the cycle of self-harm
Each year, hundreds of young people deliberately hurt themselves. Now a national study will examine the best techniques for preventing young people from self-harming again.
The £4.5m study, led by the University of Leeds and NHS Leeds, will establish whether a regime of family therapy is an effective interventional technique for these young people.
Funded by the National Institute for Health Research Health Technology Assessment (NIHR HTA) programme, the project involves 15 NHS organisations and three universities and will work with more than 800 young people and their families.
Professor David Cottrell, Dean of Medicine at the University of Leeds, is leading the trial. He says, “Currently services use a range of different treatment approaches but we don’t have enough evidence to know which is the most effective.
“We know there is a link between self-harm and difficulties in family relationships and communication. However, there just isn’t enough evidence of the effectiveness of the therapies used to help these young people, though smaller studies have indicated that family therapy could be an effective technique in reducing further episodes of self-harm in adolescents.
“We are delighted that the NIHR HTA programme has agreed to fund what is one of the largest studies of child and adolescent mental health ever to be conducted in the UK. Through this study we’ll be looking at whether the “whole family” approach, which focuses on the relationships, roles and communication patterns between family members, will enable families to work with young people to help them manage crises and emotional situations more effectively.
“It’s concerned with what goes on between people, as much as what goes on in someone’s head.”
The Leeds-run trial will be the largest and most comprehensive of its kind and will give agencies involved in the care of young people a definitive, evidence-based insight into the effectiveness of this intervention in reducing further episodes of self-harm. Participants in the seven year trial will be 11 - 17 year olds who have self-harmed more than once and have required hospital admission for their injuries – though those diagnosed with severe depression or other serious mental illness will not be asked to take part.
It is hoped that the results of the trial, which begins in early 2009, will inform the development of consistent, safe and effective services for young people who self-harm across the UK.
“It’s about helping young people to deal with their distress – and giving them the mechanisms for coping in a better way than self-harm.”
It is estimated that 10-15% of young people in the UK have self-harmed.
The study will be conducted in three research hubs: Yorkshire, Greater Manchester and London with the University of Leeds and NHS Leeds acting as lead investigators. Services in Bradford, Wakefield, Huddersfield, Halifax, York, Greater Manchester, and parts of South West and North London serving a total population of 8.1 million will also collaborate.
Self-harm is when someone deliberately hurts or injures him or herself. In this study self-harm is defined as any form of non-fatal self-poisoning or self-injury, (such as cutting, taking an overdose, hanging, self-strangulation, jumping from a height, and running into traffic), regardless of motivation or the degree of intention to end life. Existing treatment programmes for young people vary widely across the country and include different forms of cognitive behavioural therapy, counselling and problem-solving therapies.
During the trial, family therapy will be delivered by specially trained therapists using a research-based and clinically tested manualised approach. Half of those who agree to take part in the study will be randomly selected to receive “treatment as usual” – the treatment programme currently offered – and the other half will receive a dedicated programme of family therapy. Each family undergoes a six-month course of family therapy or treatment as usual with regular follow-up over 18 months to determine whether there is any difference in the effectiveness of both treatment approaches in reducing repeat incidents of self-harm. Both groups will be treated in the service local to where they live and will receive approximately eight sessions of treatment.
About the University of Leeds/ NHS Leeds
The University of Leeds is one of the largest higher education institutions in the UK with more than 30,000 students from 130 countries. With a total annual income of £450m, Leeds is one of the top ten research universities in the UK and a member of the Russell Group of research-intensive universities.
NHS Leeds is one of the largest NHS trusts in the country with a budget of £1 billion a year and serving a population of over 720,000 people. The organisation is responsible for commissioning and providing NHS services for the people of Leeds.
About the NIHR HTA
The funding has been provided by the National Institute for Health Research Health Technology Assessment (NIHR HTA) programme, visit www.hta.ac.uk/ to view the full project details. The HTA programme is a programme of the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) and produces high quality research information about the effectiveness, costs, and broader impact of health technologies for those who use, manage and provide care in the NHS. It is the largest of the NIHR programmes and publishes the results of its research in the Health Technology Assessment journal, with over 440 issues published to date. The journal’s 2007 Impact Factor (3.87) ranked it in the top 10% of medical and health-related journals. All issues are available for download free of charge from the HTA website.
The HTA programme is coordinated by the NIHR Coordinating Centre for Health Technology Assessment (NCCHTA), based at the University of Southampton.
The National Institute for Health Research provides the framework through which the research staff and research infrastructure of the NHS in England is positioned, maintained and managed as a national research facility. The NIHR provides the NHS with the support and infrastructure it needs to conduct first-class research funded by the Government and its partners alongside high-quality patient care, education and training. Its aim is to support outstanding individuals (both leaders and collaborators), working in world class facilities (both NHS and university), conducting leading edge research focused on the needs of patients. www.nihr.ac.uk
Publisher's recycling of theory textbook leads to fears of 'Wikipediaisation'
Scholars say rehashing of material shows that quantity trumps quality. Melanie Newman reports
Academics have warned of the "Wikipediaisation" of scholarship following allegations of plagiarism and an ethos of "quantity over quality" in US academic publishing.
The controversy stems from the publication of a textbook by Routledge that drew heavily on material from one of its earlier guides.
The first text, Theory for Religious Studies, was published in 2004, when the authors signed a contract giving Routledge the right to use the material however it wanted in return for credit and royalties.
However, when the authors - William E. Deal and Timothy K. Beal, professors of religious studies at Case Western Reserve University - spotted that much of a later book, Theory for Performance Studies (2007), was identical to their own, they complained to the publisher.
Both the author, Philip Auslander, professor of literature, communication and culture at the Georgia Institute of Technology, and the publisher denied plagiarism, arguing that the reproduced matter was little more than standard background information, such as biographical details, not original scholarship.
But after pressure from academics, Routledge withdrew the book and pulped its remaining stock.
A planned series of introductory books, dubbed Theory 4, which was to use the religious studies guide as a template for exploring other fields, has been discontinued.
The case has sparked a number of academic analyses, including a paper by Richard Schechner, editor of the journal Drama Review, who claimed the case was not an isolated incident.
"We need to see Theory 4 as something systematic, not incidental," he writes, describing the series as "a new level of no-shame academic publishing for profit".
"What makes a piece of scholarship significant is the addition of new materials and/or insights and/or critiques of existing works."
He says that Theory 4 would not meet these criteria, and that the reliance of Professor Auslander's book on material in the religious studies textbook was incongruous given that its focus was on a largely unrelated field.
"The key theorists of performance studies are not identical to those in religious studies," he writes. "The Theory 4 series is part of the Wikipediaisation of scholarship."
Responding to the criticism, Routledge said that the contentious series, which was ditched earlier this year, was meant to address pedagogical rather than scholarly needs. It added that it was "an isolated example of our publishing" that would not be repeated.
Professor Auslander has declined to speak about the case. A brief remark in the US Chronicle of Higher Education cites him as saying, "I don't consider this to be my fault." He did not respond to Times Higher Education's questions.
In an open letter, Peggy Phelan, professor of drama and English at Stanford University, implores him to speak out. "All who are accused of professional misdeeds of this sort have ... an obligation to explain their side of the story," she writes. "If senior scholars ... are driven to choose quantity over quality of publication, then we have a bigger problem than your particular case suggests."
melanie.newman@tsleducation.com.
Times Higher Education
Baby Wanted For 21 Year Study
Pregnant women on Waiheke are being invited to add their newborns to a once in a generation study led by the University of Auckland, along the lines of the UK television programme Child of our Time.
Growing Up in New Zealand is an opportunity for pregnant women and their partners to play a decisive role in improving the lives of New Zealand children, according to its project communications manager Bernadette Cornor.
The 21-year research project aims to better understand the influences on children that lead to how they grow up, and how early experiences influence a child ’s education, employment and social interactions.
And as nothing like it has been undertaken since the 1970 ’s, it should reveal how much New Zealand has changed since then, says Corner.
The project is recruiting pregnant women and their partners now, so their babies can be included from before birth right through to adulthood.
And to accurately reflect the diverse nature of New Zealand ’s population, pregnant women are being sought from every age group, community, professional group and ethnic background.
"To protect the privacy of participants, confidentiality is guaranteed and no research finding will be linked to any of the participants," says Corner. "All that is required of participants is a one and a half hour chat with researchers every 12 to 18 months." The Growing Up in New Zealand team is recruiting 7,800 mothers for the project from an area south of Auckland ’s Harbour Bridge, down to the Waikato and across to Thames, including Waiheke and other gulf islands.
Interested women due to have babies between Anzac Day and Christmas Day this year (25 April - 25 December 2009), are invited to call freephone 0508 476946 or visit the website www. growingup.co.nz.
Waiheke Marketplace
China New Agenda For Graduates
With an unprecedented 6.1 million college graduates due to enter the job market this year, employment is at the top of the Chinese Government's agenda.
In recent sessions of the National People's Congress and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Committee, employment was listed as the number-one priority.
Wen Jiabao, Premier of China, has made it clear that the Government realises how serious the challenge is, and has earmarked 42 billion yuan (£4.18 billion) to tackle the problem, acknowledging that "employment is a matter of livelihood and dignity".
In a press conference at the end of last year, Chen Guangjin, professor at China's Social Science Academy, stated that for the 5.59 million college students who graduated in 2008, the unemployment rate was above 12 per cent - about three times the official national figure.
And Liu Erduo, deputy dean of the School of Labour and Human Resources, People's University, predicted that China's economy would hit bottom this summer, just as graduates enter the jobs market, which would make the situation even worse.
The Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security and nine other ministries have adopted fresh policies since the end of 2008 to tackle this worrying issue.
For example, incentives are being introduced for college graduates to join the Army or to work or teach in China's western regions and poorer areas for a certain number of years after graduation. In return, graduates are being offered reimbursement of tuition fees and student loans, or a grades discount when applying to join masters programmes.
Students are also being encouraged to start their own businesses after graduation, and loans of 50,000 yuan are available to those who lack start-up capital.
The Ministry of Education has also decided to organise 1 million college students to participate in various internship programmes over the next three years, and to expand the number of places for double-bachelors and science and engineering masters students by 50,000 this year, including masters of business administration and public administration.
Although some of these policies are considered to be helpful, others are highly controversial. Professor Liu for one is not in favour of the policy to increase the number of masters students.
"That only serves as an expedient measure, but the problem is not really solved," he said. "The employment pressure is shifted to the near future, and that could make it tougher for masters students when they graduate."
Under the plans for MBA enrolment, the requirement that applicants have three to five years of work experience has been abandoned this year.
Li Yiheng, research fellow at the Public Economy Academy, Peking University, expressed his concerns in an interview with the Information Times newspaper. He warned that if the policy were applied, there would be a sharp increase in student numbers and the MBA gold standard would be debased.
"The employment pressure would be more severe, not relieved," he added.
One online comment doing the rounds in Chinese universities sums up the mood.
It says: "You become a bachelor. Then a master. Then a PhD. Finally you end up with the degree of a martyr."
Hong Bing is associate professor at the School of Journalism, Fudan University, Shanghai.
http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/
Not High Enough For Elite UK Universities
Britain ’s higher education minister David Lammy has warned elite universities that they risk undermining public confidence in their admissions systems by demanding pupils score the new A* grade in their A-level results from next year, The Guardian reports. Lammy said universities planning to use the A* grades to select students risk unfairly rejecting candidates whose schools fail to accurately predict their ability to get an A*. The new grade will be awarded to students who get top scores in their A-levels. It was introduced in response to universities ’ concerns that they can no longer distinguish between straight A students. Last year more than a quarter of all students were awarded an A grade. Applications to most universities depend on schools ’ predictions of students ’ grades. There are also concerns that the A* will cement independent schools ’ dominance of places at the top institutions. Last month Cambridge, Imperial College London and University College London confirmed they would use the A* in their admissions processes. However, other top universities including Oxford, London School of Economics and Durham have ruled out the use of A~ until it has been properly reviewed.
Scientific Brainers
Jake Martin ’s parents, Brent and Debbie, don’t know where their son got his extraordinary scientific brain from.
It is something that has amazed them since Jake was very young and has also made them extremely proud.
The Cambridge High School student is riding a wave of success. Jake ’s invention, the Discovery Model Gasifier, which turns wood power into electricity, has been described by some of the top engineers in the country as an engineering masterpiece.
The Discovery Model Gasifier has not only won supreme national awards in the last few months, it has also seen Jake gain prestigious international recognition.
Jake was the winner of the International Award for Engineering and Technology at the Youth Science Creations Competition in Beijing.
"I wasn ’t expecting to win my category. There was some incredible stuff there." Jake was one of four New Zealand secondary students who went to Beijing. There were 15 delegations from around the world attending the science fair.
While there was no prize money, students in Beijing would kill for the opportunity Jake now has the ability to get into any Chinese university he chooses.
"It ’s not about the money, it ’s about getting into university over there. There ’s lots of hype because it ’s such a big deal." Jake ’s success doesn ’t stop there either. He is a gifted rower as well.
Two days after returning from~ Beijing, Jake competed at the Maadi Cup. Because he ate very little while he was away, he came home five kilograms lighter than when he went.
"My mum had to load me up with carbs, so it was heaps of pasta and rice for me," Jake said.
"It ’s funny how they don ’t really eat much rice in China." Jake said he felt as though he was suffering from altitude sickness when he returned.
"I thought about pulling out of the quad because I didn ’t want to let the others down." How wrong he was the Cambridge High School boys ’ under-18 coxed quad went on to win a silver medal in their event.
So what does the future hold for this amazing young man? He has his sights set on gaining entry into an engineering school at a university in England or the United States.
"It would be nice to still be able to row but I ’ll keep my options open," Jake said.
And his parents couldn ’t be happier.
"The world just seems to be opening up for Jake," Jake ’s mum Debbie said.
"We are very, very proud of Jake. Cambridge has provided him with many opportunities that he probably would not have had if we were still in Auckland."
Cambridge Edition
British Malaysian Society donates RMI5,800 to charity homes
THE British Malaysian Society (BMS) recently donated 3,000 (RM1S,800) to three charity homes in Selarigor.
The donation was raised at a charity drive during the society ’s 25th annual dinner in London two months ago.
The three homes Selangor Cheshire Homes, The Little Sisters of the Poor and Montfort Boys Town each received a cheque for 1000 (about RM5,300).
Present to receive the donations were Selangor Cheshire Homes president Khatijah Sulieman, The Little Sisters of the Poor voluntary doctor Dr Loh Tak Seng and Montfort Boys Town administrative officer S. Arulanandam.
"We are very keen on developing the society ’s work not Only in the United Kingdom but also in Malaysia," said British High Commissioner Boyd McClear who presented the cheques on behalf of the BMS.
"The fund raising was a decision taken by the society to make contributions through charities because it is important to help the less unfortunate.
"BMS has demonstrated Its desire to reach back into Malaysia and this is an excellent way to channel BMS ’s intentions." Khatijah, who thanked BMS on behalf of the three homes for the donations, said the money would be very helpful to them.
The society is represented by the Kuata Lumpur Panel in Malaysia which provides information, advice and assistance to society members on an "on-call" basis.
"This event marks the society ’s appreciation of looking after the less fortunate and I would like the society in Malaysia to start raising funds for various charities," said BMS Kuala Lumpur panel chairman Tunku Abdul Aziz Ibrahim said.
BMS was set up to enhance relations between Malaysia and Britain in the fields of education, culture and commerce.
The Sun
Malaysia
Far Behind Quality Control
A BRITISH parliamentary cornmittee of inquiry recently asked Oxford University vicechancellor John Hood and Oxford Brookes University vicechancellor Janet Beer, who were sifting next to each other: Is an honours degree in history from Oxford University worth the same as an honours degree in history from Oxford Brookes? The MPs marked the vicechancellors ’ replies, which were probably pretty standard for British universities, as not up to the standard of a year 12 essay.
Dr Hood responded: "At Oxford, we apply a consistent standard in awarding degree classifications. We use external examiners and we take their assessments very, very seriously." Professor Beer said: "It depends what you mean by equivalent and worth", adding that her university knew its honours degree was "of a national standard".
The committee wasn ’t satisfied with the responses. Its chairman, Phil Willis, said: "I ’m treating this conversation with incredulity. It costs twice as much to educate a student at Oxford University than at Oxford Brookes, and you invest significantly more time, and you are creaming the world ’s best students, yet you say the outcomes are the same." Notwithstanding the criticism, British universities have a better system for maintaining standards than their Australian and US counterparts. Each British university appoints an external examiner for each of its coursework programs, to report annually on its academic standards, the rigour of its assessment processes and the performance of its students, and to compare these indicators with those of other universities.
External examiners are normally expected to attend assessment board meetings and to endorse assessment outcomes before final results are confirmed.
Britain ’s Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education also has a procedure for investigating reports of "causes for concern" about an institution ’s academic standards. The procedure provides for a brief preliminary inquiry, to be followed, if necessary, by a full investigation.
The QAA publishes investigation reports and, if a cause for concern is substantiated, the institution is required to adopt a plan for rectifying shortcomings.
The QAA has also developed an academic infrastructure to give institutions a shared starting point for setting, describing and assuring the quality of their programs. This comprises a qualifications framework similar to the one in Australia, program specifications and a code of practice for assuring academic standards.
The code has 10 parts covering things such as student admission, program approval, assessment and providing for students with disabilities. The infrastructure includes benchmark statements for 57 disciplines that specify with reasonable clarity the knowledge and skills that students are expected to possess.
The European Bologna process is developing somewhat similar subject statements as part of its so-called Tuning process. So far Tuning has developed statements of the knowledge, understanding, skills and abilities that students are expected to display in nine disciplines at three levels: bachelor, masters and doctorate. It has also developed fuller "reference points for the design and delivery of programs" in chemistry, European studies and physics.
The Tuning project covers 47 countries, many very different from each other, so its statements are more general and descriptive and thus less useful than Britain ’s subject benchmark statements.
At its present rate of progress Australia is years away from establishing even the standards framework that British MPs criticised so vigorously. The Australian Universities Quality Agency established a reference group in 2007 that produced a broad standards framework that the agency says guided its audits in 2008. It has now established an advisory group to develop a generalisable national structure for academic standards for Australian higher education.
AUQA says its advisory group has explored contemporary contexts and considered various options for assuring academic standards, but it has published no more detail. While it may suit some universities for the agency to have such a leisurely and permissive approach to maintaining standards, it is not in the interests of the sector, let alone the community it serves.
Gavin Moodie is a higher education poLicy anaLyst at Griffith University who writes reguLarLy for the HES.
Australian
UK Teacher To Find A Niche
MAKING a sea change or "desert change" doesn ’t get more drastic than moving from rainy Britain to the rustred dirt of outback Australia and the Central Desert community of Warburton.
But one holiday to Australia was all it took and British school principal Steven Soames was hooked.
"I was in the UK where I was working as a deputy principal," he said "I was looking for a bit of a sea change and I came over here on holiday.
"I really enjoyed it and went to the Education Department and found out what the position was on teachers and at the time there was a massive teacher shortage so I was ahnost nailed to the seat.
"I filled in the form and when I got back to the UK, I got a phone call at 5.30 one morning telling me I ’d been accepted to the remote teaching service." only having been in Western Australia for three and a half years, Mr Soames has spent his entire Australian teaching career working in regional WA.
Before relocating to Warburton to work as the school principal at the Warburton Ranges Remote Community School, he worked in Laverton where he spent one year as a teacher and two years as a deputy principal.
"I really got taken with the idea of teaching in the remote areas," he said.
"I feel that some of the remote schools, very often, are at a disadvantage and I ’ve always enjoyed working alongside communities that experience disadvantage and try and make a difference." "I came out to Warburton last year and I really enjoyed it I think it ’s a lovely place." While he may be a long way from home and his background teaching in inner-city schools in England, Mr Soames said the disparity in education between the UK and remote Western Australia is not that huge despite the massive differences in culture and geography.
"There are a lot of similarities but there are also a lot of differences," he said.
"Culturally there are a lot of differences because the UK culture is relatively homogenous whereas here, some of the teaching strategies we try to adapt to meet the needs of the students.
"But having said that, teaching is teaching wherever you are and I am a big believer that good teaching is good teaching wherever you find yourself - "What I have noticed in terms of similarities is that poverty is still poverty the issues that it generates are still the same."
Kalgorlie Miner
Australia
Affordable UK education
Kuala Lumpur,Malaysia - Student seeking quality education in UK at an affordable fee need not look further than Birmingham International College (BIC). BIC provides British accredited courses diplomas, advanced diplomas, degrees and masters at unbeatable price. Financial assistance is also given in the form of scholarships and guidance for legal temporary work opportunities.
Situated in Birmingham, the second largest city in UK, BIC offers students a chance to experience the quality of UK education which is world recognised. Prof. Tony White House, coordinator for Post-graduate Programmes in BIC says “many students from Asean and from around the world come to UK to study because of the world class quality education and excellent study environment.”
For many, going to UK is a dream that is hard to realise due to the high cost involved. Thus, many opt to obtain British degrees offered in local private colleges. The notion that studying in UK is unaffordable is proven false by BIC which has received licence and joined UKBA Sponsor’s Register for TIER 4 to recruit foreign students. For example, the estimated fee for a Diploma in Business locally is about RM25,000 for the duration of 2 to 2 ½ years; at BIC, one could complete their Diploma in Business in only one year at a rate cheaper than this. As BIC offers secured scholarships up to 40% of the total tuition fee for successful applicants, the cost is only about RM15K.
Prof. Tony White House also says “Why acquire a British degree locally when one can go to UK, experience its cultural abundance and excellent environment at a comparatively similar or cheaper price?”
Students can also support themselves while studying in UK. In addition to the financial assistance in the form of secured scholarships for successful applicants, BIC also assists in temporary work placement for the students in accordance to British law. While studying in UK, students can work part time: up to 20 hours per week during the study period and full time during off term. Upon successful completion of degree or masters programme, students will be eligible to apply for two years Post Study Work visa (PSW) which will enable them to work full time in UK.
BIC is accredited by ASIC (Accreditation Service for International Colleges), NCC (National Computer Centre), Edexcel and some UK universities. Applicants can choose to study business, management, computing, IT, hotel management, health and social care.
Certificates, diplomas and higher national diplomas (HND) could be completed and students may also obtain BSc (Hons) in Business Administration, BA (Hons) in Business Administration, BSc (Hons) in Computing, MBA or MSc in Strategic Business IT. Students can also obtain Postgraduate Diploma (PgD) in business and computing awarded by NCC and Edexcel.
Students with SPM, STPM, A-level, and O-level, SAM, AUSMAT and AUP qualifications can apply for various courses offered. Malaysian as well as foreigners who have completed foundation, diploma and degree programmes or with equivalent qualification are also encouraged to apply. The three intakes are in Jan/Feb, May/June and Sept/Oct.
BIC regional office in Malaysia will provide student/parent counselling, assessment of academic credentials and advice, assistance with application completion, securing placements and assistance in visa application.
It will also assist with accommodation and flight arrangements including an airport pick-up service from Birmingham airport to BIC.
Students will also be guided to take full advantage of free healthcare services, discounts on books and entertainment, inexpensive accommodation as well as scholarships.
The May/June intake is in progress. Contact its regional office at 03-79570805 or email to mpl@bic.ac
http://www.thesundaily.com/index.cfm
Universities urged for more protection of education by investment
Representatives from the UK's universities have written to the Treasury urging them to protect public investment in higher education or risk losing out on the best students and researchers to other countries.
The letter from Universities UK to the chancellor Alistair Darling and Treasury secretary Yvette Cooper highlighted higher education institutions are major contributors to the UK economy, employing more than one per cent of the UK's total workforce and educating graduates who go on to work in multiple sectors.
But Universities UK chief executive Diana Warwick said the government's decision to limit the numbers of places available for students in the UK and continued under-investment meant the UK would not be able to compete internationally, limiting the speed of the country's economic recovery.
Ms Warwick pointed out UK universities generated £45 billion for the UK economy each year, but a lack of funding programmes like those in the US would leave the sector lagging behind.
She said: "The United States has set the pace with a multi-billion dollar investment in higher education as part of a broader fiscal stimulus package. Not only is this the right action in itself, but it presents an irresistible challenge to the UK.
"As our major competitor, we now face the very real danger of losing our research stars to our better-funded counterparts in the United States, causing lasting damage to the UK."
She went on to add the limit on the number of students entering some universities was most likely to impact on student from poorer backgrounds.
She added: "Without a rethink thousands of students will fail to get places this year. Many institutions will not enter clearing, and the impact on students from lower socio-economic groups will be most pronounced.
"Indeed the threat of fines which may go into several millions for institutions who accidentally over-recruit, means that most institutions will aim low, possibly even under-recruiting, in order to avoid crippling financial penalties."
http://www.inthenews.co.uk/
The new UK visa policy rules for student
Lahore,Pakistan
A RENOWNED education consultant giving a presentation on salient features of New UK Visa Rules on Wednesday explained in detail the new Points Based System TIER 4 Student Visa.
The event titled “New Student Visa Rules & Scholarship Opportunities in UK” was organised by Falcon Education & Consultancy Services (Pvt) Ltd at a five star hotel in which students, academics, heads of educational institutions and people from various walks of life participated.
The educationalist, Syed Abidi said, “The new system if implemented in true spirit will weed out non-genuine students and facilitate bonafide students without the support of agents or consultants.”
He explained the basic concept of Points Based System (PBS) and the need for implementing this system by the UK Border Agency (UKBA).
He talked about different TIER structures and categories under the new PBS but focused on TIER 4 Student Visa. He said under the new TIER 4 the students would be awarded 40 points to be successful for an adult student visa, adding the universities/education providers in UK would now be known as sponsors and shall take full responsibility as a host for all overseas students.
“All students accepted by UK sponsors will be issued with CAS or a Visa letter which will carry 30 points and will be a must to apply for a visa”, he said adding, “However, the student will have to satisfy the Education Providers that he/she is a bonafide and genuine student both academically and financially”.
“The UKBA staff at country posts will then verify and conduct verification and authentication of the documents both academic and financial to award 10 points making it a total of 40 points”, he added.
Syed Abidi, who was awarded Tamgha-i-Imtiaz by the President of Pakistan in 2008, also explained the responsibility and obligation of students when they arrived in the UK and stressed that the new PBS allowed the university and the UK Border Agency to monitor and keep a track of all overseas students. “Therefore, non-genuine students can be easily tracked “, he added.
The event also highlighted scholarship opportunities while a question-answer session was also held in the end in which the participants actively participated.
http://www.thenews.com.pk/default.asp
Tycoon gives Oxford £36m to tackle threat of climate change
A wealthy benefactor will today pledge Oxford University up to £36m to help it combat any shortfall in cash as a result of the recession.
Former Keble College alumni Dr James Martin, who made his fortune through books on information technology, has promised to match any research donations made to the university up to the tune of $50m (£36m).
His pledge comes at a time when staff at other universities in the UK are pursuing more modest aims, such as fighting plans for the wholesale closure of three departments at Liverpool University and a threat to axe Reading University's School of Health and Social Care.
Dr Martin's offer will boost cash for Oxford's newly established 21st Century School, sponsored by him to conduct research into problems facing the world such as climate change and ageing.
"My view is that, while we may be distracted by today's credit crunch, we must not forget the bigger picture – that we need to safeguard a future for the generations that follow us," he said.
Dr Ian Goldin, director of the 21st Century School, said: "I was concerned, as anyone involved in higher education would be, that the economic crisis would undermine people's willingness to donate. This wonderful new generation of resources has therefore been timely. Anyone giving will know they are contributing towards providing twice the money they have come forward with."
Dr Goldin said the first donation – to be matched by Dr Martin – had already come in with the university being offered £800,000 to conduct research into inner-city life.
Dr Martin said he would be happy to spend all the $50m he had pledged "because it would mean money was coming in for very important research".
He said he had visited several universities before opting to invest in Oxford "because I thought it would give the best opportunity for world-class research".
In addition to the $50m pledge, the £100m Dr Martin spent to set up the 21st Century School is thought to be the largest contribution ever donated to a UK university.
Meanwhile, the powerful university senate at Reading University, which represents academics, last night voted to approve plans to axe its School of Health and Social Care. A final decision will be taken by the university's ruling council tomorrow week.
At Liverpool University the senate failed to debate a motion calling for a decision on closures to be delayed and rejected a move to withdraw the plans.
Sally Hunt, general secretary of University and College Union (UCU) – the university lecturers' union – who spent yesterday morning at a demonstration in Reading against proposed cuts at the university there, stressed she was "very pleased" with the pledge by Dr Martin to Oxford University.
But she added: "The Government says university funding is OK, but it is not OK. "There are less staff per student and a whole range of departments facing funding cuts or being closed."
http://www.independent.co.uk/
Fast-track plan to turn jobless into teachers
People who lose their jobs in the recession will be given the chance to become teachers in just six months under a fast-track route to the classroom to be unveiled today.
Teacher-training courses will be cut from a year to six months from September as the Government encourages "high-calibre" people to change profession midway through their career. The scheme will also be open to graduates; many of the 400,000 students who leave university this summer will be looking to the public sector rather than the City or the law.
From next year, some 200 high-flying teachers will be picked out each year for a fast-track promotion under which they could become headteachers within just four years.
http://www.independent.co.uk/
Universities 'dumb down' and ignore cheating, MPs told
Universities should be stripped of their powers to award degrees if evidence emerges that they have "dumbed down", MPs heard yesterday.
Professor Geoffrey Alderman, the former academic chairman who caused uproar last year by claiming lecturers were under pressure to "mark positively" and turn a blind eye to plagiarism, told a Commons Select committee monitoring higher education that there had been a "systematic failure" to maintain degree standards for the past 20 years.
"In particular, vice-chancellors have permitted and indeed encouraged the decline in academic standards in the desperate search for (a) increased income from 'full cost' fee-paying international students, (b) more favourable student retention rates, and (c) high or higher positions in various 'rankings' or 'league tables' published by a variety of media," Professor Alderman said.
"Failing or expelling a non-European Union student can have serious knock-on implications as the word gets out. In the modern, mass higher education system, it seems, there must be prizes for all because the student is the customer and the customer must walk away with something for his or her money."
He said the only way to sustain standards was to give tougher powers to the sector's watchdog, the Quality Assurance Agency, to crack down on universities. "The current situation, whereby universities enjoy degree-awarding powers in perpetuity, is insupportable," he said."Where an institution is found to be derelict in its supreme duty to maintain standards ... financial penalties should be levied, followed, if necessary by the partial or complete withdrawal of the authority to award degrees."
He added: "The decline in academic standards has been facilitated by weak or non-existent survellance of them. Students who would formerly have failed their degrees are being passed and students who would formerly have been awarded very respectable lower seconds are now being awarded upper seconds and even firsts.
"Students – I mean British students as well as students from overseas – are being admitted to commence their studies with levels of English so poor that universities are having to run remedial English courses to ensure that new entrants possess at least a basic level of literacy at the ouset of their studies. Cheating is rampant, encouraged in part by lenient penalties."
He cited figures to show that the number of firsts awarded by universities had doubled in the past decade, while the student population had gone up by less than half. In addition, a survey by the Higher Education Academy had revealed 9,000 cases of plagiarism in the past year, only 143 of which had resulted in expulsion.
http://www.independent.co.uk/
Lessons from Singapore
Education is the Singapore government's top priority, says Mike Baker
How do you achieve a school system consistently in the top three in the world for maths and science, fourth for literacy, and described by experts as leading the world in teaching quality? Moreover, how do you manage to get 80% of pupils to pass five or more O-levels when they are taught in their second language in classes of 35? The answers are found in Singapore.
I have just accompanied winners of the Teaching Awards on a study visit to Singapore. It was organised by the charity CfBT Education Trust, which has sent British teachers to several countries to see what they can learn from other school systems.
So what did they expect to find? One assistant headteacher from the Midlands expected to see "a very traditional curriculum, rows of pupils, teacher in front, students there to learn". And indeed she did. But she also saw a whole lot more: traditional methods blended with more progressive thinking, and a focus on teaching the whole child, not just on exam results. It gave the British teachers plenty to ponder.
International comparisons are fraught with difficulties; it is easy to forget that what works in one country will not flourish in another. But Singapore has many similarities to the UK. The official language of school instruction is English, there is a national curriculum, and the national examinations are O- and A-levels, administered by Cambridge Assessment.
It was soon clear to the British teachers that there are similar challenges. Singapore is a multi-ethnic, multilingual society. Pupils are obsessed with mobile phones and computer games, and are, as one Singapore school principal put it, the "strawberry generation: easily bruised and damaged".
So why does it work? First, education is the government's top priority. That is not just rhetoric: a country with no natural resources (it even has to import water) knows it lives and dies by its collective brainpower. The ministry of education is very close to schools; as all teachers and principals are civil servants, they regularly rotate through postings to the ministry.
Teachers speak approvingly of the way the ministry supports initiatives with targeted funding. Or, as one former headteacher put it, the system runs on "top-down support for bottom-up initiatives".
For example, there is a drive to boost learning outside the classroom. The government provides funds for school visits, clubs and extra-curricular activities, enabling them to make such activities compulsory. Pupils are regularly graded on these activities, and the grades count towards entry to further education.
In another reform, the ministry announced recently that all primary schools would move to single-session teaching, with the juniors taught in the morning and the infants in the afternoon. This will bring smaller classes, better pupil-teacher ratios, and allow a programme of compulsory extra-curricular activities for the juniors in the afternoon.
Like England, Singapore is undergoing a big school building programme. But there is no disruption while the builders are in, as the whole school decamps to a vacant school nearby. The government maintains spare capacity for this very purpose.
In a reform called the Integrated Programme, schools with more able pupils are encouraged to bypass exams at 16, allowing greater curriculum flexibility right through to A-levels.
One visiting headteacher from Essex was struck by the real stretch offered to more able pupils, the "clear articulation of ideas between government and schools", and the way the whole system not only "talked the talk, but also walked the walk".
Perhaps the real key to Singapore's success, though, is the rare combination of traditional teaching and discipline, and a holistic, child-based approach. In the UK, we tend to see these as mutually exclusive opposites.
Mike Baker
http://www.guardian.co.uk/
Honey, who shrunk the bookshelf?
My Parents immigrated to South Africa in the ’50s. They brought with them their excellent UK education, including an embedded reading habit, which they passed on to their children by ensuring that each of us could read at the earliest age and giving us books to call our own.
Passing on the love of reading is my greatest gift to my children. I wish I could give it to every child in South Africa.
Why is this important? Children who can’t read are at an immediate disadvantage. Practical applications apart, reading provides a context within which we understand how the world works.
Through books — fiction and non-fiction — we reach beyond ourselves to learn about others. We are confident that we can hold our own wherever we are, because we know more than we would if we didn’t read.
I’m fairly sure that Bantu education, which ensured black South Africans were educated only to a level that prepared them for unskilled labour, did not include in its plans the development of a reading culture in black families.
The recipients of Bantu education are my peers; their children, those of my children.
The sins visited on millions of fathers and mothers by apartheid continue to be visited upon their children.
Fifteen years into a democratic South Africa, my children go out into the world with a singular advantage over the majority of their black counterparts — they have well-educated parents who encouraged them to read.
This is why the government’s literacy programmes need to be fast-tracked in schools. It’s why we should be building libraries, not closing them. It’s why it’s so important that every child has access to books that they can call their own. And it’s why the calls on Trevor Manuel to remove VAT from books must continue.
On Wednesday he will present his annual budget. In 2004, despite pleas from across the country, he rejected the VAT-off- books petition co-ordinated by journalist and activist Terry Bell, citing difficulty in defining books for tax purposes, and claiming that only higher-income households and the publishers and distributors would benefit.
After pulling my eyebrows back to their normal position, I call Bell to find out what has happened since then and hear there is a move to take up the fight again. Among those behind it is Nobel laureate Nadine Gordimer. I asked her to comment :
“We have a very high level of illiteracy and semi-literacy in our country. Full literacy is the basis of education, once the ABC has been learnt.
“Schools need libraries, communities need libraries, and the prohibitive cost of books, while VAT is levied, means the schools and municipal public libraries cannot afford to buy books.
“Whatever other conditions have resulted in the incredibly low matriculation passes this past year, failure of candidates to be fully literate in terms of vocabulary and comprehension, which comes only from reading, is the result. S tudents do not read enough. C hange the dismal ‘outcomes’ by abolishing VAT.”
If you support this move, you still have a couple of days to send a tip to Trevor: www.treasury.gov.za/tipsfortrevor.asp.
http://www.thetimes.co.za/
Enterprising thinking: US vs UK
At a time when major global markets are shifting, Exec Digital looks at how each Western business approach is adapting with it.
What are the differences between the US and UK entrepreneurial approaches? The answer is clearly rooted in generalisation, however keen we are to adhere to stereotypes. But at a time when most nations are united in the collective woe of a turbulent economic climate, it is perhaps more relevant than ever to home in on ways each nation thinks about business; to pool the intellectual resources from each side of the Atlantic to put us in a position to weather the varying storms of recession.
And weather them we will, according to Ross Wilson, of business advisors Tenon. “Any recession is going to come to an end – it always does,” he says. “Those companies that continue to invest in marketing, training, and getting best value for money will still do well.”
Wilson’s years of dealings with UK entrepreneurs has created for him a generic, catch-all profile of the British tycoon. Advising so many faces has produced a montage of profiles but a singular national business identity. The principle characteristic of this identity, however, demonstrates the shortcomings of the UK education system compared to the US rather than a culture of encouraging an enterprising outlook.
“I don’t think young people in Britain have any exposure whatsoever to entrepreneurship at an early age,” he says. This point is supported by Hiscox’s recent DNA of an Entrepreneur study, which found that 61 percent of small business owners in the UK felt that the education system does not encourage individual ideas and dreams – against just 35 percent in the US.
Wilson continues: “In America, entrepreneurs establish themselves sooner because of the whole American culture. They push public speaking at a young age. They learn to communicate better, sooner – and they have great role models. Aside from Richard Branson and a couple of others, there are much fewer entrepreneurs in the UK who are recognisable names.”
ROLE MODELS
Perhaps, but there is an argument that the big business names in the UK are more understated. For role model status, John Leigh, Managing Director of Europcar UK and National Car Rental, fits the bill. A legendary figure in the industry, Leigh has manoeuvred the brand into the global arena through dedication and graft. With the former Eurodollar being acquired by Florida-based car rental giant A and C Rental Corporation, Leigh was exposed to an expansion plan born of intrinsically American values – and saw the whole enterprise begin to soar to new heights.
“At the time of the takeover the Americans were driven by a fast-track vision – perhaps unlike what you see in Europe,” says Leigh. “They saw a window of opportunity in expanding and looked to do it within a certain space of time. From a UK and Europe perspective, however, I think there is more due diligence and more time taken before completing deals.”
This rather British trait of cautiousness is an observation of American venture capitalist and entrepreneur Vinit Nijhawan, former CEO of Kinetic Computer Corporation and telecoms businesses, and an academic at Boston University. “The one place I would fault British and European entrepreneurs is they have a real fear of coming into the US; somehow they feel that breaking into America is costly and difficult and they are always hesistant to do it until they’re strong in their home markets.”
Expansion plans of American enterprise in general show no such signs of caution – the Hiscox study found that 69 percent of US entrepreneurs state they will continue to grow their businesses despite the economic downturn, compared with just 52 percent of UK firms.
So are British leaders more hesistant to take risks in this uncertain climate, or are they just prudent? Leigh continues: “Even if you have companies with plans to grow, most of that would have required some additional funding. Some companies have a cash mountain to draw on – but usually that is not the case. Especially now, you have got this anxiety of trying to grow while simultaneously trying to protect the profitability of what you’ve already got.”
EASIER ACCESS TO CAPITAL
The ‘cash mountains’ of which Leigh speaks can be said to be more prevalent in the US, where there is much easier access to capital by way of venture capital, angel funding and public financing.
Serial entrepreneur Suneet Singh Tuli has done business in both countries. He says: “The ability to raise capital, and to re-start if you fail gives entrepreneurs better opportunities in America.”
But Tuli sees a different side to the aspirations of each nationality. He continues: “My experience, having worked both in the UK and US, has been that British entrepreneurs have a much more global outlook. The US market is so large, that many companies grow to very large sizes without ever venturing out. Successful entrepreneurs in the UK thrive because they have the ability to function in many more markets.”
But over the last few years a shift in attitudes has been occurring. As Nijhawan acknowledges, US firms have begun to realise that theirs is no longer the biggest market for every commodity. “A startup today, from day one, has to be thinking about markets outside of the US,” he says. “In telecom, the reason I started looking at Europe was because America wasn’t the biggest market for innovation in the field. It lost that first to Europe and now to Asia. Even if you’re not selling globally, your next big competititor could come from overseas, so the companies that I’m involved with are all global today and, as a result, I don’t think are going to have significant impact from the US downturn.”
The consensus on both sides of the Atlantic, then, is that thinking global is a major priority – it is the manner in which this is executed that defines the approach. Each country has different stumbling blocks – hampering tax issues for the British, Americans perhaps being too aggressive with their growth strategy at a time when restraint may be more appropriate. But the reason the two countries enjoy a strong relationship is their interaction between and influence of each other to cater for the increasingly challenging global entrepreneurial arena.
Written by Ben Lobel
http://www.execdigital.co.uk/
College re-building to push ahead
The government is set to appoint a troubleshooter to help tackle delays with its re-building plans for schools and colleges in England.
Sir Andrew Foster is expected to start work on a £5bn programme to renovate colleges and sixth-form premises.
Decisions on 20 colleges have been postponed until March by the funding body, the Learning and Skills Council.
The LSC insists there is no freeze on the programme but says some colleges are having trouble raising funds.
Sir Andrew, a former chief executive of the Audit Commission, will push forward a building programme against the background of the economic downturn.
The Liberal Democrats say the delay to the building programme "rows against" the government's drive to bring forward capital spending.
The Prime Minister Gordon Brown has brought forward funding for capital spending to help stimulate the economy through building projects.
The Learning and Skills Council had been due in December to take decisions on 20 applications for building schemes from colleges.
But shortly before Christmas the colleges were told decisions would not be taken until March.
A spokesman for the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills says that the government has made the extra money available, but "the LSC is responsible for the delivery of the capital programme".
'Grave risk'
One of the institutions affected is Cirencester College.
Principal Nigel Robbins said it had already spent hundreds of thousands of pounds on architects, consultants and engineers.
He told BBC News there was a "grave risk" the project team could break up and the work be wasted.
The LSC says the college rebuilding programme has been "hugely successful", with 700 projects agreed at 330 colleges.
It says the growing demand from colleges for funding is one of the reasons for the decisions have been deferred.
Mark Haysom, LSC chief executive said: "There is no freeze on the programme."
Currently 253 projects were being funded - and would not be affected - while £110m had been bought forward from future budgets to accelerate spending.
"However, the pace of demand for funding has increased. This is because the scale of ambition and the government funding they require has grown," Mr Haysom said.
"In addition there are early signs that the ability of colleges to raise their own funds for proposed projects is being affected by the downturn.
"It is for this reason that the LSC, over the next few weeks, is working closely with colleges that have or intend to submit bids to look at the individual current positions before making further funding decisions."
It is understood part of the reason for the delay is that the growing demand from colleges has brought with it a need to prioritise applications, previously dealt with on a "first come, first served" basis.
'Excellent programme'
The Association of Colleges says the delays are making "a complicated process more complex".
Chief executive Martin Doel said colleges wanted greater clarity.
"The programme is a 'victim of its own success' in many ways - as colleges are being so responsive to local needs in their plans - so the demand cannot be reconciled with the available budget in year," he said.
"A review of priorities on this basis is logical and is not unusual for major projects of this kind."
Unlike the programme to re-build England's schools, the college programme does not rely on Private Finance Initiatives (PFI).
Projects are funded by the government, through the LSC, and by colleges raising money themselves.
The Liberal Democrats say the delays are a sign of deep problems in the government's use of private finance for such projects.
Higher education spokesman Stephen Williams said: "It runs counter to the government's stated aim of bringing forward capital expenditure.
"The people meant to be implementing this seem to be rowing in the opposite direction."
On Wednesday, MPs on a Commons committee heard the Construction Industry Council say building firms were struggling to raise the cash needed to take part in the Building Schools for the Future scheme, which does rely on PFI.
A spokesman for the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills said: "Under this government nearly 700 projects have been agreed by the LSC and all but 42 colleges have had money to make capital improvements.
"As part of the pre-Budget Report some of this funding has been brought forward to accelerate improvements through the downturn."
Graduates who took student loans before 1998 miss out on interest rate cut
Almost 350,000 graduates who took out student loans before 1998 are being penalised after missing out on the recent interest rate cut. By Graeme Paton, Education Editor Former students who took out loans before that year are being forced to pay more than double the existing Bank Rate of 1.5 per cent. The rise will add to growing pressures on young professionals who are already struggling to find decent jobs because of the global recession. Even students going to university after 1998 - when key changes to the student loans scheme were made - are being forced to pay more than the Bank of England's record low interest rate announced earlier this month. Last night, the Conservatives said students were being put under undue financial strain. Loans have been offered to students on the basis that they are in line with inflation - making them effectively interest free. The Student Loans Company uses the Retail Price Index (RPI) to calculate repayments. Students taking "mortgage style loans" before 1998 are subjected to interest rates fixed for 12 months every March - currently 3.8 per cent. Graduates taking so-called Income Contingent Loans after 1998 have traditionally made the same repayments. But in a little-noticed change, the Government introduced reforms a decade ago allowing these loans to track the Bank Rate - plus one per cent - if this figure is lower than RPI. In recent weeks, the Bank Rate has plunged as low as 1.5 per cent - giving newer students repayments of 2.5 per cent. But the changes do not affect those taking out loans before 1998, leaving them to pay around double the new Bank Rate. According to official figures, 341,300 people in England still owe around £1 billion under the old method - an average of £2,846 each. A spokesman for the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills said: "Student loans have consistently offered a much better deal than commercial loans. Interest is only charged to maintain the value of the loan in real terms so that graduates only pay back the same amount as they borrowed. "Borrowers with mortgage-style loans only make repayments when their income is over £25,936 per year, with outstanding amounts written off after a certain period of time."
Worries over college fund 'gap'
The future of higher education in Wales is uncertain, if a core funding gap between Welsh and English colleges is not tackled, a group of MPs has warned.
A report by the Welsh Affairs Select Committee found there was an investment gap of £61m in the year ending in 2006.
It also found problems in policy-making between Whitehall and Cardiff.
The assembly government said funding was on a par with England, it had provided £449m this year and introduced ways to increase funding opportunities.
The report also found problems of communication and effective policy-making between Whitehall and Cardiff.
"There is a need for officials within Whitehall to have a better understanding of devolution as there is an impression that some officials believe that it means that they can 'forget' about Wales," said the report.
"Similarly there is a need for officials and ministers in the Welsh assembly to take a greater interest in developing policies across the border."
In the report, the MPs predict a negative impact on the Welsh economy if the country's higher education continues to receive proportionately less core funding than English institutions and a smaller relative share of UK research funding.
David Jones, the Conservative MP for Clwyd West and a member of the committee said Wales would have to divert resources if it was going to grow an "effective higher education sector".
"How the Welsh Assembly Government does that is a matter for the Welsh Assembly Government but I think what they've got to do is recognise from the contents of this report that there's is a big problem that is not just highlighted by the Welsh Affairs Select Committee but is also being highlighted by the university authorities themselves."
The report claims that a lack of investment will also make institutions in Wales less attractive because the quality of teaching staff and available resources will be affected.
The committee wants the UK's Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) to make funds available to develop research in economically deprived areas.
It also calls for more effective communication between government departments and the assembly government to avoid confusion over further and higher education policy.
Ben Gray, president of the National Union of Students in Wales said: "If I walk onto an English university campus I can see the difference in the buildings, I can see the difference in where the investment's been spent.
"I think it's clear to see from the research assessment exercise that just got released that Wales is performing incredibly well in terms of it's teaching quality and research capability," he added.
But the assembly government disagreed with the committee's findings and have claimed the level of funding is on a par with English levels.
A spokesperson said: "Evidence suggests that we spend a comparable amount per head of population as in England.
"In 2008-09, we made £449m available to higher education institutions via the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales.
"We have also introduced a number of initiatives to increase the opportunities for funding available to higher education institutions in Wales, such as a new scheme to encourage Welsh universities to increase and expand their fundraising capacity."
Wales being left behind, says UCU
Union warns that Assembly must close funding gap with rest of UK, reports Melanie Newman
The Welsh Assembly has been urged to close the funding gap between universities in the principality and the rest of the UK or risk causing "long-lasting damage" to the sector.
The warning comes in a letter to a task force on the future of Welsh higher education, from the University and College Union.
The UCU also says that the sector must not lose sight of its core mission of adding to the world's knowledge and understanding rather than focusing on its value to Wales' economy and culture.
An Assembly task force is reviewing the purpose and role of higher education in Wales with a view to updating Reaching Higher, the Assembly's strategy for the sector. A report to the task force said that the funding gap between universities in Wales and England was £61 million, and a report by Universities UK on the effects of devolution last month warned that England was moving further ahead of Scotland and Wales in terms of research income and student numbers.
UCU regional officer Margaret Phelan said: "My personal view is that the Assembly is hoping reconfiguration will streamline things and save costs. Personally I haven't seen any evidence that collaboration leads to savings.
"As a union we will support the reconfiguration agenda so long as changes are managed properly and staff are not made compulsorily redundant."
The UCU is also concerned about the sector becoming too narrow in focus. Its submission says: "The Government must make a very clear statement in any future version of Reaching Higher about the core mission of higher education in Wales; it must not and cannot be solely limited to the contribution of higher education to the Welsh economy and culture."
The core mission is "adding to knowledge and understanding for the benefit of all", it says.
The review, which follows an earlier look at student finance, is due for completion in spring 2009.
Last November, the Assembly revealed plans to scrap the £1,890-a-year grant to all Welsh students who study in Wales.
It proposed that a "significant proportion" of funding be redirected to help students from low-income families from 2010.
The independent review panel that made the recommendation, chaired by Merfyn Jones, vice-chancellor of Bangor University, had said the current system was not the best way to attract more people to Welsh universities.
A consultation on the proposals ends on 16 February.
Public-private mix? The debate rumbles on
WIll privatisation in higher education mean compromise to corporate demands, or is it time state institutions got some competition?
While some of the UK's banks have been put in public hands, how quickly are the country's universities heading the other way — towards the private sector? Higher education institutions worry that quality could suffer in the pursuit of profit. Private higher education providers counter that a little competition would be a good thing.
Of Britain's 325 institutions offering further and higher education, only one, the University of Buckingham, is private. This contrasts with the US, where approximately 25% of its higher education institutions are out of state control. Buckingham, which has topped student satisfaction surveys for the past three years, gives students the chance to do a three-year degree in two intensive years and with flexible start dates. It is also the only UK university that receives no direct subsidy from the government, thereby remaining academically independent.
But one area of education that is raising concerns about privatisation in Britain is the recruitment of international students, that lucrative source of funding that covers, on average, 8% of universities' budgets.
The private company Into University Partnerships has already set up centres catering for international students within five British universities. The Into Centres at the University of East Anglia, Newcastle University, the University of Manchester, the University of Exeter and Glasgow Caledonian University recruit international students and teach them English to the standard required for undergraduate study.
But their presence has raised alarm at the University and College Union (UCU), the UK's largest trade union and professional association for academics and other university staff. The UCU is worried about how quickly universities are moving into public/private partnerships. "Our strategic focus is on making sure that the in-house alternative is always being considered in this dash for international students," says a UCU spokesman.
Dr Thomas Kealey, vice-chancellor of the University of Buckingham, believes private universities have a lot to offer: "Every other university in this country works solely to government targets. The government gives them money, and therefore they do whatever the government wants. We exist primarily to provide a good experience for our students. As Karl Marx once said, we live in a world of economic determinism, and our economic success is determined by our students' satisfaction. The other universities' success is determined by how much they please the government."
In France, the public education system was shaken up by a profound policy change in 2007. For the first time, President Nicolas Sarkozy allowed its publicly funded universities to set up foundations enablerto attract funding from private and corporate sources. Last June, the University of Auvergne in Clermont-Ferrand became the first institution to set up a private foundation, helped by the presence in the city of the Michelin tyre manufacturer.
Meanwhile, the rapid growth of online learning has already given for-profit companies a route into higher education. In 2007, BPP Professional Education, a private education provider that specialises in accountancy and law courses, became Britain's first for-profit company to be given degree-awarding powers.
"BPP is looking to expand its online provision, and why wouldn't you?" says the UCU spokesman. "It's the most fantastic and cost-effective education. The more closely private companies get entangled with universities, the more closely they will develop online learning at the expense of other forms of learning."
BPP is following the example led by Kaplan, the education subsidiary of the Washington Post Company. As well as giving a million students worldwide campus-based and online study, it owns Dublin Business School (DBS), Ireland's largest private higher education institution. DBS already runs degree programmes that are sponsored by business, notably the Lidl discount supermarket chain. In a twist to conventional funding, its "Lidl degree" in retail management pays the student a wage during the three years, from €16,000 to €20,000, with the proviso that he or she works for the company later.
DBS chief executive Gerry Muldowney told the Irish Times: "I thought it was a great opportunity. It was reaching out to a target group of potential students who would not have gone to college otherwise because they probably wouldn't have been able to afford it." In these tough economic times, it could be a sign of things to come.
Mary Novakovich
Lack of education for prisoners serving longer sentences
Inmates serving four years or more are missing out as training is geared towards those serving shorter sentences
Prison education is failing to meet the needs of people serving longer sentences, according to Ofsted.
While most jails are running training programmes for offenders detained for a year or less, the inspectorate has identified few if any with learning strategies for those inside for four years and more.
Programmes are designed around the average lengths of stay in particular institutions and do not suit prisoners who stay for longer or who move on to another jail, Ofsted finds.
The absence of a national system for recording offenders' progress severely hinders their chances of continuing to advance when transferred to another institution or when they are freed, conclude two reports by the inspectorate into education for long- and short-serving offenders.
Ofsted's chief inspector, Christine Gilbert, said: "The learning needs of long- and short-term offenders are particularly challenging and complex, but it's crucial their needs are met and every learning opportunity is fulfilled."
She called for "greater overall consistency in the provision of learning programmes and a national system for recording data, so that offenders are given every opportunity to progress and develop their skills during the period of their custody and on release".
Roughly two-thirds of those in prison have poor literacy or numeracy, or both. A good range of programmes is available when individuals' needs are identified, Ofsted has found. Some courses concentrate on reading, writing and arithmetic, and other vocational programmes – catering or physical education, say - include these basic skills in their training.
But the great majority of prisons report high numbers of offenders nearing the end of long sentences who still have poor literacy and numeracy. Although staff in most prisons recognise that poor basic skills hinder eventual job prospects, it does not seem to be realised that they also prevent offenders getting the full benefit of other vocational and social activities while inside.
"In particular, learning and skills strategies do not recognise the need and benefit of improving these skills to a level where other programmes, such as offending behaviour programmes, become more accessible and beneficial," says the report into offenders on longer sentences.
"They do not give sufficient emphasis to the benefits of developing these skills early on in an offender's sentence."
Ofsted wants the Learning and Skills Council and the National Offender Management Service to find ways of improving literacy, numeracy and language programmes.
More account should be taken of the limitations on offenders on short sentences, many of whom are also on drug and alcohol detoxification.
In general, prisons need systems for diagnosing offenders' individual learning needs more quickly and accurately, the inspectorate recommends.
Prison education too often fails to build on offenders' existing skills and what they have picked up previously during their sentences, the report's compilers found on visits to 19 prisons.
"Advice and planning was predominantly focused on what was available in that prison rather than the long-term needs of the offender," says the report.
This tended to be designed around the average sentence in the prison and longer-term prisoners quickly exhausted what was on offer. This is a particular problem in open prisons.
"In one prison the curriculum repeated every six weeks and many offenders on long sentences had attended what was available and were left with few opportunities to develop further," the report notes.
Inspectors found little opportunity for prisoners possessing level 2 qualifications (five good GCSEs or the equivalent) to go further, though in "better prisons" there were some opportunities for them to work as peer mentors or train as guidance workers.
All of the prisons visited offered distance-learning programmes – Open University degrees, for instance – for inmates with the ability and time to do them. But above level 2, these are not usually publicly funded. Offenders need to pay themselves or find the fees from charity.
In each of the prisons visited, between 20 and 50 offenders were on distance-learning programmes. The better prisons gave them effective support, providing a dedicated study room with tutor support and computers.
Working alongside professionals
At first glance you would assume that all the men learning how to install and repair gas cookers and boilers were prisoners, but you would be wrong.
Some of those working in pairs and small groups have come from outside.
In an arrangement probably unique in the prison system, inmates at HMP Spring Hill in Buckinghamshire are able to do training courses alongside professional plumbers and tradesmen who have popped in to update their skills.
"This course has given me a qualification which I can use to get full-time employment as a gas fitter," Paul, one of the first prisoners to be offered a place on the scheme, told the Ofsted in-house magazine. "The future for me now is positive. I am looking forward to coming out of prison and going straight."
Colin Wilson, an engineer based in Watford, only realised he would be training inside a prison alongside prisoners when he turned up to start his course. "It makes no difference to me, I treat everybody the same," he said. "All the guys here get on and we learn a lot off each other."
The prison provides free premises for a training company on the understanding that prisoners can take advantage of its courses, which include training for jobs in the health and leisure industry.
A gym and fitness centre, being built by prisoners using bricklaying skills they have been taught at Spring Hill will be open not just to trainees from outside but also to members of the public. The gas training centre was also built by prisoners, saving public money. There are plans to develop a facility for an agricultural college, enabling prisoners to train for careers in farming and horticulture.
Spring Hill, Britain's first open prison, houses 334 male prisoners, most serving between four and 10 years, but some doing life and preparing to resettle into the community. Every morning, up to half leave the prison for college or to work for local businesses – either on placement or as full-time, paid employees.
Prisoners are encouraged to pursue a range of courses, from cookery to music technology, run by Milton Keynes College.
Ofsted inspectors have commended this "entrepreneurial" approach and "outstanding partnership working" that has enabled Spring Hill to develop its wide range of employability programmes.
"The more ways we can help prisoners to learn, the better," says Andy Woodley, head of learning and skills at the prison.
"Giving prisoners the skills they need to find meaningful employment after release means they are much less likely to reoffend. Our reoffending rate is just 5%, compared to a national average of 70%. We feel we are making a difference."
London Business School celebrates generous scholarship pledge
The FINANCIAL -- London Business School is delighted to announce a donation of £96,000 from the Anno Domini Capital Group.
The gift has been pledged for an initial period of three years and will be used to provide full tuition funding for one full-time Masters in Finance student each year. The first scholarship will be awarded in June 2009 to a candidate starting the programme in September 2009.
The Anno Domini Scholarship has been established to help attract excellent candidates to London Business School's full-time Masters in Finance programme from the Eastern European and former Soviet Union regions. Scholarship applicants must have professional experience in the region, demonstrate a commitment to the region's socio-economic progress and be planning to return to their home country following graduation.
The founder of Anno Domino Capital Group, Vladimir Vendin (MiF98), commented on the gift, saying, "I graduated from the London Business School Masters in Finance programme in 1998 right before the financial crisis in Russia. The knowledge I received when studying at the School helped me to adapt to a new environment and make a successful career and subsequently start my own business. I personally know how important it is to combine practical experience with academic knowledge. In the current times, when all sectors and markets and, subsequently, people, are seriously hit by the global economic crisis, many of the young bright people from the region are unable to finance their education. I believe that only with the help of highly educated young professionals will it be possible to overcome the consequences of the current turmoil. I hope that our scholarship will help those who want to contribute to the future of their countries and the region to receive an education from one of the best business schools in Europe."
Education key to treating hockey head injuries
Warriors in the battle against hockey concussions received a clear message on how to proceed today.
“Education, education, education,” Dr. David Mulder, team doctor of the Montreal Canadiens, told a high-profile London Hockey Concussion Summit panel.
The panel included several of North America’s leading experts on the topic, former NHLers Eric Lindros, Jeff Beukeboom, Alyn McCauley and Marc Moore and former Canadian women’s team star Jennifer Botterill.
“Educate the players; reassure them they’ll be coming back,” said Mulder, an Order of Canada recipient in 1997, and a thoracic surgeon with an interest in trauma.
“Educate management,” Mulder continued. “The financial implications (of injuries) in pro hockey are enormous. “Educate the public. There are only 700 players in the NHL but there are thousands and thousands of young players out there,” he said.
The Canadian Medical Association Journal estimates Canada's annual hockey registration is about 500,000 males and females, and that 10 to 12 per cent of them — more than 50,000 players — will sustain a head injury, the most common being a concussion.
Paul Echlin, a London primary care doctor and chairperson of the one-day immersion course on concussions, said these figures cover only those injuries reported and could be low by 50 per cent.
Among the day’s topics, which ranged from defining concussions and their incidence and treatment to testimonials from the former players, a hot button was when players should be allowed to resume playing.
steve.coad@sunmedia.ca
EDUKEX set to start on Jan 21
KUWAIT CITY, Jan 18: The British Embassy announced Sunday, during a press conference held at the British Embassy, the holding in Kuwait of the British Council’s annual Education UK Exhibition or EDUKEX on Jan 21 & 22. A total of 41 education institutions from across the UK — Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and England — will be represented in the two-day education exhibition.
The British Ambassador to Kuwait Michael Aron told newsmen “the high academic quality of education in the UK is widely recognized and as a result, UK qualifications are sought all over the world and offer unparalleled value to those wanting to build their careers or continue their personal development. A UK education is an investment for life for students, as well as those who seek to employ them.”
‘EDUKEX 2009’ brings together a large number of prestigious UK institutions which offer everything from academic and vocational programmes to summer English language courses and A levels, according to Graham McClulloch, Director of the British Council in Kuwait. “It is the perfect opportunity to meet a wide variety of UK institutions under one roof and be able to compare what’s on offer - all with the guarantee of quality that comes with selecting the UK as an overseas study destination,” he said. The UK, according to McCulloch, is a highly cosmopolitan country with a rich and vibrant culture in which to lives a student. “The ease in getting around offer overseas students the opportunity to experience everything from its history and stunning scenery to the latest fashions, music, sports and theatre.
“With the advantage of being near to Kuwait with a flight time of only around 6 hours and the current weakening of the Sterling, it’s comparatively cheaper than ever to study in the UK!” he exclaimed. McCulloch also said EDUKEX 2009 will also explore possibilities of establishing links with Kuwaiti education institutions like the Public Authority for Applied Education & Training who will be able to send Kuwaiti students interested in furthering their studies, to the UK.
He also recommended that those going to the event to register online by visiting http://kw.educexhibitions.org/ to ensure that institutions and the British Council-Kuwait will have their details in advance so as to save them time at the exhibition. Details of the 41 participating institutions in EDUKEX 2009 can also be found upon registering online, or at www.britishcouncil.org/me.kw
Dr Faiz Al Dhafeeri, Cultural Officer at the Kuwait Embassy in the UK, thanked the British Government and the British Council, for providing Kuwaiti students the opportunity to obtain quality education in UK institutions of higher learning.
He also announced that in view of the growing interest among Kuwaiti students to study overseas to obtain higher education — the bulk of which is to the UK — the Kuwaiti government has recently increased the number of scholarships slots from 350 to 1,500.
Dhafeeri also said that there is a need for working professionals such as those in learning institutions, to be given the opportunity to work or take up further studies in the UK to broaden their experience and see things from a Kuwaiti perspective and to apply what they have learned, in their jobs on their return, and vice versa, for those from the UK, in a sort of exchange program.
Denise Waddingham, British Council Asst. Director said that the council’s work is about building relationships through various aspects. She said that a group of Kuwaiti musicians have been invited to take part in an upcoming music festival in the UK and for a similar arrangement for UK musicians to come to Kuwait.
The purpose of the visit is to explore ways for Kuwaiti and British musicians to work together in a musical collaboration.
Rafat Abu Taleb, the British Council’s Project Manager for Education, explained a number of advantages in studying in the UK by using the experience to prepare for their future by getting valuable work experience, improving their language skills and enhancing their CVs.
International students can also use their study visa to get part-time work up to 20 hours a week during term time, work full-time during holidays and work full-time at the end of their studies after their course has finished up until their immigration permission to stay in the UK expires.
Abu Taleb also said that in addition, most graduates, under the new Post-Study Worker category of visas, will likely be able to work in the UK for up to two years after the successful completion of their course.
“International students in the UK any member of their family who travels with them to the UK are also entitled to free or subsidized treatment in the UK under the National Health Service or NHS,” he concluded.
Abu Taleb also recommended visiting www.educationuk.org to read up an information sheet advising how to check whether the institution being considered and the qualifications it offers are recognized and accredited. This ensures that it will meet a minimum, threshold standard for quality. The sheet also gives some advice on how to compare the quality of institutions. The participating institutions:
Bangor University, Bath University, Brunel University, Cambridge Regional College, Cardiff University, Coventry University, David Game University, EF Brittin College, Heriot-Watt College, Keele University, Leeds Metropolitan University, Liverpool John Moores University, London South Bank University, Middlesex University, Newcastle University.
Nottingham Trent University, Queen Mary, University of London, Queen’s University Belfast, Swansea University, the University of Hull, The University of Liverpool, The University of Manchester, University of Aberdeen, Scotland, University of Bradford, University of Central Lancashire.University College of London, University of Derby, University of East Anglia, University of Exeter, University of Glamorgan.
University of Glasgow, University of Cloucestershire, University of Greenwich (London), University of Huddersfield, University of Kent, University of Leeds, University of Plymouth, University of Portsmouth, University of Southampton, University of Sussex, and University of Teesside.
The British Council works in 110 countries worldwide to build engagement and trust for the UK through the exchange of knowledge and ideas between people worldwide, through the arts, education and training, science and technology, sport, good governance and human rights. It is a non-political organization, registered as a charity in England and Scotland, which operates at arm’s length from government.
