The indisputable success of the UK’s universities over recent decades has been built on four bulwarks: steady growth in student demand, relatively generous funding arrangements, protective and supportive regulation and sustained public and political goodwill. But all of those bulwarks are being seriously eroded by political and market currents. Since 2006, total UK university revenues […] … learn more→
Monthly Archives: March 2018

Universities must become the Googles and Amazons of public life

A flawed formula: Who benefits most from campus-based aid?
The trio of financial support to students known as campus-based aid includes Perkins loans, Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (SEOG), and Federal Work-Study (FWS). Unlike more popular federal student aid programs, like Pell grants and the Federal Direct Loans, only students at participating institutions can receive campus-based aid, and funds are limited and typically awarded to […] … learn more→

What the National school walkout says about schools and free speech
Thousands of high school students across the nation left their classesMarch 14 precisely at 10 a.m. for 17 minutes. The walkout served two purposes: to honor the 17 people – including 14 students – killed exactly one month ago at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, and to call for stronger gun control laws. Organized by a Women’s March unit called […] … learn more→

Australia doesn’t have too many universities. Here’s why
Recent closures and transfers of university campuses and the University of Wollongong’s opening of a campus in Liverpool in southwestern Sydney reflect more general changes in Australian universities. This is affecting not only campuses but faculties, study modes and student groups. It may even have implications for some universities’ future. Australia does not have too many universities, overall. The median student […] … learn more→

How to close a University?
When the government shut down Corinthian, it was a complete disaster. Now, it wasn’t a disaster for the administration of Corinthian, they all got huge golden parachutes. It was an inconvenience for faculty, but they were all being paid starvation wages as adjuncts, so the loss of the minimal paychecks wasn’t so bad, and […] … learn more→

Booze and basketball: Why binge drinking increases during March Madness
For every tip-off during March Madness, it’s a sure bet that students at the schools playing in the basketball tournament will be tipping up more beer bottles than usual. This was one of the key findings of an analysis we conducted recently on the impact of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament on college students’ drinking behavior. We are […] … learn more→

#NeverAgain: do student protests work? History tells us they can
When 17 students and teachers were murdered on what should have been a peaceful school day, students across the US took to the streets to demand change. The outpouring of protests in the wake of the tragic mass-shooting in Parkland, Florida earlier this year is an important reminder that students can challenge the status quo. […] … learn more→

Leaving the Valley of Shit
“Today I got a date with my jury. So. Well. Pretty excited about it” I announced my impeding PhD thesis defence to a friend with these words. And yet, the feeling was much more complex than just excitement. It was difficult to find the right words to express the intricate mix of fear, excitement, […] … learn more→

Five things parents can do every day to help develop STEM skills from a young age
Educators and researchers agree early literacy experiences are important for children’s cognitive and language development. For the past 30 years there has been a strong movement to foster children’s literacy skills. This has resulted in an abundance of information on how parents can do this by reading books, singing songs and nursery rhymes, playing word […] … learn more→

Teaching students how to dissent is part of democracy
In scenes unprecedented in previous school shootings, the past few weeks have been marked by students taking to the streets, to the media, to corporations and elected officials in protest over gun practices and policies. Responses to these teens have been mixed. Some have celebrated their passion. Some concluded that the students are immature and don’t yet fully grasp longstanding issues with […] … learn more→